Hartford Business Journal

10 Hartford Business Journal • April 29, 2019 • www.HartfordBusiness.com EXPERTS CORNER Key drivers behind new Greater Hartford residential development By Candace Adams W hile new construction permits were down 33.51 percent year-over-year for January and February, new develop- ments are still seeing success. For some buyers, the inability to find resale inventory that meets their needs is pointing them toward new construc- tion, while others are driven by the reputation of the specific developer. Regardless of what is leading buyers to new construction, the fundamentals of successful new development re- main consistent — put your resources behind delivering what buyers want most. Demand for walkable communities remains strong The popularity of new developments such as Kingswood Place and Arlington Place, nestled within walking distance of West Hartford Center and Blue Back Square, don't come as a surprise to those who follow the data on what buy- ers are looking for. The National Association of Realtors reports 62 percent of Millennials have a preference for walkable communities. Further, more than half of Americans are willing to trade a bigger yard for a location that lets them walk to commu- nity amenities. The desire for walkable communi- ties encompasses everything from single-family homes to condominiums and apartments. In South Windsor, the Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk are now home to Tempo, a luxury apartment development that is anchored by the mantra "Live. Dine. Shop." In addition to delivering on walkability, Tempo also touches upon another key attrac- tion for renters and buyers alike — the alluring lifestyle concept. FOCUS: Construction By Shawn R. Beals Special to the Hartford Business Journal C onnecticut's construction industry, still recov- ering from the Great Recession, is preparing for another uneasy period while state budget debates and spending plans from both parties promise sharp decreases in public spending. The industry, which has only re- gained 88 percent of the nearly 21,000 jobs lost from March 2008 to Feb. 2010, is off to a bumpy start in 2019, having shed 1,400 jobs since Janu- ary, although employment levels are higher than a year ago this time, ac- cording to state data. A likely decrease in legislative spending and Gov. Ned Lamont's "debt diet" are giving the state's com- mercial construction firms little rea- son to be optimistic about an influx of new work over the coming years, said Don Shubert, president of the Connecticut Construction Industries Association. "We haven't recovered completely since the recession. We're still down 7 percent from the peak, and the out- look is still shaky," Shubert said. "It's shakier than it's been in a long time. There's a lot of uncertainty right now in Connecticut as far as public construction." Construction jobs peaked in Con- necticut at 69,100 in June 2007 before bottoming out at 47,900 in March 2010, at the end of the recession, ac- cording to state Department of Labor statistics. As of March 31, there were 60,700 construction jobs in the state. The data show the decline in con- struction jobs was swift starting in early 2008 and the recovery was slow. After steady gains into 2016, the num- ber of construction jobs in the state leveled off but began to climb again late in 2018 before the recent dip. "Connecticut made pretty good strides in the last year and we'd hate to lose that," Shubert said. "We're still hanging on by our fingernails." The construction industry was im- mediately affected by the economic slowdown 10 years ago as the state and towns cut back on spending. Transportation projects, schools, public-safety buildings and other infrastructure work creates much of the business for firms in Connecticut, said Joseph Desautel, CEO of Downes Construction Co. in New Britain. "There will be a tighter market for the next couple of years until the state gets its budget straightened out," De- sautel said. "The state pumps a lot of money into the construction industry." Downes is celebrating its 85th an- niversary this year, and was one of the few fortunate firms in Connecti- cut no to have seen much of a slow- down during the recession. The proj- ects that got the company through 2010 had already been booked before the recession hit, said company Presi- dent John Downes. "We were certainly concerned about what was going to happen to the market during the recession," he said. "The way we managed it was we were very aggressive with our mar- keting and business development to increase our market share." Lately, the good news in the state has been in Fairfield County, where it's cheaper to build than in New York City, and in Hartford where companies like Stanley Black & Decker have com- mitted resources to the region and a wave of residen- tial developments downtown are still underway. "That's a very positive development and it means a lot of money coming in to revitalize Hartford, not just the commercial areas but also the resi- dential areas," said Nancy Greenwald, executive director of the Construction Institute at the University of Hartford. "The Connecticut recovery in general was slow, slower than the rest of the country, but construction is getting stronger in Connecticut. The question is where are things happening?" Looking elsewhere Greenwald agreed that budget- ary shuffling will likely delay some projects, but said other trends in Candace Adams Continues on page 13 >> Slow Rebuild Still not recovered from Great Recession, CT's construction industry fears another slowdown Don Shubert, President, Connecticut Construction Industries Association PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED An employee at New Britain-based Downes Construction Co. works on a job renovating Higgins Hall on Western Connecticut State University's Danbury campus. The construction industry is worried about the potential impact of reduced state spending and borrowing.

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