Colorado coal industry faces changing climate

Mike Moran Business Times It’s a commodity near the center of any discussion about a move to more renewable energy sources. And it’s currently at the center of controversy surrounding a movement in Colorado to shift power plants to the use of natural gas. Coal is the engine that’s driven the energy machine for most […]

Material costs drop in July, but up for year

With the cost of home building joined at the hip with the cost of materials, July offered more opportunity in the form of slightly lower prices for construction materials. Overall, prices were 0.2 percent lower in July than they were in June, according to a report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Still, prices aren’t […]

Home construction goes green

Energy conservation and use of renewable energy are ongoing trends in home building and remodeling. Under current law, the window of opportunity remains open for claiming tax credits in connection with new construction. The window for remodeling current homes is closing, however, with the credits due to expire at the end of December. The federal […]

Slowdown forcing some construction workers to change careers

The numbers tell the story: On a given day, 1,800 job applicants chase 12 to 18 job openings — a ratio of 109 applicants for each job. That leaves people considering alternate careers, many as they approach the final decade of their working lives. Such is the scenario for construction workers in the Grand Valley. […]

New firm proposes housing project

A year after Zeck Homes went out of business in the midst of the Great Recession, one of the former owners has teamed with another developer to form a company planning a 20-unit housing project near the Golf Club at Redlands Mesa in Grand Junction. Matrix Communities plans a mix of single-family attached homes priced […]

Midstream investments portend growth in natural gas activity

It’s no secret energy companies have a big effect on the Western Colorado economy. An energy boom in the Piceance Basin that extended through the fourth quarter of 2008 helped delay the effects of the Great Recession that hit the nation in 2007. And when the number of natural gas drill rigs dropped by 70 […]

Parade of Homes to showcase home construction industry

The Parade of Homes will extend over two weekends this year, offering more time for people to participant in the annual event showcasing the home construction industry in the Grand Valley. The Housing and Building Association of Northwestern Colorado has scheduled the Parade of Homes for 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sept. 17 to 19 […]

How to do business with energy firms

When it comes to doing business with energy companies in Western Colorado, the most sound advice could have come from a seminar conducted long before the Internet was invented. Attend gatherings where energy decision makers meet. Develop contacts. Build relationships over time. Those were among the suggestions offered at a recent presentation organized by the […]

Hilltop CEO settling in after a year on the job

Mike Stahl had a long time to prepare to take over as chief executive officer of Hilltop Community Resources in Grand Junction. By the time Stahl finally succeeded Sally Schaefer last summer, the transition had been in the works for six years. “And we’d worked together for 25 years,” Stahl said. “We methodically staged it […]