Colorado Springs Business Journal (CO) articles from March 2009

Colorado Springs Business Journal (CO) archives from March 2009

Peak Vista Community Health Centers stimulus money to create 40 jobs.
March 3, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine Peak Vista Community Health Centers will receive $1.3 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The money will aid 5,240 patients and create at least 40 jobs. The money is being distributed by...

Colorado beef: It's what's for dinner--internationally.
March 3, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn During 2008, Colorado was the No. 1 supplier of beef and beef variety meats to Canada, the No. 2 supplier to Japan and Mexico and the No. 1 supplier of fresh chilled beef to Korea. For the first time, beef exports...

Work stressors lead to increased costs, decreased productivity.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn Employees looking for a new job because of workplace stress have plenty of company. Fifty-two percent of workers say they have considered or made a decision about their career, including declining a promotion or...

City of Colorado Springs in no rush to issue COPs to pay for USOC headquarters project.
March 6, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst The City of Colorado Springs has yet to market the debt instruments that will pay for its share of the cost of building new facilities for the U.S. Olympic Committee and the Olympic Training Center. The city's...

Colorado Springs takes another shot at launching a sustainable business network.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine Boston, Portland and Philadelphia all have one. And soon, Colorado Springs will join the list of cities with sustainable business networks. The Pikes Peak Sustainable Business Network launches March 12. It is a...

Commentary: Perhaps The Shepherd somehow missed the memo about the Clovis.
March 6, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind -- Proverbs 11:29 Are you a Christian? Or do you subscribe to Islam, or Judaism, or Ba'Hai, or Buddhism, or Shinto, or Zoroastrianism, or Jainism, or Taoism or...

Keep your fingers crossed if you lie on your resume.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine The CEO of RadioShack was fired after it was discovered he didn't graduate from MIT. One of the chefs on a Food Network program never cooked for England's royal family. And it appears that Gazette publisher Steve...

Colorado Springs attorney Bill Maywhort's focus on eagles not limited to legal matters.
March 6, 2009... Byline: CSBJ Staff Report Despite successes in the courtroom -- including a $300 million settlement in a national class action suit -- Bill Maywhort's fondest wish is success on the golf course. Maywhort, an associate at Holland & Hart in...

Business coach Chuck Kocher offers a simple formula for success in any economy.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn According to J. Paul Getty, there are only three things you need to do to be successful: rise early, work hard and -- strike oil. OK. So success really isn't that simple. But Chuck Kocher, business coach for...

Colorado Springs Medical Briefs: March 6, 2009.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine The Internal Revenue Service has a Web site for employers to claim credit for the COBRA medical premiums they pay for their former employees. The information, available at IRS.gov, includes an extensive set of...

Colorado Springs Real Estate Briefs: March 6, 2009.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley In yet another sign that commercial real estate continues to move ahead, the 30-unit Briarwood Apartments at 425 E. Willamette Ave. have been purchased by Josephine Investment Holdings LLC for $950,000. Stuart Sloat of...

Colorado Springs Retail Briefs: March 6, 2009.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Scott Prater Developers Emmitt Mitchell and Julian Branker have broken ground on a four-story, 124-room, extended-stay hotel just south of the Colorado Springs World Arena. Mitchell expected construction to be complete on Value...

Colorado Springs Business Journal News Briefs: March 6, 2009.
March 6, 2009... Byline: CSBJ Staff Report Ent receives 5-star rating End Federal Credit Union has earned a 5-Star Superior rating from Bauer Financial Inc. The rating is based on the overall financial picture of the credit union and indicates that Ent is...

Commentary: Laying the foundation for sustained success.
March 6, 2009... Byline: CSBJ Staff Editorial The Catamount Institute is launching its second effort to create a sustainable business network in Colorado Springs. And while its efforts are surely laudable, we hope that they are not overzealous. While we...

Commentary: Southern Colorado innovation strategy.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Lon Matejczyk What would the Springs look like if the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs had 35,000 students and a $750 million to $1 billion dollar impact on our local economy? Dare I suggest that the Springs could become...

Commentary: C'mon, you know you said it, so get over it and just live with it.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Mike Boyd I can't believe I'm writing this, but public relations professionals aren't the only ones who cut off their proverbial noses to spite their faces when it comes to interacting with the media. Some folks do a mighty fine...

