Future construction deals fell $500m in ’11

The total value of future construction contracts in New Hampshire in 2011 lagged more than $500 million behind 2010.And in December 2011, future construction contracts totaled 13 percent less than they did in the same month the previous year.That’s according to industry information service McGraw Hill Construction, which collects and releases the figures monthly.Total future contracts across all construction sectors totaled $1.42 billion in the state in 2011, down from the $1.98 billion recorded in 2010. Some of the discrepancy may be attributable to the drying up of federal stimulus funds, some of which could still have been funding projects in 2010.Year over year, the total value of future construction contracts was down in all construction sectors.Nonbuilding contracts — which include projects like bridges, highways and dams — took the biggest hit, down 55 percent from $660.1 million in 2010 to $299.6 million in 2011.Future residential construction was down 17 percent year over year, from $529.7 million in 2010 to $440.7 million in 2011, and nonresidential contracts were down 14 percent during the same period, from $792.6 million to $683 million.In December 2011, total future construction contracts totaled $56.4 million, which was down from the $64.6 million in December 2010 and the $94.9 million in November 2011. — KATHLEEN CALLAHAN/NEW HAMPSHIRE BUSINESS REVIEW