The regional total of $19.5 billion is up 4.5% from $18.6 billion in the prior year. The totals for the two previous years were $17.3 billion and $15.5 billion, respectively. The 2015 ranking, for the first time, does not include Connecticut. For comparison, Connecticut revenue was excluded from the revenue totals listed above for years prior to 2014.

Turner Construction led the 2015 list, reporting $2.6 billion in regional revenue in 2014, repeating its year-ago ranking. Tishman Construction, an AECOM company, took the No. 2  spot in 2015 with $2.19 billion in regional revenue, rising from No. 4 the prior year. Structure Tone retained its No. 3 rank with $2.18 billion in regional revenue.

Skanska USA ranked fourth with $2 billion in regional revenue, down from second place the year before. Lendlease retained its fifth place rank with $1.19 billion in regional revenue.

Strength In the Market

The increase in year-over-year aggregate regional revenue reflects the rising number of building permits issued and the strength in the residential market, particularly in high-end buildings, says Regina Armstrong, principal at Urbanomics Inc. “There is strength in the market and more to come,” she says. The market is even more robust than the data suggests, she explains, because it does not capture New York City’s capital spending plans.

Spending plans by the Metropolitan Transit Authority, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York could provide a boost in construction in the coming years. The nonresidential market has been lagging but is poised to grow sharply, she says.

The New York regional economy is growing and that spurs demand in the hotel, health care, education, cultural and office building sectors, she says.

Construction jobs have declined by about 10,000 to about 125,000, but that is not an accurate indicator because those statistics do not include government jobs, Armstrong says. In addition, construction companies are seeing technological improvements and efficiency gains that increase revenue without increasing job count.

Work In and Out