Somehow, winter seems to bring us all to our annual health check. The post-holiday reset, the new year’s resolutions, the running shoes that might’ve got lost because of winter blues and an overall “how am I actually doing?”. So what better time than now to take a big-picture look at the current health of the local construction market?
There are some news-worthy things happening – Boy’s Town development and the continuing development of downtown to name a few. The Boy’s Town project will be a long one, with development beginning this summer on the campus for Berkshire Hathaway’s Applied Underwriters, with a completion date of 2019. Plans for the rest of the 500-acre area include 2.3 million square feet of commercial space, a hotel, retailers, 10 miles of walking paths, green space and approximately 2,000 homes. These homes won’t be your average “new housing development” style. They are to remain reminiscent of the early 20th century, in Tudor, Craftsman and Colonial styles, according to Omaha.com.
As for downtown, the shared vision for a more connected downtown are being put to work in the form of plans and goals within the new non-profit group called Midtown 2050 Corp. Hopes for a streetcar system and additional developments to revitalize downtown Omaha are part of their vision. We’re smelling construction here – and lots of it.
While this only covers a couple of the BIG projects happening around Omaha, there’s plenty more in store. With the housing market predicted to top last year’s growth, it’s unlikely residential building will slow down. And the commercial market seems to be following the same trend of growth, but perhaps a little faster in our opinion. Just take a look at what’s happening in Omaha:
On top of all this, everyone we talk to in the industry echoes the same line – “we can’t get our hands on enough workers right now”. Oh, and did we mention we’re hiring? Get in touch if you’re interested in a position with us.