Phil Castle, The Business Times Matt Varilek and Ed Cadena have a lot in common. They both worked as newspaper carriers as children and grew up in families that encouraged hard work and entrepreneurship. Varilek and Cadena now work as administrators with the U.S. Small Business Administration, and they have the same message for small […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times Western Colorado officials welcome a last-minute compromise that keeps energy development measures off the November election ballot. But the creation of a new task force charged with coming up with ways to reduce land use conflicts involving oil and natural gas operations likely will constitute only part of the effort […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times Jerry Stehman knows from personal experience the importance of hunting and recreational shooting to Colorado businesses. For nearly 30 years, Stehman has operated a Grand Junction store that depends on hunters and shooters. “That’s who we cater to. That’s what we specialize in,” says Stehman, owner of Jerry’s Outdoor Sports. […]
A monthly measure of optimism among small business owners has edged up on improving expectations for the economy, capital layouts and hiring. Readings for inventories and sales slipped, however, as the overall index remained below is historical average. The National Federation of Independent Business reported that its Small Business Optimism Index climbed to 95.7 in […]
A monthly measure of hotel and motel stays continues to reflect increased business for the hospitality sector in the Grand Valley. According to a Grand Junction Visitor & Convention Bureau report for July, $141,316 in lodging taxes were collected. That’s a 0.5 percent increase over the $140,567 in collections reported for the same month last […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times Another month brings another increase in sales tax collections in Grand Junction and Mesa County, along with further encouragement local economic conditions are slowly improving. “We hope to see continued growth, although it is very gradual at this point,” said Jodi Romero, financial operations director for the City of Grand […]
Subscriptions are now available to a new Internet-based document management service designed to provide not only quick and easy access to records, but also information about everything from revenues and expenses to fleet maintenance and work schedules. Ricky Houtris, principal of the 2H Mechanical mechanical contracting company in Grand Junction, worked with computer programmers to […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times Real estate transactions in Mesa County lag slightly behind last year, although sales volume remains up. And a continued decline in property foreclosure activity reflects what industry observers consider a healthier overall market. “The market is holding steady with healthier transactions,” said Annette Miller, senior vice president of Heritage Title […]
Job growth continues in the United States, but at a slightly slower pace. According to the latest Department of Labor estimates, nonfarm payrolls increased 209,000 in July and the unemployment rate edged up a tenth of a point to 6.2 percent. The July gained extended to six months a string of consecutive payroll increases over […]
There’s a great deal of political talk about tax reform these days. Whether this is mere posturing or a precursor to real legislative action is an open question, to say the least. But as the debate and discussion continues, tax reform advocates must not ignore entrepreneurs and small businesses. So here are five quick rules […]