Statistics Canada says municipalities issued building permits worth $6.5 billion in July, up 0.8% from June.
The agency says the rise was due to increased plans for institutional and industrial buildings as gains in the non-residential sector offset a drop in residential permits.
The non-residential sector climbed 5.6% to $2.4 billion.
The value of permits for institutional buildings rose 9.6% to $740 million, while the value of permits for industrial buildings gained 17.1% to $418 million. The value of commercial building permits rose 0.3% to $1.3 billion.
Meanwhile, the value of residential building permits was down 2.0% to $4.0 billion in July, the fourth consecutive monthly decrease.
The value of permits for single-family buildings fell 3.0% to $2.4 billion, while plans for multi-family buildings slipped 0.4% to $1.7 billion.