The Tri-County Regional Planning Commission’s 2023 Building Activity Report, released today, shows Dauphin and Perry counties continuing to experience building growth over the previous year, with slight differences in most of the activity sectors.
RESIDENTIAL
Dauphin County’s municipalities issued permits for 905 new residential units in 2023, up from 784 in 2022. Perry County experienced a decrease, with 65 permits in 2023 compared to 117 in 2022.
Susquehanna Township was the municipality with the largest increase in new housing permits at 341, with 128 for townhouse development and 144 for multi-family apartments. It also had the largest number of single-family home permits at 69, with Lower Paxton Township in second place with 65.
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
2023 saw mixed trends in commercial development, with an increase in the number and value of new developments and a decrease in commercial expansions.
The counties issued 62 permits for new commercial facilities -- 54 in Dauphin County and 8 in Perry County -- up from 36 combined in 2022. The value of new commercial development in Dauphin County was $94.9 million in 2023, up from $35 million in 2022. The value of new commercial development in Perry County was about $939,000 in 2023, up from $850,000 in 2022.
In Dauphin County, commercial improvements and expansions decreased in number but remained stable in value. They decreased from 478 permits in 2022 to 354 in 2023, while the value remained comparable at $106 million in 2023 and $104 million in 2022. Perry County also had a decrease in permits, from 10 valued at $1.1 million in 2022 to 7 valued at $408,900 in 2023.
INDUSTRIAL
Perry County had no industrial activity again in 2023. Dauphin County had 3 new industrial permits at a value of $103 million. Permits for industrial improvements and expansions in Dauphin County decreased from 24 valued at $30.6 million in 2022 to 12 valued at $19 million in 2023.
Overall, this report shows a continued pattern of building the local tax-base and providing new job opportunities. 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.
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CONTACT: TCRPC Executive Director Steve Deck, AICP, (717) 234-2639
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