It is quite well known to most in the industry that Vancouver has been undergoing a incredible construction boom. The Globe and Mail has reported that this construction boom has caused 40% inflation in construction costs since 2002 (when the budgeting for 2010 was done). This comes as no surprise to those familiar with the construction industry. A number of projects i am aware of have undergone huge redesigns due to higher than expected costs (especially steel construction). I have also heard of cases where there has been difficulty in finding contractors for the trades.