Hamilton: Better or Worse? Building permits, big money

Better or Worse #3: This is the thirdinstalment in a month-long municipal election series of infographics examining Hamilton's progress over recent years.

Much has been made about the rate of development in the city, particularly in the downtown core.

In 2012, the city issued a record $1.5 billion worth of building permits, a figure heralded by Mayor Bob Bratina as a sign that Hamilton was making great progress in terms of its economic fortunes.

Last year, the city wasnt able to match its 2012 benchmark, but it still broke the $1-billion threshold, outstripping the 2007 figure by more than $100 million afteradjusting for inflation.

The city is on track for another bigyear in terms of the value of building permitsissued. From the beginning of 2014 until the end of July, city hall had issued about$705million worth of building permits. Staffissued around $604million during the same seven-month period last year. So there's that.

• Read More: Hamilton Better or Worse #1- Unemployment
• Read More: Hamilton Better or Worse #2- Welfare rates

Here's a look at the number of building permits issued by the city each year. Thetrend line, as you can see, reflects that of the first chart more than a little bit.