Version:           3.0.0b2 (kdevelop-031231) (using KDE KDE 3.1.4)
Installed from:    Debian stable Packages
OS:          Linux

Choosing this option from the Build menu (project: Simple KDE Application) results in the following output in the messages window:

make -f admin/Makefile.common package-messages 
* Entering directory /home/fjp/kdevelop/sigcreate/debug 
* make[1]: admin/Makefile.common: No such file or directory 
* make[1]: *** No rule to make target `admin/Makefile.common'. 
* make[1]: Failed to remake makefile `admin/Makefile.common'. 
* make[1]: *** No rule to make target `package-messages'. 
* Leaving directory /home/fjp/kdevelop/sigcreate/debug 
* make: *** [package-messages] Error 2

The problem is that the final command 'make -f admin/Makefile.common package-messages' is not run from a Makefile in the project-directory but from the Makefile in the debug/optimized/default directories.

The fix would be to change the 'package messages' section in the base Makefile.am.

package-messages:
$(MAKE) -f $(top_srcdir)/admin/Makefile.common package-messages
$(MAKE) -C po merge
_or_
package-messages:
cd $(top_srcdir)
$(MAKE) -f admin/Makefile.common package-messages
$(MAKE) -C po merge 

See also http://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=71625