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The Tri-County Regional Planning Commission’s 2022 Building Activity Report shows Dauphin and Perry counties continuing to experience building growth over the previous year, with slight differences in most of the activity sectors.
“This year’s Building Activity Report shows strong residential activity in Dauphin and Perry counties as well as extensive reinvestment in commercial and industrial facilities,” TCRPC Executive Director Steve Deck said.
RESIDENTIAL
In residential development, Dauphin County’s municipalities issued permits for 783 new residential units in 2022, an increase from 653 in 2021. Perry County experienced a slight decrease, with 117 permits in 2022 compared to 120 in 2021.
Susquehanna Township was the municipality with the largest increase in new housing permits at 328, with 249 for townhouse development. Lower Paxton Township issued the largest number of single family home permits at 122. The area’s residential growth continues to occur primarily in the first-ring suburbs with smaller, infill development, matching the national trend in which residents prefer living on smaller lots closer to amenities and services.
COMMERCIAL
The region’s new commercial development decreased in 2022. This was not unexpected due to economic uncertainties over inflation and supply chain challenges.
The two counties issued 36 permits for new commercial facilities -- 32 in Dauphin and 4 in Perry -- a decrease from 54 total in 2021. The value of new commercial development in Dauphin County was $35 million in 2022, a decrease from $110.3 million in 2021. The value of new commercial development in Perry County was $850,000 in 2022, a decrease from $1.3 million in 2021.
In Dauphin County the number of commercial improvements and expansions increased from 398 permits in 2021 to 478 in 2022, with a value of $104 million. Perry County also saw a permit increase, from 6 in 2021 to 11 in 2022, with a value of $1.1 million.
INDUSTRIAL
Perry County again had no industrial activity. Dauphin County had four new industrial permits, all issued by Londonderry Township, at a value of $57 million. Dauphin County’s permits for industrial improvements and expansions increased from 19 in 2021, valued at $6.3 million, to 24 in 2022, valued at $30.6 million. Londonderry Township issued 14 of the expansion and improvement permits, valued at $24.8 million.
"Overall, the figures in this report demonstrate a continued pattern of building the local tax-base and providing new job opportunities," Deck said. "If the inner-ring suburbs continue to grow, it will be crucial to link the region’s transportation options with our land use regulations to ensure that the built environment we desire is achieved and accessible to all, as recommended in TCRPC’s Regional Growth Management Plan."