2008 wasn't a banner year, but it wasn't bad either

Though Kilgore's building permits were about half the amount of what they were in 2007, construction continued to boom in 2008 and the city's building inspector is positive about the future here.

Mike Green, director of community services, said building permits totaled $24,454,000 in 2008, less than half of the $51,275,603 spent on construction in 2007.

But 2007 was a banner year for the city, with new motels and commercial construction at an all-time high.

"In 2009, I think we will be about the same as 2008 — it's about the average," Green explained.

Big spenders last year included the Travel Mart on Hwy. 42 — which includes a Wendy's restaurant, bank and convenience store — which applied for a $3 million permit. Other large permits were: Kilgore Economic Development Corporation's second shell building at Synergy Park, $2.5 million; Comfort Suites motel, still under construction next door to Chili's restaurant, $2 million; and Halliburton Energy Service's $1 million warehouse on FM 349.

By comparison in 2007, Orgill Inc. built a $15 million distribution warehouse in Synergy Park and Bucyrus, which caters to the mining industry, constructed a new facility at North Kilgore Industrial Park for $7 million. Also, two motels, the Holiday Inn Express and the Hampton Inn, applied for $2.5 million and $3.5 million building permits, respectively. The former is now open for business; the latter is still under construction.

"We didn't do too bad in 2008. In my 33 years as inspector for the city, I've seen years where I hunted down people who bought a box of nails because we hardly had any construction at all," Green laughed. "That was the late '70s and early '80s and construction really got scarce at that time. We were doing good to have a $4 or $5 million year."

Green will retire from his post in March with 37 years with the city. He began building inspection in 1976.