There are encouraging signs of economic growth in first six months of 2010. Non-residential building investment has already surpassed the totals of the last two years combined.

SCANA has requested and received a permit for more than $5 million for expansion at the V.C. Summer nuclear power plant, and Midlands Tech is spending close to $2.8 million for the Quick Jobs Center located on North U.S. Highway 321 Business.

Andy Simmons, Information Services Manager for the Central Midlands Council of Governments (CMCOG), presented an overview of recent Fairfield County building activity at the recent regular Fairfield County Council meeting.

Simmons explained that the CMCOG has collected regional demographic and socio-economic data since the early 1970s, and acts as a repository for the U.S. Census.

“We provide major annual reports including building permit activity, multi-family housing, commercial real estate and custom demographic reports,” Simmons said. “Our research department provides assistance to our member governments for use in their own planning initiatives. We have a wealth of data, which we have been collecting for many years, which enables us to identify and analyze growth and development trends, which can then be used to plan for future development.”

The CMCOG has determined that the population in Fairfield County has remained stable over time. The number of residents bottomed out in the 1970s, but has started picking back up since that time.

The population ranks 37th out of South Carolina’s 46 counties, and has the smallest population size in the Central Midlands region.

“The open spaces and low population density are a huge part of the appeal of Fairfield County,” said Simmons. “This is a favorable location in the middle of South Carolina, almost half-way between the Charlotte and Columbia metro areas, and there is excellent access to I-77.”

Fairfield County’s population was 23,454 in 2000 and 23,343 in 2009, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Population projections by the S.C. Office of Research and Statistics suggest that the 2010 population will be 23,760; 2015: 24,531; 2025: 25,920 and 2035: 27,330.

“The further out you project, the less reliable figures get,” Simmons said. “Thirty year projections are what we need to project for transportation planning purposes.”

There were 710 unique building permits for new construction issued in the last five years in Fairfield County. The total value of those building permits was $104 million. Seventy-two percent were residential, 28 percent were non-residential.

Of the non-residential activity, totals were roughly $4 million for 2005, $6.6 million for 2006, $4.7 million for 2007, $2.5 million in 2008, $2.8 million for 2009 and $8.7 million so far this year, for a total of $29.5 million in total value of permits issued during those years. The drops in 2008 and 2009 reflect the economic recession. In the first six months of this year, totals have already surpassed the totals of the last two years combined, which is an encouraging sign, according to Simmons.

Residential building permit activity from 2005 to 2010 has seen at total of 419 residential units, with a total value of $74.6 million. The average cost per new unit in Fairfield is the highest in the region. Richland County’s average is $140,000, Lexington’s average is $172,000, Newberry’s is $160,450, while Fairfield’s is $178,121.

Development is booming in Northeast Richland County, which will definitely have an impact on Fairfield County. Many people are commuting there from Fairfield for work. Fifty-three percent of Fairfield County’s workforce work outside Fairfield County; 30 percent work in Richland County.

“There has been a population explosion over past 40 years in Northeast Richland,” said Simmons. “It is estimated that the Blythewood area has more than doubled its population between 2000 and 2010 (from 12,000 to 24,500). Northeast Richland is estimated to have added 29,000 new residents since the 2000 Census.”

Between 2005 and 2010, Northeast Richland had 10,642 unique building permits for new construction issued with a total value of $1.67 billion. Of that, $1.36 billion has been for 9,994 residential units and 648 new non-residential permits, totaling $313 million.

Simmons said he still expects the growth in Richland county to continue and spill over into Fairfield County, despite confidence being low region wide.