BRAC news a boon to home builders
Likely new arsenal jobs mean 'hotter' real estate market
Monday, May 16, 2005
The announcement that Redstone Arsenal could gain more than 1,655 jobs in the 2005 round of base realignments and closures is good news for longtime home builder Louis Breland.
His company, Breland Properties, specializes in large, master-planned communities such as Lake Forest, a 1,200-lot, 750-acre development in the southwest corner of Huntsville at Zierdt and Martin roads - just outside Redstone Arsenal's Gate 7.
Site preparation is under way at the site, and Lake Forest's first phase of about 300 lots should be completed in the next six to eight months, Breland said. That phase will include garden homes in the $200,000 to $300,000 range and luxury homes from $400,000 to $600,000, a 30-acre lake, walking trails and other amenities.
The announcement "speeds up our development plans," said Breland. "Absolutely, we feel safer to continue with our development now."
As for the overall local development and real estate market, "demand is very strong now and the demand will continue to be strong," he said. "There's a hot real estate market now and it's fixing to get hotter."
Sales of new and existing homes in Huntsville and Madison reached a new record of 5,537 last year, making 2004 the third consecutive record-setting year for home sales here. That number is based on residential sales transactions processed through the Multiple Listing Service at the Huntsville Area Association of Realtors.
Local residential builders have been hearing for some time about the possibility of an influx of new jobs from the 2005 BRAC process, said Donna Henry, chairwoman of the government affairs committee of the Huntsville/Madison County Builders Association. "We've been hopeful this would happen. I think we're prepared for the growth," Henry said after a Friday morning news conference on the BRAC recommendation at the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce.
Residential growth should be "spread across North Alabama communities," said Dallas Fanning, the city of Huntsville's planning director. "We'll get our share. We're prepared for the growth, and we can handle it."
Jeff Enfinger, an owner of Enfinger Steele Development, also believes that the local housing market will be big enough to absorb a large influx of people, particularly if the BRAC-related moves were to take place over two to four years.
"If it takes two to four years to implement, I don't think you'll even notice it," Enfinger said. If Redstone Arsenal does gain the jobs, "it's certainly good news and a positive sign for our economy."
Enfinger Steele Development also specializes in large residential projects that could benefit from BRAC transfers. There's McMullen Cove in east Huntsville where about 1,000 homes are planned. Work to provide utilities there is expected to start on 175 lots next April, and home construction should start in August 2006. Enfinger Steele Development and Breland are also developing The Reserve off Zierdt Road, where about 500 lots are planned. Work on utilities gets started this summer on that development's second phase.
If BRAC jobs move here, more indirect employment could follow.
Dr. Niles Schoening, professor of economics at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, said if Redstone does get these jobs and those people transfer here, that could mean another 1,650 jobs in Madison County, using a multiplier of two, that are created indirectly. "So the total change could be in the neighborhood of 3,200 jobs in the long run."
If the people transferring to Redstone choose to retire here, "that kicks up the long-term impact even more," Schoening said.
"A lot of benefits will come out of this for people who already live here," said Schoening. More jobs here means more retail offerings, more personal services ranging from car repair to doctor's offices, and more direct airline service because of increased traffic at Huntsville International Airport.
"There's no question there will be retail growth in Huntsville and Madison County" if Redstone gains jobs, because of the goods and services those people will require, said Don Beck of the Shopping Center Group of Alabama. "And there's a high probability that it will happen in surrounding counties."
"More specialty retail will be forthcoming; that would be a pretty safe bet," said Beck.
The BRAC job growth "is not a watershed event that will completely change the retail face of Huntsville," said D. Scott McLain of Coldwell Banker Commercial McLain Real Estate. McLain is the managing partner of Disraeli LLC, which is now developing an apartment and retail project north of U.S. 72 west.
But for retailers considering Huntsville and debating whether or not to commit to Huntsville, "this makes a difference," McLain said. "If someone is handling real-estate evaluation in Alabama (for a retailer) and sees the announcement about Huntsville, it might be enough to get them to look at Huntsville."
© 2005 The Huntsville Times
© 2005 al.com All Rights Reserved.