FAIRHOPE, Ala. — Mayor Tim Kant made a bold pronouncement about the local economy this week.

“The recession is over in Fairhope,” Kant said Monday, at the first of what he said will be a monthly press conference.

Kant cited a number of indicators for improving economic conditions in Fairhope, such as an increasing number of building permit applications.

He said some local business have also experienced increasing traffic and that most local hotels are seeing higher than average occupancy rates.

“We had 100 building permits issued in June, representing $4.3 million in work,” said Kant, noting that number was for a total of single-family residences and commercial permits.

He said the new Hampton Inn in downtown Fairhope is operating at over 50 percent occupancy and the Grand Hotel Marriott Resort, Golf Club and Spa had over 80 percent occupancy in June, with the Holiday Inn Express doing better than the national average for its chain.

“Lodging tax collected at the end of June totaled $310,000, down only $18,000 from this time last year,” Kant said. “If trends stay on track, the city should be over budget on lodging tax.”

The mayor also pointed to a number of new businesses opening in Fairhope since the first of the year, and expansion of existing ones, as evidence that the local economy is on the rebound, such as Thomas Hospital, Publix Super Market, Hampton Inn, Ford’s Fuel, Abner’s Restaurant, McKay’s, Integrated Fitness, The BBQ Shack and Bayside Orthopadedic Clinic.

Kant also gave positive news about local finances, stating there will be no revenue shortfalls this year. He also announced efforts to make city buildings more energy efficient.

He said electric costs have been reduced by 25 percent in city buildings as part of those efforts.

“The city’s reported total cash is up $2.3 million from this time last year,” he said.

Kant spoke for 30 minutes during his first monthly press conference and then took questions from an audience of less than a dozen people and one media representative.

He encouraged the public to attend these press conferences on the third Monday of each month at the Fairhope Museum of History, announcing that he would present next year’s budget for public review at the Aug. 17 press conference.

He said he might change the time of the current 8:30 a.m. press conference to accommodate the schedules of more people.

Spokespersons for the Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce and the Baldwin County Economic Development Alliance also said they believed that economic conditions in the county overall were improving.

“We’re beginning to see some new building projects go online that had been delayed for the past six month,” said Robert Ingram of the BCEDA. “I think people are starting to think that the recession is ending locally, and that means people will start spending more money here.”

Darrelyn Bender said the ESCOC was “cautiously optimistic” about the local economy and that “we are starting to see an increase in building permits.”