Economists: Small business conditions improving, but obstacles remain

Phil Castle, The Business Times While economic conditions are slowing improving for small businesses in the United States, obstacles continue to slow growth — among them government regulations and political uncertainty. “Things are heading up for small businesses, but the pace is too slow,” said Bill Dunkelberg, chief economist of the National Federation of Independent […]

Putting the work and force into the workforce center: After 16 years of bringing things together, administrator leaving

Putting the work and force into the workforce center:  After 16 years of bringing things together, administrator leaving

Phil Castle, The Business Times Sue Tuffin has made a career out of bringing things together, in particular the myriad services offered at the Mesa County Workforce Center she’s run since the center opened in 1998. The center provides a range of services to people looking for employment, not to mention businesses looking for employees. […]

Entrepreneur offers schools free use of video-editing software

Phil Castle, The Business Times A Grand Junction entrepreneur who’s developed video-editing software that combines powerful features with ease of operation believes his product has a lot to offer in the classroom. And he’s inviting schools to try it out. The first 100 Colorado schools that sign up for the initiative will receive free use […]

Inventive couple not resting on laurels

Phil Castle, The Business Times Barely a year after its very first sale, a fast-growing Grand Junction company is well on its way to expanding distribution of its unique storage system across North America. A new product is under development as well, along with potential new markets. But Dave and Jenny Hall, the inventive couple […]

Director: Many factors drive success in development game

Kelly Flenniken sees similarities between Monopoly and economic development. Success in both the board game and promoting business attraction and expansion depends on access to capital, utilities and relationships — not to mention moving pieces around as the need arises. “GJEP does these things, too,” said Flenniken, executive director of the Grand Junction Economic Partnership. […]

Mesa County jobless rate retreats

Phil Castle, The Business Times The monthly unemployment rate in Mesa County has dropped below the 6 percent milestone for the first time in nearly six years as indicators reflect improving labor conditions. “That is a good sign. It kind of shows the trend of improvement over the last several years,” said Suzie Miller, business […]

Family Health West renames Fruita hospital

Family Health West has named its 5-year-old Fruita hospital Colorado Canyons Hospital and Medical Center as part of efforts to continue to expand health care services in the Grand Valley. “The new name reflects both the past and the future,” said Mark Francis, president and chief executive officer of Family Health West. “Over a half-century […]

St. Mary’s joins in effort to offer bone marrow transplants

St. Mary’s Regional Cancer Center has announced a partnership to bring a bone marrow transplant program to Western Colorado next year. St. Mary’s will work with the University of Colorado Hospital and University of Colorado Cancer Center to offer bone marrow transplants at St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction. A bone marrow transplant program manager […]

Executive: Mesa County good site for business

Phil Castle, The Business Times Mesa County offers an attractive place in which to do business with comparably inexpensive electricity and water, a lower cost of living and eager work force, according to an executive involved in site selection. It’s a matter of communicating that message in the right way to the right industries, said […]