Dearborn Construction Jobs Up, National Study Finds

A national study released Monday named Dearborn as one of the top metro areas in the country to see an increase in construction employment jobs from August 2010 to August 2011.

The study, which was conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America by analyzing federal employment data, found employment in construction rose about 18 percent–or 3,400 jobs–during the past year in the Detroit-Dearborn-Livonia area.

Much of Dearborn's ongoing contribution to job creation can be credited to , which has been filling 2,760 new jobs–the majority of them construction–created by by the Department of Energy in July. The funding is helping to modernize the company's existing south Dearborn facilities, as well as construct new ones.

And Severstal is just one part of a larger trend of statewide job creation successes in the construction sector, according to the study.

The study found construction employment in Michigan is up 10 percent–or about 13,300 jobs in the past year–with the largest gains in the Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills area, followed by the Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn area. The study didn't break down individual statistics for any city.

The study identified the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale area as the area with the largest loss of construction jobs at about 7,000.

"The construction market is caught between increases in private sector demand and even larger decreases in public sector construction investments," Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist, said in a news release.

Private sector spending on construction has grown by about 5.5 percent since July 2010, Simonson said, while public sector demand declined about 8.8 percent during the same time.

"Construction employment continues to be stuck in a pattern where there are just as many hot spots as there are slow spots," he said.

Dearborn construction job creation, in any case, is expected to continue.

Planned construction for  student housing, as well as the city's newly approved train station, are expected to add more construction and permanent jobs over the next year or so. With all federal funding , as well as the announcement this month of , Economic and Community Development Director Barry Murray said both projects are moving along nicely.

Construction on the station is expected to start next spring. Renovations of two Ford Land buildings on Town Center Drive meant for student housing could begin even sooner.