Government staffing shortages adding to construction delays

Demand for housing on Prince Edward Island continues to grow, but some in the construction industry say they're facing major delays in getting projects approved.

Some municipalities and the province are dealing with staffing shortages for permits and approvals, leading to greater delays and backlogs.

Deputy Mayor Alana Jankov, chair of the Charlottetown's planning department, says they're down five employees. 

"Definitely the delays are there," Jankov said. "I can't say for sure the exact timelines but if you are looking … to put shovels in the ground, you should be applying a year out right now. There is some frustration but people understand the city's growing."

The province says there's also a shortage of provincial building inspectors, who make sure projects meet national building code.

As P.E.I.'s population tops 178,000, the province and Charlottetown say they're working to hire more staff.

That's welcome news for Ajay Punnapadam of Confederation Construction and Interiors.

He said when he built a multi-unit project in Eastern P.E.I. it took months to get approvals.

"We've had crazy months of delays. The very first project we did here took us nine whole months to get the approval. It was wooded land. We had to get building permits, developing permits." 

Now he's trying to stick with land that is zoned for development, and communities that have fewer delays. 

"I would love to be part of the solution of creating more and more housing," he said.