Williston Permits, 2014 Vs 2013

From City Of Williston (the chart is undated, but I posted it this date). The most interesting thing I noticed: in 2013, total number of permits did not require a "000-comma" designator, whereas a "000-comma" designator was required in 2014.

Y-T-D Comparison of Building Permit Totals
2013 vs. 2014

 

Type of Permit	No. of Permits 2013	Value of Permits	No. of Permits 2014	Value of Permits
New Dwellings	124	$ 19,144,004.00	333	$59,899,126.32
Apartment Buildings	49 (1501 units)	$200,525,259.00	48 (1290 units)	$170,824,656.93
New Duplex	5 (12 units)	$ 1,693,019.00	3 (7 units)	$  1,029,924.05
Manufactured Homes	35	-	177	-
New Commercial/Industrial	58	$70,251,294.00	38	$203,411,832.96
Commercial Alteration	99	$46,893,382.00	143	$48,770,132.00
Garage & Accessory Bldgs.	58	$10,592,218.00	64	$  13,149,727.18
Residential Alterations	186	$ 3,663,934.00	155	$  3,256,726.16
Demolition	19	-	19	-
Moving	1	-	6	-
Site Grading	23	-	32	-
Temporary Structure	39	-	29	-
Total Year-to-Date	696	$352,763,110.00	1,047	$500,342,125.60

Dickinson Leads the State in Single Family Home Building Permits

Link here to KXNET.

In 2012 Dickinson led the way in the state, with 554 single family building permits, according to the North Dakota Association of Builders.

Bismarck comes in second with 426 single family building permits, but areas with heavy oil development are towards the end of the list, such as Williston with 198.

This is quite incredible. It was just a couple of years ago when MDW was blogging all those stories coming out of Dickinson that the residents were anti-growth. 

Bismarck is not even "near" the Bakken in the minds of some people: look at the growth there. Lots of CPAs needed to manage all the money coming into the capitol. Also, a lot of lobbyists to help the state legislators spend that money.

And then this:

"We've identified that we need over 880 dwelling units per year for the next ten years to meet the demands of our population gain," Kessel said.

Building Permits Setting Records In Minot: Will Surpass $300 Million For 2012

Link here to Minot Daily News:

According to the City of Minot Inspection Division, building permit activity in 2012 has totaled $291,737,436 as of Nov. 30. With one month left to go, it seems certain that Minot will pass the $300 million mark.

If so, this might require a re-look at an earlier Bismarck Tribune story regarding building permits in Williston, Fargo, and Minot.

Whatever.

From the Minot Daily News story:

Dee Falkinburg, a clerk in the city inspection office, stated the reason why quite succinctly.

"A whole lot of building going on," Falkinburg said.

More succinctly: "The Bakken."

Sunday Morning Links; Building Permits Exceed $400 Million This Year; Home of Economy Opens in Minot

Links sent in by readers, thank you.

From the Minot Daily News:

• Home of Economy opens new Minot store. Just in time for winter. Absolutely the best store in Williston/Minot for winter clothing.
• Old Williston school --- "Williston Junior High" -- to become apartments for seniors. 

From the Green Bay Press Gazette:

• Menard's is flying workers to Minot to staff store; previously reported

From The Bismarck Tribune:

• Williston permits exceed $400 million in 2012; more than Fargo and Minot combined; city will annex another 5,000 acres --> 13,000 acres for Williston [see this link comparing previous year's permitting stats]

Place under "EPA" in the "dog bites man" file cabinet in the basement

• From the Sidney Herald, study finds EPA regulations harm state's economy

This is a two-fer: The Dickinson Press gets to tweak the nose of the oil industry/Williston while sharing a nice human interest story. We don't often get these two-fers.  The Dickinson Press reports that the sky is the limit for a young Cody, Wyoming, man repairing windshields in Williston.

Williston, Minot Set New Permitting Records

First, Williston:

From KXNews television.

The Williston Herald reports that through October, 938 permits had been issued with a total value of $406 million. That broke last year's record of 929 permits totaling nearly $358 million.

Only $44 million worth of building permits were issued in Williston in 2009. That was more than doubled to $106 million in 2010.

2012 (through October): $406 million (see human interest story posted December 2, 2012)

2011 (full year): $358 million
2010 (full year): $106 million
2009 (full year): $44 million

I doubt this includes the permits for the newly announced "The Ridge at Harvest Hills." 

Now, Minot:

From KXNews television.

With two months left in the year, building permits have already shattered the record set last year in the city of Minot.

The dollar figure is massive -- in fact, in October of this year alone, about 65 million dollars worth of projects were given permits.

