Wisdom from The Action Wisdom In Action

If you have been on Garrett Highway in Oakland in recent weeks, you have no doubt noticed that Beitzel Co. is laying the ground work for the new Lowes home improvement store. It's really amazing to me to see how quickly the earth was moved and storm water management ponds were built. I, for one, am excited about the prospects of having a home improvement store with this amount of on-site selections available locally. I know it will have an impact on local businesses, and that is part of competition. Theorhetically, it will drive prices down for consumers here, and that is good news in these tough economic times. The gas we save from driving to Morgantown, WV; Uniontown, PA; or Cumberland, MD (which are the closest stores in the chain) will add up very quickly.

One downside of this is the amount of home improvements I have put off over the years. Now it looks like I will be forced to spend that extra gas money on fixing leaky faucets and replacing older fixtures...

AFTER YEARS OF WAITING, anticipation, and yes, occasional irritation, particularly for Oakland residents who live along Third Street and other parts south of the railroad tracks, construction is now well under way on the new bridge that will span the tracks. Because the project involved the “coming together” of a number of property owners, the railroad, several utility companies, and a variety of government agencies, progress was, not surprisingly, exceedingly slow for several years. While things are moving along well now, the new bridge will likely not be completed and open for traffic until next spring. Photo by John McEwen.

Decline in building permits puts Garrett in line with national trend
Sarah Moses
Cumberland Times-News
OAKLAND - Building permits in Garrett County are down for the year to date by almost 10 percent when compared to this time last year, a trend that has continued since the peak of building in 2004."I think it's following the national trend," Jim Torrington, chief of the county's permits and inspections division, told the county commissioners at their Tuesday meeting. "Though I've talked to some contractors who think they will be up."Commissioner Fred Holliday commented that each year there has been a decrease, with contractors saying there would be an increase.Torrington said the contractors have been keeping busy despite the downturn.The biggest decline in building permits for the first five months was in residential permits, with a drop of 16.3 percent in single-family homes, 33.3 percent in double-wides and 50 percent in mobile homes.Increases in duplex permits have occurred, with four permits issued as opposed to one by this time last year.Commercial and industrial properties are also on the rise, with 36 permits issued from January to May. This is 14 more than last year, and 17 more than in 2004, when overall building permits were at their highest.Despite the increases in commercial and industrial properties, like other permit areas, the average declared value is considerably less than previous years, with the average at $98,789, where it was $351,522 last year.The largest amount of the total value of the properties to be built remains at Deep Creek Lake, with 67 percent of the total $29,854,301 to be constructed. About half of the homes to be constructed in the county and a like amount of the total square footage will be at the lake. This puts both the percentage of value and permits higher at the lake than it has been in five years."Things have gone down considerably from where we were," John Nelson, director of planning and land development, said. "Hopefully, things will turn around."

Contact Sarah Moses at smoses@times-news.com.