January 1, 2016
From the GJEP news archive – here’s what we posted in 2015.
MESA COUNTY COMES TOGETHER TO SUPPORT NEW BUSINESS & JOB GROWTH
Monday, December 21, 2015 – On Friday, Sen. Ray Scott, Rep. Yeulin Willett, Mesa County Commissioner Rose Pugliese, Grand Junction Mayor Phyllis Norris, Fruita Mayor Lori Buck, Palisade Trustee Thea Chase and President Tim Foster of Colorado Mesa University convened at the new Maverick Innovation Center to announce that Mesa County has officially applied for the “Rural Jump-Start Zone” tax credit program. Mesa County expects to be one of three Colorado counties that will participate in the program in 2016, which will provide new businesses and their hires with up to eight years of no taxes, as well as other incentives. Businesses may submit their applications starting January 19, 2016. View press from Friday’s event and obtain more information on Jump-Start in Mesa County at www.jumpstartmesaco.com.
MESA COUNTY’S ECONOMIC OUTLOOK 2016 PER LEEDS SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Tuesday, December 15, 2015 – Richard Wobbekind, dean of the University of Colorado Leeds School of Business, met with the Grand Junction Area Chamber of Commerce yesterday to weigh in on Mesa County’s economic prospects for the year ahead. Wobbekind highlights wholesale trade, retail, outdoor recreation and travel & leisure as industry sectors that were strong in 2015 and will continue to grow next year. Read more about Wobbekind’s predictions in The Daily Sentinel.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK ‘TRENDING POSITIVE”
Wednesday, December 9, 2015 – GJEP was interviewed by Phil Castle for The Business Times on Mesa County’s economic outlook for 2016 – and, as Kristi said, we’re “excited, optimistic about 2016.” Read the full article here.
COUNTY JUMPS FOR JUMP-START TAX RELIEF PROGRAM
Tuesday, December 8, 2015 – On Monday, Mesa County officials voted unanimously to approve participation in Colorado’s Jump-Start rural tax relief program, The Daily Sentinel reported. You have been hearing about this program from GJEP for a while – we believe it’s a great opportunity to attract new business and foster entrepreneurship in our community, and we thank Mesa County for supporting the effort. Only three Colorado counties can participate in the program each year and we are hopeful that Mesa County will be among the inaugural participants. Keep up-to-date on all things Jump-Start related at www.jumpstartmesaco.com.
NEW TAX RELIEF PROGRAM COMING TO MESA COUNTY
Tuesday, November 17, 2015 – GJEP has been working diligently with the State of Colorado on a new tax relief program designed to bring new businesses to rural communities like Mesa County and spur job creation. Eligible companies can get eight years with no taxes and will benefit from a hands-on partnership with Colorado Mesa University. Learn more at www.jumpstartmesaco.com.
DAILY SENTINEL HIGHLIGHTS GRAND VALLEY’S $200M OUTDOORS RECREATION INDUSTRY
Sunday, November 15, 2015 – In today’s paper, the business news is dominated by our local outdoors recreation industry. Greg Ruland covers Friday’s launch event of the Outdoor Recreation Coalition, a group of local businesses aiming to grow the $200 million industry in the area. Outdoor recreation remains a target industry for GJEP and we were thrilled to see so many businesses and community leaders come out to support this endeavor. One of those businesses, Vintage Overland, was covered in the Daily Sentinel today as well. Vintage Overland is a homegrown manufacturer of handcrafted trailers that are gaining recognition around the globe for their high-quality, lightweight designs.
GRAND VALLEY CITIES EARN TOP ACCOLADES FOR QUALITY OF LIFE
Friday, November 6, 2015 – We are not the only ones to recognize Colorado’s Grand Valley as a great place to live, work and play (see video).This past week two of our cities were recognized in statewide rankings: Fruita was voted top large adventure town by readers of Elevation Outdoors Magazine and Grand Junction was named Colorado’s #5 Best Small City by WalletHub (see article in the Denver Business Journal).
GJEP LAUNCHES “QUALITY OF LIFE” VIDEO IN SUPPORT OF NEW CAMPAIGN
Wednesday, November 4, 2015 – We are excited to share our latest video showcasing why Colorado’s Grand Valley is a great place to live and work or start a business. The video is part of our new campaign, reminding past and potential residents of the many superb amenities in our region. Our gratitude goes out to ProStar GeoCorp and Bonsai Design, two local businesses that gave their testimonials in the video, as well as the many people and companies that played a part onscreen and off in making this happen – thank you!
GJEP LAUNCHES “THE GRAND VALLEY IS CALLING YOU HOME” CAMPAIGN – DAILY SENTINEL ARTICLE
Saturday, October 31, 2015 – The Grand Valley is a great place to live and work. That’s the message behind our new business and talent recruitment campaign targeting CMU alumni, telecommuters, business owners and skilled professionals. The Daily Sentinel shared the impetus for the campaign in a recent article. Visit grandvalleyco.com to learn more!
