New residential construction in Tooele is declining in 2009 for a fourth straight year, according to the number of single-family building permits issued by Tooele City through the end of October.

The number of permits issued as of Oct. 31 was 47, compared to 62 issued over the same time period in 2008 — a 24 percent decline.

“It is the economy along with the turmoil in the finance market,” said Richard Jorgensen, Tooele City land use technician. “When things improve, building will pick back up.

Chris Sloan, managing broker of Group 1 Real Estate in Tooele and president of the Utah Association of Realtors, agreed the recession has hit Tooele homebuilders hard, but is also optimistic.

“Incentives like the home run grant from the state for new construction are working,” Sloan said. “We are seeing an improvement in home sales and construction statewide. I am optimistic that a new rebound will bring builders back to Tooele.”

There are recent signs that rebound may be beginning.

“October was a bright spot,” Jorgensen said. “With nine permits issued, it was the single largest number of permits issued in one month since 11 were issued in July of 2008. That may not seem like a lot, but it was an increase. It is too early to see if that is a trend. With the cold winter months ahead, construction usually makes a downturn until the spring.”

The total value of all construction in Tooele City, residential and commercial, is up 17 percent from last year, growing from $17 million to $20 million. The value of commercial construction rose to more than fill the gap created by the decline in residential construction. In 2008, commercial construction was valued at $8 million. As of October 2009, commercial construction has totaled $12 million — a 50 percent increase with two months of data yet to include.

The largest contributor to that growth is the Mountain States Asphalt plant built on the Utah Industrial Depot. That facility accounts for about $5 million, according to Jorgensen.

“The majority of the new residential building permits have been issued to Fieldstone’s Copper Canyon and Hallmark Home’s Sunset Estates, both on the northeast side of Tooele,” said Jorgensen.

Prior to 1994, the number of single-family building permits was fairly level. From 1989 to 1993, the city averaged 28 permits per year. In 1994, that number jumped to 70 permits, which began a five-year climb that peaked in 1999 at 727 permits.

“Builders and buyers discovered that land out here was less expensive,” said Jorgensen. “People also started to realize that Tooele isn’t that far from Salt Lake. I still have people telling me that they can get to downtown Salt Lake faster from Tooele than they can from Sandy.”

During the boom years, Jorgensen said the city processed over 50 building permits per month.

“Now we are doing that many in a year,” Jorgensen said. “But the October bump may be the start of something. Land here is still much lower in price than in Salt Lake.”

Tim Gillie: tgillie@tooeletranscript.com