The state of Georgia saw a surge in all three of McGraw-Hill Construction�s broad categories of contract activity in April, generating a 44% jump in the overall value of projects for the month, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of Southeast Construction. The increase equated to roughly $983.5 million in new contracts for the month.

Nonresidential starts jumped 19% to tally $393.1 million. The value of new nonbuilding projects more than doubled, registering $243.6 million. Residential starts improved by 35% for a monthly total of $346.8 million.

Georgia�s year-to-date overall figure is still negative. Through the first four months of the year, the value of new Georgia contracts is 7% behind 2009�s early pace, with nearly $3.6 billion in new projects, compared to last year�s total of about $3.8 billion.

The nonbuilding category is 36% behind for the year, with about $731.8 million in new starts. The nonresidential market is also negative, and is 9% behind last year�s pace with more than $1.5 billion in new contracts. Meanwhile, residential is 32% ahead of last year, with a total of nearly $1.3 billion.