Residential development surging in Cornwall

Cornwall, P.E.I., processed a record in residential building permits in 2019, and 2020 is shaping up to be a strong year as well.

"It is a little surprising," said planning and development manager Dean Lewis.

"We're very happy to see it and we're hoping it continues. It's substantial growth."

2019 was boosted partly by a provincial affordable housing initiative, which led to a number of apartment building projects. That particular category is down in 2020, but single-family residences and semi-detached homes are keeping pace.

"We have been planning for this or working toward this for some time now," said Lewis.

"There were a lot of concerns over the bypass opening and what that was going to do for the town."

Three major new subdivisions are well underway and are filling up quickly, Lewis said.

The recent growth spurt started in 2017, and continued through 2018 into the 2019 record year. A lot of the construction being done now is from 2019 permits, so construction work is now lined up for some time into the future.

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