Planning Commission’s 2020 Numbers

Despite the pandemic woes, Warren County growth remains strong. There was a dip in second quarter numbers, mostly in March, but April picked back up and activity continued to increase. Multi-family approvals are down from previous years, but continue to trend slightly upward as a whole. Multi-family numbers are expected to increase next year. Several hundred acres of land has been rezoned to industrial this year and that land has already began to fill up with announcements and new construction. This will keep demand for housing strong in our community as new residents come to live, work and support our local businesses. All of the increased activity, along with learning new ways to accomplish our duties has kept staff very busy this year.

To provide context of how growth has steadily continued despite the events and chaos of 2020, the table below depicts the growth numbers over the past nine years. 2020 was another record breaking year. While we didn’t break the record for new development approvals, the Planning Commission did receive the highest number of total building permits over the nine-year span and the third highest number of single family lots approved. Most of the increase in building permits can be attributed to home renovations, however new building has remained strong in the face of the pandemic.