Report: South Dakota Lost 1,400 Construction Jobs

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A national trade organization estimates the number of lost construction jobs in South Dakota at 1,400 during a year in which a weak economy and tight credit slowed developers and builders.

The 6 percent drop in South Dakota jobs, from 23,300 in September 2008 to 21,900 a year later, was the seventh smallest percentage change nationally, according to Associated General Contractors of America.

The Upper Midwest is more stable overall in construction activity year to year, said Toby Crow, executive vice president of Associated General Contractors of South Dakota.

“Obviously, we haven’t seen the downturns that many of the other states have, but we don’t usually see the huge upturns either,” he said.

“We didn’t have the 20 percent increases in home values every year like they had in the West or East Coast and things like that. We often don’t see the peaks and valleys. We kind of just follow along on a little more even keel.”

AGC put North Dakota’s job loss at 0.5 percent, Nebraska’s at 3 percent, and Iowa’s at 11.6 percent.

Year-to-year job losses of 25 percent or more were reported in Nevada and Arizona. Louisiana was the only state to show growth in construction jobs at 2.1 percent.

Crow said construction in the state slowed in all areas _ commercial, residential, and public works.

“The (federal)) stimulus money going into some of the public works and transportation kept those (job loss) numbers from being larger here in South Dakota, but obviously we’re still down even with the stimulus.”

ACG South Dakota represents nonresidential construction and has a membership of around 500, evenly divided between contractors and associate members who sell equipment, supplies or building materials.

Contractors are curtailing nonessential spending, Crow said.

“They’re just not buying anything,” he said. “You ask any of the equipment companies and there’s nobody buying any new equipment. Their (number of) leases are up – people are leasing instead of buying – but waiting on new purchases longer.”

Crow said he expects seasonal winter layoffs as usual, but perhaps not as many because summer hiring for the construction season was down.

He said privately financed jobs will likely lead the turnaround in South Dakota, especially if it becomes easier to get financing.

A 10 percent drop in the value of 2010 construction projects is possible, he said.

“I don’t expect 2010 to be good by any means, but I do think we’re close to the bottom. We’re not falling off the cliff like we were there for a while.”