The case for sustained growth.

In the late 1990's, leaders in the design, construction and real estate community challenged the New York Building Congress to broaden its scope of member services to address a lack of accurate research on the breadth and impact of the building industry. They also asked the Building Congress to help quantify the city's long-term development and infrastructure needs as well as analyze the damaging effects of inaction.

In response, the Building Congress and its affiliate, the New York Building Foundation, initiated a program bringing industry watchers and economic consultants together to examine building trends, forecast construction activity and pinpoint critical issues conceming future development.

The past year and a half has seen the program begin to reach its full potential as the Building Congress researched and released three important reports, all of which touched upon the industry's health and its contributions to the city's economic growth.

Equally important, the reports have been conducted and issued at a time of growing budget deficits and economic weakness, when historically, budgets for capital improvements and infrastructure maintenance have suffered. The reports and the conversations they spark are intended to remind public and private sector decision makers of the construction industry's impact on development and job creation, as well as the devastating effects of infrastructure neglect on the city's long-tern prosperity.

Of course, research alone will not get the industry's important messages across. All segments of the building community -- including trade labor, contractors, architects, engineers and subcontractors, real estate managers and developers -- must emphasize the wisdom of ongoing infrastructure investment, public/private partnerships and dedicated sources of this critical funding.

Communicating this critical message requires unified and focused lobbying efforts on specific proposals, long-term capital strategies and new funding mechanisms that can benefit the industry by providing freedom from yearly budgetary pressures. This is where the Building Congress research agenda comes into play.

By providing solid and reliable data and analysis, the Building Congress provides its members, and members of other building industry associations, a factual framework for their advocacy efforts.

Among the most recently issued Building Congress reports is Electricity Outlook -- A Call to Action, which provides an in-depth analysis of New York City's long-term electricity supply needs. The report calls for the addition of 2,000 to 3,000 megawatts of generating capacity by 2006 as a means of preventing potentially crippling power outages and price spikes.

In addition, the Building Congress released its third installment of Construction Outlook which found that construction spending and employment held steady in 2002 and forecasts continued, but uneven, strength in the coming years. The report also analyzed the potential negative impacts of as lowing economy on public and private sector construction activity.

The most ambitious Building Congress project of late was the publication of Building for Growth: A Development Strategy for New York City's Long-Term Prosperity, which was produced as a draft for the purpose of stimulating discussion among policy makers. The report examines the full-range of New York City's development needs and advocates creation of a 20- to 25-year development strategy.

At present, the Building Congress is working with two consultants, noted for their extensive expertise in economic and governmental issues, on important new reports. The first examines the current insurance market and its effect on private sector development and construction in New York City. The second will provide the building industry with a comprehensive analysis of capital budget expenditures in New York City. The report will detail how much is being spent and by which city, state and federal agencies. It will also examine the extent to which billions of dollars in capital outlays are being coordinated and how these projects are financed.

The research efforts of the Building Congress are a natural extension of its core mission: to create a strong and united coalition effectively fighting for New York City's continued growth and prominence. Leaders throughout the building community are encouraged to actively support a public policy agenda based on job growth, commercial and residential development, infrastructure renewal, and sound investment in the building blocks of a prosperous economy.