Commentary: Perhaps The Shepherd somehow missed the memo about the Clovis.
March 6, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind -- Proverbs 11:29 Are you a Christian? Or do you subscribe to Islam, or Judaism, or Ba'Hai, or Buddhism, or Shinto, or Zoroastrianism, or Jainism, or...

Coloradoans on the Move: March 6, 2009.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Colorado Springs Business Journal Staff Report Richard Dick Marshall has joined Nolte Associates Inc. as a group director of planning and entitlements. He has 35 years of land planning and landscape architecture experience. ...

Commentary: Bernie Madoff, the good family man.
March 10, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst You've gotta hand it to Bernie -- rather than doing what you'd expect of a remorselessly psychopathic swindler, he's apparently decided to be a mensch. He's taking the fall, protecting his family, and spending his...

Commentary: Vote yes on JOBS NOW.
March 11, 2009... Byline: Lon Matejczyk A readers of my column in the CSBJ know, I preach often on economic development and try as I might can't tolerate the cheapskates in our city that would vote against the JOBS initiative. If this is the first you have...

Weatherization money could blow a few jobs into Colorado.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine Colorado's share of weatherization stimulus money could mean some jobs for the state. The federal government will give Colorado more than $128 million for the state's weatherization and energy programs as part of the...

Eleven debt management companies settle with Colorado A.G.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer Eleven debt management and credit counseling companies have settled investigations with the Colorado Attorney General office under credit and consumer laws that went into effect last year. The companies will refund...

Vail Resorts' CEO skips pay, cuts wages.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine Vail Resorts' CEO will forego pay for a year and the resort will cut wages to save jobs and more than $10 million a year, executives announcedyesterday. CEO Rob Katz will not take any salary for a year and then...

Colorado Springs-based Red Noland Auto Group to begin selling used cars.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine Red Noland Auto Group plans to begin selling selling off-brand used cars by early next week. The dealership has sold both new and used Cadillacs, Saabs, Infinities and Jaguars, but will now sell other types of...

Land as an investment: making it work.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley While America's landed gentry buy and hold, usually to conserve prime stretches of virgin soil for posterity, more often raw land serves as a high-return proposition in which a developer buys, improves, sells lots or...

Commentary: Bottle Breakup: Tap water likely better -- and it's a lot cheaper.
March 13, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst Every year, in order to comply with the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1996, Colorado Springs Utilities provides its customers with an annual water quality report. To a lay reader, the report is alarming, even...

Both sides of Colorado's Arveshoug-Bird law debate eyeing final resolution in courtroom.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine The Colorado legislature is considering overturning an 18-year-old law that limits government spending increases to 6 percent of the previous year's general fund. And that attempt could set the stage for a legal...

Commentary: There goes the neighborhood: The unintended consequences of good business decisions.
March 13, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst A few months ago, Glen Gustafson, School District 11's CFO, said that the district's financial problems required the closure of underutilized schools. The arithmetic is compelling: two half-full schools cost nearly...

Landed gentry also feeling sting of economic downturn.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley There are investors who aren't looking for a quick return on their land purchases. During the heady financial times of the past decade, for example, affluent shoppers turned their attention to the global land market,...

ROI or IOU: Is buying land in Colorado today a good investment?
March 13, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley Land -- like other precious or disappearing commodities -- will always have its allure. And those, who are looking to make their money on the buy, need to do plenty of homework at the El Paso County assessor's office...

UMB Bank Colorado VP Gregory Welch sees opportunities among banking challenges.
March 13, 2009... Byline: CSBJ Staff Gregory Welch intended to earn a degree in psychology, but during his sophomore year in college he was in an economics class and a light bulb came on. The appeal of economics -- a social science, combined with math,...

Reality check: Economies contract, there are just different 'flavors'.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn Although consumer confidence declined throughout 2008 from a high of 117 during March to a low of 77 during November, it rebounded somewhat during December to 88 (perhaps consumers were merely happy for the holidays?)....

Colorado Springs Medical Briefs: March 13, 2009.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine More than 70 percent of doctors say federal funding for stem cell research will improve the country's position as an innovator in health care. A national study of 636 doctors showed that physicians generally support...

