West 麻豆精选 city councillors are raising red flags after a significant drop in construction value was revealed in the city鈥檚 latest quarterly development report.
During the July 22 council meeting, Coun. Stephen Johnston noted that the construction value for the second quarter of 2025 had dropped to just $18 million, a steep decline from over $123.5 million reported in the same period last year.
鈥淭hat is a significant reduction,鈥� Johnston said. 鈥淎nd we鈥檙e feeling that too. Across the industry, we鈥檙e seeing a real slowdown in the construction of single-family homes, duplexes and even multifamily.鈥�
While the five-year average for second-quarter construction value sits just above $63 million, this year鈥檚 total fell well below that benchmark.
The number of building permits issued also declined. The city processed 149 permits in Q2 of this year, compared to 183 in 2024. The five-year Q2 average is 205.
At the same time, planning application numbers were up slightly. West 麻豆精选 received 25 applications in Q2 2025 compared to 22 during the same period last year.
Johnston pointed to what he sees as a growing issue across B.C.
鈥淐ertainly at the provincial level, they鈥檙e layering on excess regulation, red tape, bureaucracy and expense,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat directly counteracts the ability to create affordable housing.鈥�
He encouraged the city to keep the issue front and centre.
鈥淟et鈥檚 make it top of mind, to see where we can help streamline the process to help the industry bounce back a little bit, and then hopefully respectfully ask the province to consider doing the same.鈥�
Coun. Carol Zanon also voiced concern about the financial implications of a sustained slowdown.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to cry wolf when I just see one number way off there,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut this is very concerning, particularly if this continues, because we need that construction value to go up to get the DCCs (development cost charges), because we need the money.鈥�
Zanon added that the city may need to revisit its long-term planning.
鈥淢aybe when we鈥檙e doing our strategic priorities, we鈥檙e going to have to think a little bit more about service delivery and how we can handle this.鈥�
