City officials awarded a $3,686,750 permit for construction of the Deer Creek Apartments in the 700 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Street. The 64 unit complex will help meet the need for low-moderate income housing. City officials have worked with Wilhoit Properties for nearly four years on the project. Construction could begin by the end of the year, according to City Manager Rick Osburn. It will be the first new apartment complex to be built in Levelland in more than 25 years.

October was the single best month for the construction industry since permits were issued here for the new Middle school. The 55 permits that city officials awarded in October pushed the year-to-date totals to $13,453,781. A total of 472 permits has been granted so for in Levelland in 2007. Also contributing to the increase was $80,000 permit for a treatment plant in Levelland Industrial Park. It was awarded to the Layne Christensen Co. Another permit – valued at $125,000 – went to the Smith Construction Co. for a single family attachment in the 100 block of Avenue I.

New Housing starts also showed a significant increase for the month. Three permits worth a total of $380,000 were okayed by the city in October. That pushes to 20 the number of permits for new single-family dwellings that have been granted so far this year in Levelland. Their total value is $3,119,000.

According to a city report 13 permits worth $4,304,650 were issued in Levelland for buildings in October. The report showed that six sewer connections and four water connections were made in Levelland in October. So far this year, 112 connections for sewer and water have been made.