Renovation plans at Imperial Oil bolstered city building permits in March.
A $1.9-million permit was issued for the Sarnia facility at 602 Christina St. S.
Plans to erect a steel blast proof barrier around an on site control room have been in the works for months and officials have just now picked up the permit after several revisions.
There were 47 permits issued by city hall last month with a construction value of nearly $7.6-million.
The total of $17-million for the first quarter of 2017 is a significant increase from last year's $14.6-million.
Permits for single family homes rebounded in March after a sluggish start with 13 being issued for a total of 24 year-to-date. There was a total of 36 at this time last year.