Business owner seeks election to commission

A long-time business owner has announced his candidacy for the Mesa County Board of Commissioners. Wes D’Aponti seeks the Republican nomination in District 1 for the 2012 election. D’Aponti had scheduled a news conference on the steps of the Mesa County Courthouse in Grand Junction for Sept. 15 to announce his campaign. D’Aponti and his […]

Encana divests West Slope midstream assets

A leading natural gas producer has announced the sale of a portion of its pipelines and compression facilities in Western Colorado. Encana Oil & Gas expects to close on the $590 million transaction later this year as part of ongoing efforts to divest so-called midstream assets to raise capital for other production operations. According to […]

Colorado small business index rises despite national economic drag

A monthly index tracking conditions for small businesses in Colorado increased for the first time in five months on improving labor trends. The state economy likely would fare even better were it not for a weak national economy, said Jeff Thredgold, a corporate economist who calculates the Vectra Bank Colorado Small Business Index. “The Colorado […]

Grand Valley businesses rank among fastest-growing and top minority owned firms

Two Grand Junction companies continue to rank among the fastest-growing firms in the nation as well as the top minority and women-owned businesses in the state. JG Management Systems and Rocky Mountain Sanitation are included in the 2011 Inc. magazine listing of the 5,000 fastest-growing privately held companies in the United States. JG Management Systems […]

Labor index declines, but signals slow job growth

A monthly index tracking labor trends continues to decline, but still signals slow job growth in the months ahead. The Conference Board Employment Trends Index slipped two-tenths in August to 100.8, but remains 4.1 percent higher than this time last year. “While the Employment Trends Index has been on a slightly declining trend in recent […]

August estimate: U.S. job growth slows to a halt

Slowing job growth in the United States ground to a halt in August with no monthly gain in payrolls for the first time in nearly a year. The national unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.1 percent. According to the latest Labor Department estimates, the loss of 17,000 government jobs exactly offset a gain of 17,000 […]

Solar energy sales manager earns Toastmaster award

Lou Villaire, sales manager at Atlasta Solar Center in Grand Junction, has received the Competent Communicator Award from Toastmaster International. Villaire completed the self-paced program designed to help individuals improve their speaking and leadership skills in a club environment. Atlasta Solar offers a range of services to commercial and residential customers, including solar and wind […]

Business mentor to serve on Baldridge Award board

Jerry Pradier, president of Progressive Business Development Network in Glenwood Springs, has been appointed to the 2011 board of examiners for the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award. Pradier is among 500 representatives from industry, nonprofits, professional and trade groups and education and health care organizations who will evaluate applications for the Malcolm Baldridge Award. Examiners […]