Alaska construction - retail leads the way.

• Author: Berger, Michael
• Position: Industry Overview

Although they sometimes look back wistfully at the good old pipeline days, those involved with Alaska's construction industry have come to appreciate the pleasures of slow, steady growth. Because moderate is the word to describe the pace of the state's construction, any development that could lead to increased employment and additional revenue is viewed by the industry as positive. When compared with the decline in construction most of the U.S. faces, a gain of two or three percentage points looks pretty good.

While construction has been growing, that growth has not been evenly distributed in the three sectors in which it is measured, commercial, residential and public works projects.

Industry observers say commercial construction, especially in the retail sector, should provide some immediate impact. Three new, large retail chains and the expansions of Pace Warehouse, Costco and Fred Meyer have bolstered the commercial comeback.

Residential building is expected to grow in Anchorage but remain flat in Fairbanks and Juneau.

Public works projects, long an industry staple, may suffer from government cutbacks. However, projects such as the new Alaska Native hospital and the Glenn Highway remodeling will keep at least some contractors busy.

"The early '90s have got to be identified as the era of commercial development," says Kiewit Construction's area manager Jim Fergusson. "When you take a look at the tremendous growth in commercial |retail~ development, you can see that it causes a reaction in other areas of the economy. A study by the Army Corps of Engineers some years back indicates that every dollar spent on construction turns around 10 times for an economy. This could mean some growth in housing as well as employment for Alaskans."

Commercial Deployment. Retail chain store construction led the way for optimism last year, and will lead the way again in 1993. Scott Hawkins, president of the Anchorage Economic Development Corp., reports that although retail sales sagged in 1992, the year also saw the largest number of new stores and additional outlets of existing stores announced since 1980. Almost 1.3 million square feet of retail space will be built this year in Anchorage alone.

"There has been very little commercial construction in the last five years," says the Alaska Department of Labor's Neil Fried. "When you are building three or four Kmarts in the state, when you are building three or four Wal-Marts, if those come through, a couple of Fred Meyers and additions to Sears, that alone will cause commercial construction...