Posted on March - 29 - 2010
RSMeans’ dollars-per-square-foot construction costs: four institutional types of structure
Accompanying this report are tables and charts based on RSMeans’ measures of dollar-per-square-foot construction costs. The results for 25 major cities are shown for four institutional building types. Means has altered specifications with regard to its costing models for a jail and a courthouse. Therefore, with respect to those two categories, it is not valid to compare this year’s figures with last year’s to determine percentage changes. The specifications for a police station and a post office remained the same. Therefore, in those instances, year-over-year comparisons are valid.
Ranking by expense
Among the three law enforcement and one public service categories set out in the table and graphs, it is most expensive to build a jail. This comes as no surprise, given the special structural requirements that must be built into a correctional facility. Next most expensive on a dollars-per-square-foot basis is a police station. In third position is a courthouse, and in fourth, a post office. The square footage cost of building a post office is about half the amount required to construct a jail.
New York most expensive; cities in South least expensive
New York City has the highest dollar-per-square-foot construction costs in the country. San Francisco, Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia are the other centers that make up the top five among major U.S. urban areas. Relatively low-cost cities are mainly in the Southeast and Southwest, including Miami, Phoenix, Atlanta, Houston and Dallas. New Orleans is also low-cost despite the restoration that has been underway since Hurricane Katrina.
Kansas City, St. Louis, Portland and Pittsburgh are smack dab in the middle among the 25 cities considered in the table and graphs. Cleveland, Washington, D.C. and Denver are in the low mid-range for construction costs among the 25 cities considered. Seattle, San Diego and Detroit are upper middle-range. Minneapolis is sixth most expensive in the nation.
On the Pacific Coast, dollar-per-square foot construction costs in Los Angeles, Seattle and San Diego are between 13% and 16% lower than in high-cost San Francisco. Portland is nearly one-fifth (18%) less expensive for building than the City by the Bay.
Other city comparisons
In some other city comparisons, it now costs about 32% more to build in Chicago than in Atlanta. The relationship is almost the same (+28%) between higher-cost Philadelphia and lower-cost Miami. The mark-up in New York, the most expensive city among the 25 shown, and Winston-Salem, N.C., the least expensive, is almost three-quarters (+74%).
Percentage changes by type and by city
Year-over-year cost comparisons can only be made for a police station and post office. The year-over-year changes for a jail and courthouse are invalid due to specification upgrades.
Pittsburgh, Boston, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, New York, Seattle and Chicago have turned in the largest year-over-year percentage gains in square footage costs. In no case, however, was the increase excessive. Pittsburgh at +3.4% for a police station was the highest. The average for the 25 cities combined was +0.5% for a police station and -0.9% for a post office.
Atlanta, Houston, Washington and California’s three major centers – San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco – have recorded the largest percentage declines year over year.
Kansas City, Detroit, Denver, Dallas, Portland, Cleveland, Miami, Baltimore and St. Louis are all centrally positioned for year-over-year price change among the 25 cities.
U.S. dollars per square foot construction costs –
By type of structure – March 2010
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