Phil Castle, The Business Times While the labor market has yet to rebound, other aspects of the Mesa County economy reflect improving conditions, according to an economist long involved in compiling a statewide forecast. “Lots of things look fine,” said Richard Wobbekind, executive director of the business research division at the University of Colorado […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times The monthly unemployment rate in Mesa County has increased as layoffs in the energy sector exceed seasonal hiring. The jobless rate could go even higher in the new year with the combination of further slowing in the energy sector and layoffs after the holidays. “It could be a higher number […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times It’s too early to tell if a year-over-year decline in sales and use tax collections in November constitutes a one-month anomaly or the beginning of a trend. “I’m hoping it was just a blip and not a trend,” said Eleanor Thomas, budget manager for Mesa County. Jodi Romero, financial operations director […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times Dave Hall has great expectations for 2016 as his Grand Junction company builds on its success as a growing supplier of products that help customers get organized. “We think this year is going to be a breakout year for us. We are just set up to go,” said Hall, who […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times Mark Swain has wanted for some time to hire additional employees to keep pace with growing demand for the information technology services provided by Networks Unlimited. But space at the Grand Junction firm was very much limited, and Swain didn’t have any place left for additional staff to work. That’s […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times Kristi Pollard believes the business and economic outlook for Mesa County is “trending positive” heading into 2016. Pollard, executive director of the Grand Junction Economic Partnership, bases her outlook on a number of factors, among them increased interest from companies in relocating or expanding operations, a […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times The real estate market has performed even better this year than Robert Bray initially had expected. The chief executive officer of Bray Real Estate in Grand Junction couldn’t be happier to have been proven wrong. “I’m OK on that.” With a month left to go, the number of real estate […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times The monthly unemployment rate continues to slip in Mesa County as more people find seasonal work for the holidays. The local labor force continues to shrink nonetheless with slowing in the energy sector that’s followed slumping prices. Initial claims for unemployment insurance are up even as overall labor demand has […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times A total of nearly $18.3 million worth of loans were issued in Mesa County during the last fiscal year under two federal programs backing small business lending. The latest total is more than triple the combined dollar volume of lending the previous fiscal year under the U.S. Small Business Administration […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times If Luis Benitez has learned anything about peak performance, it’s that it takes tenacity to reach the top, and the process is somethings as important as the end result. While there are differences between climbing mountains and promoting an industry, Benitez says the lessons he learned from one of his […]