REGIONAL AIR SERVICE SURVEY OPEN THROUGH OCT. 31
Tuesday, October 27, 2015 – Thank you to everyone who has taken the time so far to fill out our survey about your travel patterns! Your feedback is crucial to helping us build a future strategy that will improve travel to and from the Grand Junction region. That is why we have extended the deadline and are now accepting responses through October 31. Learn more about our plans in this article in The Daily Sentinel and fill out our survey here (SURVEY NOW CLOSED).
UPCOMING WEBINARS ON NEW TAX RELIEF PROGRAM
At GJEP, we’ve been proud to support Senate Bill 15-282 from the start, which is a program designed to bring tax relief to new businesses and new hires who move to Colorado and operate in designated “Jump-Start” zones.
The Rural Jump-Start Zone Tax Credit program will start accepting applications in December 2015. You can learn more about the program and eligibility requirements in an upcoming webinar on October 26 and November 23, 2015.
GJEP WANTS YOUR HELP TO IMPROVE GRAND JUNCTION TRAVEL
Tuesday, October 20 – GJEP, together with the Grand Junction Chamber and the Grand Junction Regional Airport, are collaborating with the business community to improve travel to and from Grand Junction. In order to guide our planning, we’ve released a survey to learn more about your travel habits. We thank you in advance for filling out our survey, found here, no later than October 22, 2015. You can learn more about how we’re working to improve future travel for the Grand Junction community in this article in The Daily Sentinel.
CO’S NEW OUTDOOR REC CHIEF TOUTS GRAND JUNCTION IN DENVER POST
Sunday, October 18 – In Sunday’s Denver Post, Luis Benitez, director of the newly formed Colorado Office of Outdoor Recreation Industry, talked about outdoor meccas across the state that can compete with industry frontrunners like Ogden, Utah – Grand Junction receives more than just honorable mention, as GJEP’s very own Kristi Pollard is quoted. Read the full article here.
GJEP LAUNCHES NEW QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER
Tuesday, September 15, 2015 – At GJEP, Kristi and Steve are always off and running, attending tradeshows and events, meeting with prospective companies and helping the business community grow and prosper. To keep you up to date with the highlights of our endeavors, we’ve launched a new, quarterly newsletter. Same, great information – new, enticing design!
GJEP, CITY OF FRUITA COURT CYCLING INDUSTRY
Tuesday, September 15, 2015 – Fruita Mayor Lori Buck and Parks & Recreation Director Ture Nycum join Steve Jozefczyk at Interbike, a major tradeshow for the cycling industry, in Las Vegas September 16-18. Leading up to the show, Fruita shared some of the key reasons to consider the region for business and recreation alike with trade media.
MONEY MAGAZINE “BEST PLACES TO LIVE 2015”
Tuesday, August 18, 2015 – Earlier this week, Money magazine released its annual ranking of the best places to live – and kudos to Colorado’s capital for being ranked the top city in the West!
While our communities here in the Valley weren’t on the list, both the cities of Grand Junction and Fruita receive high marks in the magazine’s nifty comparison calculator (other communities are not available). Compared to national averages, both cities have higher national median incomes and more high school graduates, while median home prices and taxes are lower. The projected five-year job growth for both cities is 9%, compared to the national average at 7%. Get the full story here.
GRAND VALLEY’S ECONOMIC STRENGTHS FEATURED IN BUSINESS IN FOCUS MAGAZINE
Monday, August 17, 2015 – The August issue of Business in Focus magazine takes a look at the business opportunities in the Grand Valley, emphasizing a community that is innovative and economically diverse. The article highlights how collaboration between our government and businesses in the community has encouraged growth and helped pave the way for tax regulations and incentives that strongly support industry. Coupled with an educated workforce, stemming from Colorado Mesa University, and an unmatched quality of life, the Grand Valley is portrayed as a place full of potential – and a great place to work and live. We couldn’t agree more!
UPCOMING EVENTS & CLASSES AT THE BUSINESS INCUBATOR CENTER
Thursday, July 23, 2015 – The Business Incubator Center in Grand Junction has a slew of workshops and events coming up to help fast-track your startup endeavors. See a calendar of events and register here.
The Business Incubator Center supports entrepreneurs and small businesses in Mesa County and the surrounding region with free and low-cost classes, networking, financing, work space and coaching services.
ECONOMY BOOSTERS SEE BENEFITS OF CALGARY TRIP
Wednesday, June 24, 2015- It’s too early to know if a delegation of western Coloradans to a recent business conference in Canada will produce any benefits, but things are looking like they just might, members of that delegation said Wednesday.
Earlier this month, 17 local people representing private industry, government and nonprofit groups attended the three-day Global Petroleum Show in Calgary, an annual event that attracts global experts and professionals in the production of oil and gas.
But the local group that went wasn’t necessarily looking to help the region’s oil and gas businesses, saying it targeted numerous companies that manufacture productions outside of that industry.
LOCAL LEADERS ATTEND GLOBAL PETROLEUM SHOW
Wednesday, June 24, 2015- Several local officials and energy leaders met with various national and international companies earlier this month to talk about the benefits of doing business in Western Colorado.
Representatives traveled to Calgary, Canada earlier in June to help “sell” the Western Slope as a viable area for expanding energy businesses.
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