In the entire year of 2009 the dollar figure was about 66 million.

2012 (through October): $279 million
2011 (full year): $204 million
2009 (full year): $66 million

I find the 2009 figures for Minot and Williston interesting (comparing the two).

Duplexes

A reader just sent me this note as a comment which has been posted. Since folks may not read the comments, here it is, along with the link:

Good news for Williston! The Willistonnd.com site for building permits. Williston has surpassed the $400 million mark and they still have 2 months to go! Fargo will beat out Williston this time around though...they have a $500 million hospital out for bids...my guess the building permit has been submitted, so Fargo will probably be in the $800-900 million range.

http://www.cityofwilliston.com/DepartmentContent.aspx?DeptID=WND.CW.BNP&PageID=116

One big difference between 2011 and 2012: duplexes.

As of September 30, 2011: there were no permits for duplexes, accounting for about $12 million.

As of September 30, 2013: there were 35 permits for duplexes (70 units), $12 million. ($12 million/35 --> $350,000/duplex --> $175,000 home.)

I do not have any more information than this, but it certainly suggests the same thing that is very, very obvious in the suburbs of Boston: the huge number of duplexes. One almost gets the feeling that folks are paying for their home by renting out the other duplex unit. Very, very clever.

There has also been an increase in permits for apartments (numbers rounded):

As of September 30, 2011: $90 million for 725 units ($125,000/unit).

As of September 30, 2013: $135 million for 1,000 units ($135,000/unit).

Williston On Pace to Break Last Year's Record Building Permits, Dollars

Link here to The Williston Herald.

The department is trying to keep up as it’s on track to break last year’s record of 929 building permits totaling nearly $358 million.

At the end of September, the department had already approved 856 permits totaling nearly $288 million.

Building Permits in Williston Rise in 2012 -- This is Huge On So Many Levels -- Halliburton In The Housing/Real Estate Business -- Love's Trucking, Ditto

From the Williston Herald: building permits on the rise in 2012.

Data points:

July building permits: $50 million (rounded)
To date, through July 31, 2012: $190 million (for all of 2011: $355 million)
In July: housing - $15 million; commercial - $30 million

Weatherford International: tops in July with three permits at one location -- $12 million, $3 million, and $1.3 million
Schlumberger: two permits, $5 million; The Herald says the location is 13959 Highway 2; Google maps show this near the Montana state line; if so, this is well west of their huge new location nearer Williston

Mercy Medical Center: $2.7 million
Wyoming Casing Services: location yet to be determined
R&T Properties: two permits, $500,000 (separate/total?)

And this is why I noted that this is a huge story on so many levels:

• Halliburton received the most residential permits for their new permanent housing project on Sleepy Ridge Ave: two permits on new apartments valued at $3,793,758 and 10 permits on new Duplexes, all valued at $332,425.


• Love’s Travel Stops had a permit approved for a $900,000 apartment complex.   

I may be off-the-mark here, but $300,000 for a duplex doesn't seem too out of line; is that $150,000 for a housing unit? If so, are housing prices starting to moderate in Williston? Likewise, $900,000 for an apartment complex is not out-of-line at all. 

As noted a long, long time ago, BEXP also built houses for its employees, buying a whole development and putting in its own sewer and utilities because the city would not be able to get to it right away -- I don't know how accurate that is; not confirmed; from reliable source.

The Weatherford expansion was a huge story in mid-2011; it is amazing how fast/slow everything is moving in Williston. Whether it is fast/slow; accelerating/decelerating seems to depend on the observer.

For reference, the Herald reported back in early 2012:

The hub of North Dakota's oil boom issued a record number of building permits in 2011. The city issued more than $355 million worth of permits. That is more than three times what Williston issued in 2009.

At $190 million through July, 2012, the city is on pace to exceed the $355 million in permits last year.

Someone wrote to tell me yesterday the boom won't last forever. And that the oil will eventually run out. I think this boom is affecting the third generation of North Dakotans, and is the biggest boom to date. But yes, the boom won't last forever, and the oil will eventually run out.

As a reminder: CLR is stacking rigs; increasing CAPEX significantly; will increase wells drilled to 330 in 2012 (from 249 originally planned for 2012); and, had raised guidance on how much oil it expects to produce in the Bakken this year. One rig expense: $10 million/well/month. Stacking one rig: $120 million/year. Stacking five rigs: $600 million/year. Companies are stacking rigs and Schlumberger, Halliburton, and Weatherford increasing their footprint, and some are increasing their housing units for their employees. Investors take note.

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