58 new homes, massive Opportunity Campus are among August’s building permits.

Just a little more than one in four building permits and almost half of the total valuation of those permits issued by Columbia and Boone County in August 2024 were for the construction of new homes. 

Together, the city’s Site and Building Development office and the Boone County Resource Management office issued 58 building permits for new homes with an aggregate valuation of $21.3 million. The overall total for August building permits was 203 permits with a combined value of $43.69 million. 

One major highlight of the August building permit activity was issuing a pair of permits to allow construction to begin on the Voluntary Action Center’s Opportunity Campus next to the city’s power plant along Business Loop 70 and Bowling Street. The campus is a keystone of local efforts to address the county and city’s growing homeless population by creating a central location for individuals to find year-round shelter, a daily meal, a health clinic, and a variety of other case-managed social services.  

The recent issued permits green-light the shelter facility, a 30,174-square-foot building with an estimated value of $7,111,592 at 1304 Bowling Street. Little Dixie Construction Co. is the general contractor. The permit details the construction of a temporary shelter facility including an overnight shelter, drop-in day center, kitchen and dining space for evening meals, and a satellite business office. 

The second permit is for a 23,254-square-foot new commercial building for “businesses offices and future tenant spaces.” That permit, for work at 1300 Bowling Street, lists a valuation of $4,912,138. Little Dixie is also the builder for that structure, and PWA Architects is the lead on the building’s design. 

The Opportunity Campus project, led by Voluntary Action Center, officially broke ground on February 6 for the installation of underground infrastructure and to prepare the site for construction. VAC officials say the goal is to pay for the project with one-third funding stakes from the state, local government (city and county), and private donations. The estimated construction target is twelve to fifteen months from now. 

Overall, the city in August issued 107 building permits with a combined value of $30.79 million. The permit breakdown includes: 

• Residential additions: 5 permits with an aggregate value of $279,479. 
• Commercial alterations: 8 permits, $2.01 million. 
• Residential alterations: 13 permits, $462,297. 
• Commercial infill: 2 permits, $120,272. 
• Commercial new: 4 permits, $13.33 million. 
• Deck only: 5 permits, $97,283. 
• Duplex: 4 permits, $660,503. 
• Reroof: 32 permits, $1.21 million. 
• Residential demo: 3 permits, zero dollar value. 
• Single family detached: 25 permits, $10.49 million. 
• Townhouse: 6 permits, $2.12 million. 

Other highlights of city building permits issued in August include: 

Interior renovation of existing office space to create new private offices for True North at 1901 Pennsylvania Drive, Suite 101. Little Dixie Construction Co. is the general contractor for the 8,785-square-foot project with a valuation of $900,000. The plan also includes modifications to existing restrooms, new HVAC system, and new lighting in the renovated areas. Simons Associates Inc. is the architect and Star Heating is the mechanical contractor for the project. 

Commercial infill at two locations at 4101 W. Vawter School Road. Suite 109 will become a nail salon and Suite 107 is an existing shell space that will get interior tenant finishes. The builder is Gregory Kreutzer. 

Trail Stop Brewery will be built at 3901 Brushwood Lake Road, just west of the Scott Boulevard/Vawter School Road traffic circle. Coil Construction Inc. is the contractor for the single-story restaurant and brewery. The 5,510-square-foot project lists a valuation of $1,111,862. The site manager is Don Prose. 

The next phase of a storage unit facility at 700 N. Fairview Road, just west of Target and Columbia Mall, is a 500-square-foot building with a valuation of $200,000. The building will be self-storage units with a check-in. Samuel Schneiders of BoxIt is listed as the project manager. 

Four townhouses off Murano Way in the Old Hawthorne neighborhood are each listed with valuations of $375,944, for a total of $1.5 million. 

Top-dollar single-family homes among the August building permit report are a $1.1 million home on Adare Manor Court at Old Hawthorne, which lists a 9,076 square foot project built by Girard Custom Homes, and a 6,380 square foot home off Stonington Court in the Creeks Edge subdivision. That permit lists a valuation of $757,305 with J. Jones Homes LLC as the builder. 

The Boone County Resource Management office issued 96 building permits with a combined valuation of $12.91 million in August. The breakdown includes: 

• Single-family residential: 33 permits, $10.88 million. 
• Modular/doublewide: 1 permit, $266,000. 
• Other nonresidential: 6 permits, $195,200. 
• Other structures: 12 permits, $464,300. 
• Residential additions/alterations: 12 permits, $334,783. 
• Nonresidential additions/alterations: 1 permit, $20,000. 
• Residential garages: 15 permits, $733,350. 
• Miscellaneous: 16 permits, $20,350. 

High-dollar permits for the single-family homes included a $1.34 million home listing Tompkins Homes as the builder at 2970 S. Hancock Hill Road at Rocheport, and a $700,000 home at 13001 N. Robinson Road in Hallsville. The builder is Horizon Builders Inc.