Ontario Construction News staff writer
The COVID-19 pandemic has wrecked havoc on the overall economy and the construction industry, but Statistics Canada data suggests record breaking investment numbers in industrial, commercial and institutional construction within the province.
โOver $2.2 billion were invested in Ontarioโs ICI sector in June, 15 per cent more than any previous month this year,โ the Ontario General Contractorsโ Association (OGCA) reported in its weekly eletter last week. โLooking at the year so far (January-June), ICI investment in Ontario is nearly 5 per cent greater than the same period in 2019. All three sectors are up compared to the first half of last year as well.โ
โAgain, looking at the first half of this year, ICI investment is above 2019 numbers in 13 of Ontarioโs 16 metropolitan areas,โ the OGCA says, citing StatsCan data.
โIn London, ICI investment is up by half (51%), while Peterboroughโs investment value is 39% greater than the first half of 2019. There have also been double-digit increases in Guelph (29%), Windsor (24%), Thunder Bay (22%), Belleville (19%), Oshawa (17%), and Brantford (12%). ICI investment has grown by single-digits in the first half of 2020 in St. Catharines-Niagara (9%), Ottawa (7%), Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo (6%), Hamilton (4%), and Toronto (3%). The three metro areas with year-over-year drop-offs in investment are Barrie (-39%), Kingston (-17%), and Greater Sudbury (-8%).โ
โDespite these numbers, OGCA members remain uncertain about instability in the economic and construction market,.โ the association says. โThe OGCA also remains committed to advocating for much needed contractual relief for general contractors and investment in infrastructure projects.โ