Economic Issues

Boulder non-profit is changing the lives of Ugandan women one bead at a time

"I was so excited! I just got out of Spanish class and ran down the hallway to meet her. It's like meeting a rock star," says Stella Brown, an eighth-grader at Boulder's Horizon's K-8 School. Brown was racing down the hall to meet Teddy Namuyiga -- not Taylor Swift. Namuyiga is one of two Ugandan ... More >>

Margaret Hunt to head Colorado Creative Industries

Colorado Creative Industries, a division of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade that replaced the Colorado Council of the Arts, has a new executive director, Margaret Hunt, who will be responsible for developing a statewide, shared vision for Colorado's creative indus ... More >>

Michael Hancock taps Rocky Piro as his planning director: Let's see what develops

Mayor Michael Hancock's cabinet is finally complete. Late last week, he announced that he had hired a planning director to fill the slot that Peter Park left in mid-2011: Rocky Piro, a native of Denver who's been working in Washington State. And one of the first things Piro should plan to do is sit ... More >>

What has the National Renewable Energy Lab done for the public good?

See also: Top fifteen inventions and innovations of the National Renewable Energy Lab

Denver City Council approves Welton Corridor plan, sparking fears of eminent domain

After a lengthy public hearing where dozens of property owners and merchants in the Five Points area weighed in on the future of the historic neighborhood, the Denver City Council voted to approve a controversial redevelopment plan that deems the area "blighted." Supporters argue that the plan will ... More >>

Welton Corridor plan before Denver City Council: An opening for eminent domain?

Tonight, Denver City Council will vote on a plan to redevelop the Welton Corridor -- and some property owners in the area fear that if it passes, it will allow the city to seize their homes and businesses. But the Denver Urban Renewal Authority, the entity behind the proposal, argues that those conc ... More >>

Aurora officials remain optimistic about prospects, despite GE solar plant delay

Things were looking up for Aurora, Colorado.That's how it seemed earlier this year when we wrote about the suburb's new tourism organization, Visit Aurora. Why? Aurora looked sure to land the state tourism incentives it needed to entice Gaylord Entertainment to build a giant hotel there; the city wa ... More >>

Denver's 80205 makes national list of areas rapidly getting whiter

Today, we have for you a piece of news that you probably already knew just by looking around you: Parts of Denver are rapidly getting whiter! So much so that Denver's 80205 zip code managed to make it onto a list of the fastest-gentrifying neighborhoods in the country. Hooray!

ACLU, faith groups urge governors not to sell out to private prison giant

A broad proposal by the country's largest private prison company to buy up and privatize state prisons has been met with a stiff rebuke from the American Civil Liberties Union and a coalition of justice policy and religious groups, who are urging all fifty state governors to reject the company's "in ... More >>

RedPeak: City council's Susan Shepherd won't fight controversial West Highland development

Denver City Councilwoman Susan Shepherd will not take any action to stop a proposed development just north of 32nd Avenue and Lowell Boulevard that has neighbors fighting mad. Although she had hinted that she might try to change the zoning on the property, she released a letter late last week stati ... More >>

Il Posto marks its five-year milestone

​"I think for any business, five years is a big deal," Andrea Frizzi, chef-owner of Il Posto, says. "For a restaurant, though, five years is a super big deal." And that's why today is "a super big deal" for the chef -- on this day in 2007, Frizzi, a native of Italy who came to Denver by way o ... More >>

Sunflower Market on Colfax inspires a food fight at Denver City Council

​Unlike so many Western towns, Denver has a wealth of wonderful neighborhoods close to the heart of the city. But with that wealth of neighborhoods comes a surfeit of NIMBY issues that often spill out of their immediate area and into City Hall -- as the fight over a new supermarket on Colfax w ... More >>

Susan Shepherd hints at her next step in battle over proposed development in West Highland

No High Rises in West Highland​Neighbors surrounding the proposed site of three, five-story apartment towers just north of 32nd Avenue and Lowell Boulevard have made their opposition to the project clear. RedPeak Properties, the developer planning to build the structures, and Tom Wootten, the ... More >>

Colorado Children's Campaign says state's children becoming both more hungry and obese

Dr. Steve Berman (left), Angela Glover Blackwell and Bill Shore discuss childhood hunger.​Colorado's children suffer from two seemingly contradictory food-related health problems: hunger and obesity. That's the word from the Colorado Children's Campaign, a nonprofit advocacy organization focus ... More >>

Obama jobs plan in a nutshell: Kenny Be's Nut Graphs

​ Will President Obama's new jobs plan save the country from a double-dip recession or burden our sliding economy with another $400 billion of deficit spending? Below, an easy-to-read chart explains the president's entire economic stimulus plan in a nutshell...

Guess where I'm eating?

Lori Midson​MSNBC's Douglas A. McIntyre recently wrote that the double-dip recession has arrived, a pronouncement that has its share of skeptics (and others who wonder if we ever recovered from the first recession), but double-dip recession or not, there's nothing wrong with pinching pennies, ... More >>

Author Greg Lindsay on the future of cities, globalization and DIA

​When most people envision the future, they probably think about the awesome products we'll have to make our lives easier, but author Greg Lindsay is more concerned about how those products get to us. It's no secret most manufacturing has moved overseas, and with that move, a global economy ha ... More >>

John Hickenlooper off to a fast start with three executive orders

HIckenlooper.​The inauguration ceremony was cold, but Governor John Hickenlooper is off to a blazing start. Hickenlooper issued three executive orders in the first few minutes of officially holding office, taking aim at economic development and improving the efficiency of state government.

