Megaproject Boom Drives 21% Jump in Construction Starts

A wave of multibillion-dollar developments sent U.S. construction starts sharply higher in October, with 10 different projects valued at $1 billion or more breaking ground, according to new data from Dodge Construction Network. The surge pushed total construction starts up 21.1% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.53 trillion.

The momentum follows already strong months in August and September, fueled mostly by major manufacturing and data center builds. Despite the surge, the industry remains uneven, warned Sarah Martin, associate director of forecasting at Dodge.

“Growth in construction starts continued to be propped up by high-value megaproject activity last month,” Martin said in the release. “Outside of these high-tech buildings, however, growth appears more moderate.”

Expanded Analysis — Who’s Driving the Growth?

Large-scale manufacturing and data center investments are dominating the construction landscape. In October alone:

• Office and data center starts jumped 45.5%
• Manufacturing skyrocketed 107.2%
• Retail rose 15.1%, hinting at growing commercial confidence

But not every segment benefited from the wave. Hotel and warehouse activity declined, reflecting uneven commercial demand tied to consumer spending, logistics market corrections and lagging hospitality recovery compared to 2024.

Overall, nonresidential starts climbed 5.6% year-to-date, with commercial activity up 13.6% while institutional work — including hospitals and schools — fell 2.2%, showing less government-backed and community-based development compared to high-tech private investment.

Highlighted Projects Fueling the Spike

The megaproject boom includes some of the most expensive U.S. projects active today:

ProjectLocationValueCalcasieu Pass LNG Export Terminal & PipelineCameron, LA$15.1BRio Grande LNG Phase 2Brownsville, TX$9BMeta Hyperion Data CenterRichland, LA$7.5BFrederick Douglass TunnelMaryland$5.9BLA Convention Center ExpansionLos Angeles, CA$1.9BEli Lilly Manufacturing PlantLebanon, IN$1.7B

The scale reflects significant federal subsidies, AI-driven data center demand, semiconductor investments and an LNG export renaissance tied to global energy markets.

Expanded Trend — Infrastructure Jumps, Housing Lags

Nonbuilding work rebounded dramatically in October, climbing 59.4%, driven by a stunning 384.5% surge in utility construction, even as highway and bridge starts dropped 23.7%. This suggests utility infrastructure — power, grid improvements, energy transport — is becoming the country’s priority over traditional roadway spending.

In contrast, residential construction continued to slip:

• Starts fell 15.4% overall
• Multifamily plunged 38.5% amid high interest rates and rising insurance and financing costs
• Single-family edged up 2.2%, hinting at limited but growing consumer appetite as mortgage incentives and rate relief expectations improve

For the past 12 months, total residential starts are down 3.1%, signaling that housing remains the industry’s biggest drag despite larger macro construction growth.

Why It Matters

These trends show a construction market heavily dependent on megaprojects tied to AI infrastructure, energy exports, semiconductor manufacturing and large-scale transportation upgrades. If megaproject activity cools, growth could stall quickly — but as long as government incentives and digital infrastructure demand remain high, the sector will continue outperforming much of the broader economy.

Originally reported by Sebastian Obando in Construction Dive.