Benjamin Franklin is famously quoted as saying, “In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.” Death perhaps. But apparently not taxes, at least in terms of what tax rates will be imposed. And it’s this very uncertainty that keeps business owners and managers hesitant to expand their operations or staffs. The latest case […]
There’s been a lot of political rhetoric and, consequently, media coverage about Americans who pay no federal income taxes. Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney was surreptitiously recorded as writing off the support of what he said was the 47 percent of Americans who don’t pay federal income taxes nad have become dependent on government assistance […]
Given the stubbornly slow recovery in Mesa County and elsewhere in the United States, it’s hardly surprising business development and job growth remain the predominant campaign issues in races for everything from the courthouse to the White House. As a strategist of former President Bill Clinton put it so eloquently way back in 1992: “It’s […]
Several times a year, the indicators tracking various components of the Mesa County economy all seem to come out at once. When that confluence occurs, it only makes sense to take a more thorough look at what the assembled pieces of the puzzle portray and to try to answer the question that invariably arises: What’s […]
“I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” That announcement more often serves as the ironic punch line to a joke than a sincere assurance, especially when talking to beleaguered business owners who feel under siege these days by the dual threats of economic and regulatory uncertainty. Nonetheless, there are tantalizing indications from time […]
Presidential pronouncements notwithstanding, entrepreneurs are more likely to thrive despite the government rather than because of it. Their innovative ideas, unrelenting drive and willingness to take risks have far more to do with bringing new products and services to the marketplace than any government benefaction. That’s not to say, however, that entrepreneurs can take all […]
The way Jack Hays explains it, it sounds so simple managing the companies he’s launched in Western Colorado. It’s just a matter of identifying and exploiting opportunities for growth. Hays puts it this way: “We find a need and fill it. We provide solutions.” Any good entrepreneur like Hays will attribute success in large part […]
The residential construction industry has long constituted an important component of the Mesa County economy. Consider that the construction of 100 single-family homes creates an average of more than 300 jobs. So it was significant when the home building industry surged in the boom days and suffered in the bust that followed. Now there are […]
There’s no small measure of irony in the fact the company that manufactures components for the largest and most innovative aquarium projects around the world maintains its headquarters in the landlocked desert of Western Colorado. Nonetheless, there are millions of reasons to be thankful Reynolds Polymer Technology is located in Grand Junction — as in […]
North Avenue once served as one of the busiest thoroughfares in Grand Junction and one of the busiest business districts in the city. So it’s disconcerting to those with long-term perspectives to see some of the changes that have occurred over the years: the businesses that have closed or relocated and the rundown and outdated […]