Colorado Springs Real Estate Briefs: March 13, 2009.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley Rumors that commercial real estate has dried up or has slowed to a crawl appear to be highly exaggerated, to borrow another phrase from Mark Twain. The following update from around the region speaks to slower, but...

Colorado Springs Retail Briefs: March 13, 2009.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Scott Prater Private equity and concept development firm Consumer Capital Partners is poised to capture a niche restaurant market not only here in Colorado Springs, but around the country. That market lies somewhere between fast...

ESM offering free computer classes.
March 13, 2009... Byline: CSBJ staff ESM offering free computer classes Ecumenical Social Ministries will begin offering free computer training classes from 5:30 to 7 p.m. March 31. Classes will be held Tuesday evenings for five weeks and cover basic...

Commentary: Will Colorado Springs city government ever learn that secrecy doesn't work?
March 13, 2009... Byline: CSBJ Staff Same song, second verse/Couldn't get better, could get worse... -- schoolyard taunt, c. 1950 Some things never change. The sun rises in the east, Pikes Peak looms to the west and the Colorado Springs city government...

Commentary: Technology fails, have a backup plan.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Lon Matejczyk The CSBJ had a pretty serious meltdown last week -- and I don't mean with tears and a tantrum. It is amazing how tied to technology we are in the business world and, in fact, most all facets of our lives. Qwest said...

Colorado Springs Police bust local I.D. theft ring.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer Colorado Springs Police have arrested three local people accused of running a small identity theft ring. Fox 21 News is reporting that police arrested 24-year-old Corey Barnett Skinner, 32-year-old Mark Nielsen, and...

Coloradoans butting out: 10-year smoking trend declining.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that Colorado's cigarette smoking rate significantly declined from 1998 through 2007. The CDC analyzed data from the 2007 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance...

Just what has the IRS been up to?
March 13, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer During fiscal year 2008, the Internal Revenue Service collected more than $2.3 trillion in taxes and processed more than 250 million returns and filed more than 101 million returns. Want to know what else the IRS is up...

Colorado Springs real estate market better-poised for recovery.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley In its fourth quarter recap of the Colorado Springs residential real estate market published this month, the Denver-based Genesis Group provided a forecast for the remainder of 2009. Acknowledging current "bleak...

Commentary: Managing layoffs with dignity and respect.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Ann Snortland Prolonged economic difficulties are forcing many previously healthy middle market companies to face the question of layoffs. This is an area that is ripe with potential hazards and might have unintended consequences...

Colorado's stimulus projects listed on new Web site.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer The State of Colorado has launched a Web site that list all the state's road projects being paid for through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Web site, www.dot.state.co.us/arra/, includes project...

Colorado masses miss out on March medical marijuana meeting.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine So many people wanted to attend a meeting about changing medical marijuana registry rules that the state's board of health had to postpone the March hearing to find a bigger location. The meeting is now...

Financial Accounting Standards Board to review mark-to-market.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn Economists and financial analysts vehemently disagree about bailouts and which sort of regulations work or don't. But now many agree -- from investor Warren Buffett to Republican Steve Forbes to Democratic economic...

Colo. misses unemployment extension by two-tenths of 1 percent.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer The states that are eligible for an extension of emergency unemployment benefits was released today - and Colorado did not make the list. To qualify for the extension the state's unemployment needed to average 6...

Commentary: Pikes Peak Sustainable Business Network roll out.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Lon Matejczyk PPSBN is not just a new pretty acronym for our region. The Pikes Peak Sustainable Business Network was created to help our local business community develop and implement sustainable business practices, but the...

Commentary: Conservatives are ... as conservatives do.
March 13, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst Got a fancy, little four-color mailer from Congressman Doug Lamborn in the mail yesterday, decrying the stimulus bill. Lamborn wants us to know that he'll "continue the fight to reduce spending, debt and taxes."...

Commentary: Spoils of war.
March 13, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst Some months ago, I was wandering through a riverside park in Bangor, Maine, when I paused to look at a beautiful bronze cannon handsomely mounted on a turn of the century stone monument. A bronze plaque...

