Do the many cranes uptown reflect the true health of the industry?
Construction is an interesting business in that when the economy slows, we tend to lag behind because of the backlog of projects awarded years ago. The projects you are seeing now were financed during a different time. Until probably six to nine months ago, we had almost ideal conditions. But now the amount of activity can be misleading. Commercial construction is in a slowdown. Health care and education continue to be active, but retail and office are going to be down. The market is tough. I think it’s going to get worse before it gets better. There is capacity in the industry. Are there particular market segments where clients are holding off on building projects, waiting for conditions to improve? Office and retail. The light infill centers with a Starbucks anchored by a grocery store or drugstore, those are going to slow down because tenants are worried about a drop in consumer spending. I think the condo wave has broken. Single-family residential building has been flushed. It’s a
