Winter Weather Slows Work On Tulsa-Area Construction Sites

The winter weather is making it hard for homebuilders in Tulsa.

It's causing delays and forcing contractors to make a priority list on what they can get done in the cold weather.

"It's kind of slowed it down a little bit," builder Allen Jenkins said. "It's hard to work outside when it's these freezing temperatures and so we've been doing a lot of inside work if we've got electricity and gas."

Jenkins owns Celebrity Homes and is vice-president of the Tulsa Homebuilder's Association.

He said there are several hundred new homes currently under construction in Tulsa, but they all face a big hurdle thanks to Old Man Winter.

"Well, if it gets below 32 and the freezing temperatures you really can't pour concrete, you can't lay brick, if there's ice and snow on the roof you can't get up there and do any kind of roofing," Jenkins said.

The delay doesn't impact housing prices and homebuilders plan for some setbacks due to the weather, he said.

"We try to catch them back up when it warms up," he said. "We work the weekends and work longer hours and get things done, try to move the pace forward a little bit."

Jenkins said both contractor and homeowner know that patience is key when building a home, especially when you're dealing with Oklahoma weather.

"You just don't know what you're going to get," he said. "It changes from one day to the next and so you just keep building and that's part of the business."