Commentary: Let the games end!
March 13, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst The U.S. Olympic Committee/city/LandCo drama continues, with no end in sight - or if there is, the principal players aren't talking. We don't know whether the Mayor Lionel Rivera's clandestine fundraising...

Coloradoans on the Move: March 13, 2009.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Colorado Springs Business Journal Staff Report Valerie Montgomery has joined Restored Hearts P.C. as a personal and image counselor. Ric Meyer has been named operations manager of Aleut Communications Services. He has more than...

MedData adding 25 jobs to Colorado Springs.
March 16, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley Emergency medicine billing and management services provider MedData is adding 25 jobs to its Colorado Springs office. The additions come as a result of the cancellation of an outsourced call center in India. The...

Refinances boost loan origination projections.
March 16, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley Projections for U.S. home financing this year have increased $400 billion. An increase in conventional refinances is responsible for the bright outlook, according to www.MortgageDaily.com. First-quarter...

Colo. Bankers Association president: don't believe the hype, Colorado banks healthy.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn Consumers and investors are anxious about the economy and the stock market, but loans are still being made and return on investment is still possible at Colorado banks, says the president of the Colorado Bankers...

Colorado healthy, at peace with self.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine Colorado ranks fourth in the nation in terms of well being, according to a national analysis of 350,000 interviews conducted in 2008. Only Utah, Hawaii and Wyoming rank higher, with Michigan, Tennessee and...

Manitou Springs seeking solution to city's longtime parking issues.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley Colorado Springs' neighbor to the west has updated its streetscapes, attracted new retail shops and expanded its Cliff House Hotel, but it's come up short on places for its many visitors to park. To address the...

Free money for downtown development in Colorado Springs.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine The Downtown Development Authority is giving away money - but only if it's going to be spent to improve the downtown landscape. The authority has up to $150,000 in grant money - to be given away in amounts...

Downtown parking meter fees in Colorado Springs at night?
March 17, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer The Downtown Partnership of Colorado Springs and the city are floating the idea of extending downtown parking meter fee hours to include weekday and weekend nights to raise money to save the free downtown shuttle. ...

Colo. Dept. of Transportation: Stimulus project bid information meeting April 9.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley Contractors and highway construction companies should mark April 9 on their calendars. That's when Colorado Department of Transportation officials will give project and bid information about the area's...

Colorado ranks 10th in nation for mortgage fraud.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer Colorado had the 10th-highest level of residential mortgage fraud during 2008, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The No. 10 spot is up from the state's 2007 ranking of No. 17. The state was No. 8 on the...

O, say can you sing? Colorado Springs Sky Sox looking for a few good singers.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer The Colorado Springs Sky Sox are looking a few good singers. They'll host Star Spangled Banner vocalist auditions from 1 to 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 29 at Security Service Field. Soloists, duets, trios and...

SBA stimulus online chat tomorrow.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer The Small Business Administration will host an online chat at 11 a.m. tomorrow about how small companies can cash in on the economic stimulus legislation. SBA Associate Administrator Eric Zarnikow will host the...

Downtown Colorado Springs nightclub cited for female nudity and breast fondling.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer Owners of 13 Pure Nightclub and Bistro, 217 E. Pikes Peak Ave., could have their tavern liquor license revoked if they're found guilty of allowing female nudity and breast fondling. Owners or the "liquor licensee"...

United States Olympic Committee cuts budget, 54 jobs.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer The United States Olympic Committee has begun reducing its 2009 operating budget by $7.1 million, which will mean the elimination of 54 jobs. Officials say the budget reduction - from $142.6 million to $135.5...

Commentary: Downtown, or just down?
March 18, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst For almost half a century, local businesses, elected officials, nonprofits, and concerned citizens have conceived, pushed, and sometimes implemented a variety of schemes to improve downtown-to make it what it once...

Commentary: Pueblo Chieftain Publisher Bob Rawlings bows to inevitable.
March 18, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst Pueblo Chieftain Publisher Bob Rawlings has opposed Colorado Springs' Southern Delivery System water pipeline project since it was first proposed a decade ago. He's written, or approved, scores of editorials...

