The Burbank-based non-profit trade group says January is normally the weakest construction month of the year, but California's construction activity went against the grain by racking up $4.9 billion, 11.5% higher than December. Ben Bartolotto, the non-profit's research director, reports that besides the government and university upswing, the statewide figures reflect a large increase in single-family housing as developers hurried to file permits before anticipated increases in building fees.

The CIRB figures showed the total value of non-residential construction in Los Angeles County slipped to about $192.3 million in January, down by nearly $7.7 million from January 2002. This year's January figure was down by more than $200 million from January two years ago, and down by $133 million from January 2000.

In Orange County, non-residential construction in January dropped to $66.9 million from almost $78.8 million on a year-to-year basis. Two years ago, January non-residential construction in Orange County totaled $117.3 million in comparison to January 2000's $152.5 million.

The January figures reflect the continuing decline in non-residential construction that has occurred throughout Southern California and the nation during the current economic downturn. Non-residential construction in Los Angeles County peaked at a total of almost $3.6 billion in 2001, dropping to $2.9 billion last year. In Orange County, the total peaked at nearly $1.8 billion in 2000, dropping to about $1.4 billion in 2001 and $1.2 billion last year.

Large public projects such as the $152.5-million CalPERS office building in Sacramento and University of California building projects in Alameda, LA and San Diego counties account for the higher-than-usual January total, according to Bartolotto's report.

Bartolotto sees "caution" as the operative word in the CIRB's construction outlook for the next two years. It is forecasting the state's construction volume--including private and public spending--will total about $65.6 billion in 2004, up 1.4% from its 2003 forecast and 1.4% more than 2002. But with so much uncertainty about possible cuts in state spending because of California's budget problems, Bartolotto says, construction spending could just as easily dip by 1.5% instead of rising.