Sponsored tables are now on sale for $1,100 for the 2025 Western Colorado Economic Summit, which is hosted by the Grand Junction Economic Partnership and will take place April 24 at Colorado Mesa University from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Sponsored tables include seating for 10 and company-logo placement. To reserve a table or learn more about the event, go online to www.gjep.org/wces.

General Admission tickets will go on sale starting March 24th.

The economic summit will recognize a local company and an individual who have significantly impacted economic development within Mesa County. Nominations for the Spirit of Economic Development Award and the Joseph C. Prinster Award will be accepted through April 4 and may be submitted to selena@gjep.org or online at gjep.org/wces.

The summit’s title sponsors are FCI Constructors and Intermountain Health St. Mary’s Regional Hospital.

The economic summit will open with a panel discussion by Mesa County, the City of Grand Junction, Colorado Mesa University and Mesa County School District 51 representatives, detailing key updates, areas of collaboration and strategies for success.

Then, for the first time, the summit will welcome a select group of site selection professionals from industries including tech, manufacturing, life sciences, tourism, retail and more. They will share their insights about the region’s key strengths, opportunities for business attraction and areas for improvement. The session’s intent is to provide an understanding of how Western Colorado can position itself for future investment and economic success.

Additional breakout sessions will include:

• Economic data presented by Dr. Nathan Perry of CMU’s Davis School of Business.
• Updates on the state of affordable housing in the area.
• Rural transportation challenges and opportunities.
• The economic importance of water and agriculture.
• An update on the RAPIDS Tech Hub initiative.
• Cyber hygiene with Kurtis Minder.
• Uncovering the economic impact of creative industries.
• Business and talent attraction.

GJEP will provide its annual update, detailing the organization’s economic impact, recent wins through business relocations or expansions, and upcoming goals.

“Our goal is to increase economic impact based on the number of jobs created and capital-expenditure impact facilitated by our organization’s business attraction and expansion efforts,” GJEP Executive Director Curtis Englehart said. “We are proud to share that in 2024, GJEP’s efforts resulted in a record-breaking $91,252,018 in economic impact, and we look forward to continuing this momentum in 2025. It is because of our investors and stakeholders that we can achieve this growth and host impactful events like the economic summit.”

GJEP’s full 2024 Annual Report, detailing its business attraction and expansion efforts, will be released later this month.

The Western Colorado Economic Summit is made possible through the support of its sponsors, including FCI Constructors, Intermountain Health St. Mary’s Regional Hospital, Grand Junction Federal Credit Union, Conquest Development, High Country Beverage, West Star Aviation and Colorado Mesa University.