Index: Consumers mostly confidence heading into new year

U.S. consumers remain mostly upbeat heading into the new year, according to the latest results of a monthly index tracking their assessments of business and labor conditions. The Conference Board reported that its Consumer Confidence Index rose 3.9 points to 96.5 in December. Measures of current conditions and the short-term outlook both improved. “As 2015 […]

Bank contribution aids in development of wildlife-ID app

A $10,000 contribution from Alpine Bank helped to meet a fund-raising goal for a wildlife-identification and outdoor recreation application under development by the Mesa County Public Library Foundation. The Wild Colorado app will offer a searchable database of Colorado mammals, birds, fish and reptiles that helps users identify wildlife. Users can personalize their wildlife-viewing experience […]

Commission names champion of the arts

A former public official who served as chairman of a committee that’s installed a series of sculptures in downtown Grand Junction has won the 2015 Champion of the Arts Award. The Grand Junction Commission on Arts and Culture announced that Tilman “Tillie” Bishop will receive the award. The commission will present Bishop with artwork by […]

Grant to help preserve Palisade farmland

The Mesa Land Trust has received a nearly $160,000 grant to expand on its efforts to conserve Grand Valley farmland. The Grand Junction-based organization will use the $157,700 grant from Great Outdoors Colorado to work with a Palisade farming family to conserve peach and apricot orchards on East Orchard Mesa. This conservation project will expand […]

Chamber recognizes business expansions

The Grand Junction Area Chamber of Commerce honored companies for expanding operations in the Grand Valley. Counting $25 million worth of improvements on the Colorado Mesa University campus in Grand Junction, the total investment in the expansions topped $46 million. The companies created 200 new jobs in the process. The latest numbers bring to 30 […]

Leap frog: Brand switch bolsters spa sales

Phil Castle, The Business Times The old saying about what happens in offering a better mousetrap apparently holds true — at least when it comes to spas. Customers have been beating a path to the door of Watermark Spas & Pools in Grand Junction to purchase Bullfrog spas. Sales have doubled over the past year, […]

Economist: Mesa County recovery, but labor market lagging

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 […]

Mesa County jobless rate increases

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 […]