'A perfect storm': Vancouver Island construction industry warns of significant delays and cost overruns
The success of Vancouver Island's construction industry might also be its post-pandemic downfall.
"I think we have what could be considered a perfect storm," said CEO of the Vancouver Island Construction Association, Rory Kulmala.
As the demand for large-scale developments boom, especially on southern Vancouver Island, the industry says major supply concerns and labour shortages will have an impact.
"That is going to reflect in itself much longer schedules and higher costs," Kulmala told CTV Vancouver Island on Tuesday.
The construction association says building permits for commercial, multi-residential and single-family homes have climbed year-over-year for the past half decade.
This year the association expects a 30 per cent increase in permits from 2020, which would represent a record year.
Multi-residential, or condo and apartment building permits, are the hottest sector.
Victoria city staff tell CTV News that the pace of major development applications in 2021 is the highest they have ever seen.
As demand booms, an already stressed sector will no doubt bend under the immense pressure.
This week, the Greater Victoria School District announced its Victoria High School redevelopment is far behind schedule.
"The school will open in September of 2023 instead of September of 2022," said Jim Soles, manager of Major Capital Projects for SD61.
Market forces have hit the large-scale seismic upgrade hard, pushing it a year behind its projected completion date.
"Trades cannot guarantee tight schedules because of a shortage of workers and the supply chain is causing problems," said Soles.
What does this all mean for the average Vancouver Islander?
Vancouver Island's Construction Association says work will not stop, but getting things done will likely take longer and hit your wallet harder.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.