Commentary: America's economy needs farmers, ranchers, agriculture.
March 19, 2009... Byline: John R. Stulp This week we commemorate American agriculture and the benefits it brings to our society, our economy and our environment. But most of all, we celebrate the productivity of our nation's farmers and ranchers. Gov. Bill...

Pueblo approves Southern Delivery System.
March 19, 2009... Byline: Rob Larimer Last night, after a three hour hearing, The Pueblo County Commissioners voted unanimously to approve Colorado Springs' proposed Southern Delivery System, which will deliver water from Pueblo Reservoir to Colorado...

Recovery Act allow $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit.
March 19, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn Interest rates cannot go lower, and home prices are down these days. So, if you're purchasing a home this year, be sure to claim the new $8,000, first-time homebuyer tax credit, which is part of the Recovery Act....

Commentary: Oil and water don't mix.
March 19, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst How much water, in the form of both absolute and conditional rights in the Colorado River basin, have companies such as Shell and Exxon claimed during recent years to support the so-far nonexistent shale oil...

Colorado Springs Retail Briefs: March 20, 2009.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Scott Prater Local artist and custom framer Terry Henderson is moving his Boulder Street Gallery from a Victorian home in the 700 block of North Tejon Street to the downtown area. Henderson purchased the building at 206 N. Tejon...

All things being equal, Colorado is in better shape than some.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn Equilibrium -- when supply equals demand -- or disequilibrium, the opposite, of course, can exist in either the capital markets or in the goods markets. Fred Crowley, senior instructor at the College of Business at...

Commentary: GOP boys put primary preservation before environmental preservation.
March 20, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst Last week, a long-awaited bill to set aside more than 2 million acres in nine states as protected wilderness was rejected by the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill would have designated Rocky Mountain...

Resort, travel companies pay price for TARP indiscretions.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley When financial services giants announced plans to send executives on incentive trips to chi-chi hotel/resort destinations last fall and earlier this year - drawing the ire of Congress and the public - the travel and...

------Businesses in Colorado Springs looking to hire technical consultants have ready-made source.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn Businesses in Colorado Springs have a ready-made source for technical consultants. The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs offers a family of interdisciplinary degrees program -- bachelor's of innovation --...

Commentary: Cutting through the 1A hyperbole.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Colorado Springs Staff Editorial Like spring crocuses, political signs are sprouting up across the city. Flowers they aren't, especially the dueling, and somewhat misleading signs for and against issue 1A. Proponents: Vote Yes...

Bryan has been helping to reshape Colorado Springs for three decades.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Colorado Springs Business Journal Staff Report Scott Bryan has staked his success on a three-pronged business model that includes federal, commercial and facilities services construction work. The son of a Colorado Springs...

City of Colorado Springs' staffing levels for human resource employees are way outside the norm.
March 20, 2009... Byline: John Hazlehurst How many human resource employees does a local government, or a local government enterprise, need to function effectively? Judging by the dramatically different staffing levels of two H.R. departments supervised...

Colorado Springs Real Estate Briefs: March 20, 2009.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Becky Hurley Given the opportunity, many medical and dental practitioners are opting to buy rather than lease office space. Last month, for example, Oral Surgery Associates bought a 4,500-square-foot medical office condominium at...

Colorado Springs Medical Briefs: March 20, 2009.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Amy Gillentine Despite rising costs, very few employers changed their health benefit packages during the 2009 enrollment season. Employers absorbed most of the cost increases, and added access to health saving accounts and...

Colorado Springs Business Journal News Briefs: March 20, 2009.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Colorado Springs Business Journal Staff Report Greccio Housing growing Greccio Housing has begun managing a property owned by Partners in Housing and Rocky Mountain Community Land Trust. The Park Meadows Apartments, which has...

Technical consulting really is, well, downright technical.
March 20, 2009... Byline: Rebecca Tonn Ever hired a technical consultant, only to swear six months later that, surely, he or she had a stand-in during the interview? Perhaps the employee's problem-solving skills were nonexistent, or his style of...

Commentary: How about a little creativity to boost our local economy?
March 20, 2009... Byline: Lon Matejczyk Back in June 2006, I brought up that at any given time there is as much as $1 billion in Department of Defense contracts at the request for proposal stage. I also mentioned that Colorado is one of the few states...