Construction activity took a step back in September after a strong finish to the summer, Dodge Construction Network reported Oct 17.
Total construction starts dipped 6% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.1 trillion, according to Dodge. But if additional interest rate cuts materialize in the coming months as expected, steadier growth in construction starts should emerge early next year, said Richard Branch, chief economist of Dodge Construction Network.
“Construction starts are treading water,” said Branch. “September’s rate cut was just the first step in unwinding a period of high interest rates and several more cuts will be needed to start moving construction projects through the planning process to start.”
Here are the nine largest U.S. projects to break ground in September:
- The $2.9 billion UCSF Helen Diller Medical Center in San Francisco.
- The $848 million Hillview Reservoir in Yonkers, New York.
- The $800 million Project Cosmo data center in Laramie County, Wyoming.
- $779 million worth of bridge projects at I-95 and I-10 in Providence, Rhode Island.
- The $775 million Coolidge Generating Station natural gas expansion in Coolidge, Arizona.
- The $666 million Microsoft data center in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin.
- The $221 million Ray Nashville mixed-use project in Nashville, Tennessee.
- A $152 million mixed-use project in Jersey City, New Jersey.
- The $150 million Lifetime Living Tower in Phoenix.
Starts’ YTD growth
Total construction starts remain up 2% in the first nine months of the year compared to the same period in 2023, according to Dodge.
Nonresidential starts jumped 2% year to date, while residential starts gained 7%. Nonbuilding starts, such as highways, bridges and utility plants, decreased 3% through the first nine months compared to last year.
Monthly numbers were more volatile. Nonresidential construction starts also fell 6% in September, largely due to a 30% drop in manufacturing projects and a 10% decline in institutional activity, such as education and healthcare, according to the report. However, strong activity in warehouses, offices and data centers pushed commercial starts up 9% over the 30 day period.
Nonbuilding construction decreased 11% in September, primarily due to a 30% drop in utility and gas plant starts and a 13% drop in environmental public works. Residential starts ticked down 1% in September due to a 6% dip in multifamily groundbreakings, according to Dodge.