Mexican Macro-economics

Recession is over!, economic research group says -- but economy missed the message

​Was it good for you? In a conference call yesterday, the Business Cycle Dating Committee of the National Bureau of Economic Research determined that "a trough in business activity occurred in the U.S. economy in June 2009." In other words, the recession is over. Tell that to the people still ... More >>

Will Parks and Rec get an earful about their plan to privatize La Alma rec center tonight?

La Alma Recreation Center​Tonight's Denver Parks and Recreation Advisory Board meeting at 6 p.m. at La Alma Recreation Center, 1325 West 11th Avenue, has nothing to do with La Alma itself, at least according to the agenda. No, it's just the board's regular monthly meeting, at which members a ... More >>

John Hickenlooper's budget-cut pitch

John Hickenlooper.​The first specific cut listed by Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper in a letter to the citizens of the city about his budget-cut proposal involves reducing the programming on Denver's Channel 8 to "public-meeting coverage and select programming." The latter apparently includes a ... More >>

Why did Coors Field buy the old Light Bulb Supply building?

2010 Delgany, once a potential view-blocker, was recently bought by Coors Field Rockies fans will no longer have to worry about their view of the mountains from Coors Field becoming obstructed by a possible high-rise condo building. The special district that owns the baseball stadium quietly purcha ... More >>

Tom "The Troubleshooter" Martino's troublesome buildings are still standing

Pueblo Bank & Trust: Keep your stinkin' bailout money, President Obama

In recent days, Pueblo Bank & Trust has been running an unusual ad on local stations. The message: The federal government has been pushing bailout money on healthy banks as well as sickly ones -- but PB&T doesn't need rescuing, because it's in sound financial condition. This approach is echoed by ... More >>

Kenny Be's Hip Tip: From the Hip Tip time machine

This Hip Tip was originally published in the February 17-23, 1988 issue of Westword. Now, twenty years later, a look at the bright side means hoping that the environment (and its new energy economy) will be great for (ending) the recession.

ColoradoBiz editor thinks new Channel 4/Denver Business Journal series looks "very familiar"

The latest cover of ColoradoBiz magazine. The February 5 blog "Does a New Channel 4/Denver Business Journal Collaboration say Anything About the Rocky Mountain News?" took note of "Beating the Recession," a just-launched TV-and-print series that highlights locals who are finding ways to thrive duri ... More >>

Internal document describes Channel 4's "Beating the Recession" series

Today's blog "ColoradoBiz Editor Thinks New Channel 4/Denver Business Journal Series Looks 'Very Familiar'" examines the suggestion that "Beating the Recession," a collaboration between Channel 4 and the DBJ, borrowed its concept from "Road to Recovery," a team effort from Channel 7 and ColoradoBi ... More >>

Does a new Channel 4/Denver Business Journal collaboration say anything about the Rocky Mountain News?

This morning brought a press release announcing "Beating the Recession," a new series jointly reported by Channel 4 and the Denver Business Journal. Pretty standard stuff overall, but the parties involved may be meaningful in terms of the area's shifting media landscape. After all, Channel 4's lon ... More >>

West Wash Park rezoning fight gains steam

In October, we introduced you to  the battle over monster duplexes and neighborhood character in West Washington Park. Now, as a December 15 City Council hearing approaches, the controversy is exploding into a debate over the future of development in Denver's older neighborhoods. Some residen ... More >>

Wake-Up Call: The week ahead, November 24-30

It's the economy, stupid. While chairmen of the Big Three auto-makers jetted by private plane to Washington, D.C., looking for a handout last week, hundreds of out-of-work Coloradans lined up before each prospective employer at job fairs across the state last Thursday. And on Saturday, 40,000 peopl ... More >>

In West Washington Park, a battle over monster duplexes and neighborhood character

Frank talk by Thomas Frank

Bottoms Up

Drown your sorrows at the Recession Sessions.

Hideous Houses of Highland

More is not merrier for Highland homeowners who want to stop construction in their neighborhoods.

Best Worth-the-Wait Release

Trample the Weak, Hurdle the Dead
Cost of Living

Building for the Future

Peter Park is in the urban-planning game for good.

Drive, She Said

RTD's buses keep rolling, but sometimes it's hard to tell where they're going.

Fare and Foul

The buck stops here for a company running RTD's privatized routes.

Bus Stopped

The wheels on the bus go round and round as RTD struggles to find a competent contractor.

How to Build a Ghetto

Everyone said they wanted homeless people to be invisible at Lowry. So why aren't they?

Don't Be Dense

A Denver neighborhood fights city hall and wins -- for now.

Ready, Willing and Disabled

The state's treatment of the developmentally disabled isn't broken. So why does Colorado want to fix it?

Playtime Is Over

Parents in northwest Denver finally got their school -- or did they?

A Rough Road Ends in Jeffco

A proposed quarry gets bulldozed by irate residents.

Big Boss Man

Jim Hannifin commands a ready-made urban army—and he keeps winning his battles.

Take My Bus - Please.

At RTD, it's pay as you go. And pay and pay.

Bridges to Nowhere

Emblems of a bulldozing era, downtown's skybridges become a sore point.

A PRIVATE AFFAIR

SEEKING TO CUT COSTS, RTD CONSULTS A LEADING CRITIC OF TRANSIT UNIONS, PUBLIC SUBSIDIES--AND EXPENSIVE RAIL PROJECTS.

FOR YOUR AMUSEMENT

THE CITY IS UP TO ITS NECK IN THE OLD ELITCH'S--AND NOW IT'S CLAMMING UP.QUEASY RIDERS THE BATTLE OVER THE OLD ELITCH'S THROWS A CITY COUNCILMAN--AND HIS CONSTITUENTS--FOR A LOOP.