The Thompson-Nicola Regional District is expecting a spike in residential construction this spring.

Chief building inspector Pat Luscombe says applications to build resort homes in Tobiano are expected to be approved between now and the end of April.

He says overall, construction in the regional district this year is expected to outpace 2018.

“I seem to recall our provisional budget essentially forecasted about a four per cent increase in construction values for this year, based on the increase in construction values in the last three years. A relatively modest forecast for 2019.”

In the first two months of this year, construction value was nearly $10.9 millio. Luscombe says that’s mostly because of an $8-million-dollar permit for a new hotel in Clearwater.

“Those types of permits are fairly sporadic. We usually get those permits with such high construction values for commercial, industrial or institutional work. Additions to schools, new school construction, and some of the major commercial buildings are the hotel buildings. As well there’s multi-family apartment buildings in some of the smaller municipalities.”

Last year the TNRD issued $82 million worth of building permits.