VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – People in the construction industry are beaming at the latest numbers showing how vibrant building activity has been in Vancouver in the last six months.

The value of building permits is up 40 per cent compared to the same time frame last year. A total of $1.1 billion worth of permits even exceeds the amount in 2008, right before the recession.

Keith Sashaw with the Vancouver Regional Construction Association says the mini-boom is happening in the industrial, commercial and residential sectors.

He notes even new office towers are coming up. “There are three underway right now, and a couple more working their way through the approval process. We haven’t seen office towers built in the downtown core since the 70s or 80s,” he notes.

Sashaw credits the economy for attracting investors and fueling construction not only in Vancouver, but right across the province.

“They are looking at Canada and BC as good places to invest. We’ve got a stable economy, we’ve got a sound political structure and lots of opportunities.”

And he points out building permits ultimately represent jobs in construction.  According to the mayor’s office, 6,000 jobs were created by this year’s construction activity.