Following a busy year for building in 2019-20, new housing construction slowed in Powell over the last fiscal year.

The City of Powell issued 14 permits for single-family homes during the past fiscal year, which ran from July 1, 2020, through June 30. That was six fewer than the prior year, which saw a recent peak of 20 new single-family homes.

Powell did see an uptick in new duplexes over the past year. Three new duplexes were permitted in 2020-21, compared to just one the year before. 

The City of Powell requires permits for new construction, as well as additions and alterations, such as new roofs and patios.

There were more permits issued for non-residential additions/alterations over the past year, with 67 permits compared to 36 the previous year.

Overall, the City of Powell issued 398 permits in the most recent fiscal year — down about 6% from the previous year’s total of 423. 

Although more permits were issued in the past two years, the total valuation is actually down from 2018-19. That year, thanks to some large-scale projects like industrial buildings and apartment complexes, the city issued 307 permits for projects that were estimated to cost nearly $11.7 million. By comparison, the valuation for the projects permitted in 2020-21 was roughly $5.8 million, or about half the total from two years ago.

— Tessa Baker