E-News

Municipalities are raking in record sales tax income. Among all the affordability pains that residents of mountain towns face and following the major disruption to the local and national economy due to a pandemic, that distinction between how towns currently fair in contrast to their residents should give pause to leaders as they budget for

NWCCOG is hiring a Regional Grants Navigator contract position for 2023 (and beyond subject to annual legislative appropriation) thanks to the four sponsors of SB22-15 including local Representative Julie McCluskie.  Keep an eye out for that position posting at our website in late November NWCCOG has worked with OEDIT to co-create these positions to be

The good news is tempered knowing a third of our children locally are living in poverty. What is good is that policy has been shown to impact the numbers. It may appear a departure from our usual NWCCOG newsletter focus on local government issues & policy, or economic development trends to focus this month on

Mountain resort communities have had a love/hate relationship with Mobile Home Parks (MHP).  For years, the “hate” part derived from two factors. One, as a “cash cow” for mom-and-pop owners, and to the consternation of leaders and planners, MHPs rarely “redeveloped,” nor are MHP improved despite communities growing around them.   A misnomer, the units aren’t

All the quitting or reshuffling going on with employees right now has me thinking about the many expectations we have for work, and what my own kids expectations might be. Like my wife and I, back in the day, both are good students, and good workers, neither is on an obvious “career track.”  Not sure being in

Celebrating the 2nd anniversary of the creation of the Brush Creek Valley Ranch open space and trails project, warrants a look back at how it came into being. When Colorado Private Equity partners Chad Brue and Geoff Baukol invested in the mountains instead of their “usual” commercial work on the Front Range it was a

As if nothing changed while everything shifted, State Demographer Elizabeth Garner was back May 51h at the Silverthorne pavilion where NWCCOG hosted the first in-person Regional Economic Summit in 3 years. What sounded like far off warnings in 2019 are now upon us. My big takeaway: Colorado is losing its mojo. It’s economic mojo and

What happens when a mountain community approaches workforce housing as if responding to a disaster? Those of us in attendance at the Spring Colorado City and County Managers Association (CCCMA) conference in Glenwood on April 14th got a glimpse of two communities that recently treated housing as a crisis.

One trend we are seeing in service, retail and restaurant trades is places of business being closed during hours and days that they used to be open. This is often a resu It of “workforce shortages” which translates also to trying to prevent burnout from the few workers smaller businesses still have, or the owners

Like the NYT, in Mitch McConnell vs. Republicans I’m not sure of motives, nor should too much be made of the rift, though coming from the master of keeping colleagues in line, it must be said that democracy needs more squabbling within the parties and less conformity if it is to survive these times. The

Welcome to 2022, as we begin another strange year, folks. My completely uneducated position as a non-epidemiologist is that as 2022 winds down months from now, that COVID and its’ variants will–for real, after a nearly 3-year cycle– loosen their grip on infection rates, hospital capacity, global supply chains, inflation, and our day-to-day lives—including the

In recent years, courageous leaders in the high country have taken bold steps to address a crisis that impacts us each and all. In 2022, NWCCOG will highlight those efforts and encourage action in other communities. I’m talking about a suite of issues known as Behavioral Health which includes all types of mental health and

Employee engagement is News. Cultivating esprit de corps is always a challenge, especially through the past 18 months. With most daily work being remote, including NWCCOG’s monthly staff meetings, it was gratifying at the November meeting, to hear from team members who shared what made them proud, and what they look forward to in 2022.

The past 18 months of COVID pandemic has triggered structural changes to our workforce. The topic may have overtaken housing, which is saying something. It seems everyone I talk with has an anecdote. Here is my take on the workforce shortage: People adapt. One adaptation is that some are learning they don’t need to work

On September 17th, Vintage , Garfield County, and Northwest Colorado Options for Long Term Care, welcomed Teepa Snow for the 13th Annual Caregiver Conference at the Keystone Conference Center. Teepa Snow is one of the world’s leading advocates and educators for anyone living with dementia or other forms of brain change.

If the past 18 months threw you off balance, and the external uncertainty left a low-grade anxiety lingering across your organization, maybe you should re-consider that your work habits. I’m reading Cal Newport’s A World Without Email concurrently with a virtual 8 -week mindfulness course. I highly recommend both to reconnect with how managing people

For those who think that “workplaces and wages will just return to normal” there is a reckoning on the horizon. Workers have awakened to their value, and options. Local governments and other employers who don’t adapt will suffer. One sign is a recent LinkedIn post from a member county “advertising” that they offer health care benefits for

This newsletter introduces The Mountain Migration report, other legislation going on in Colorado that may impact our communities, and thoughts on what it might mean to declare a housing emergency — some municipalities are considering just such a move. It also explains why the Ski Hill Resources for Economic Development Act  or SHRED is so

Milestones for water advocates can be years in the making. As a 40-plus year advocating entity and partner to many local jurisdictions involved these matters, NWCCOG and the Water Quality & Quantity Committee (QQ) have been keeping a close eye on recent milestones for two major transmountain diversion expansion projects which occurred this past month.

Were you on a Town Board that made decisions, hundreds or perhaps thousands of them including those many decisions-within-a-decision?  If you remained in town, have you encountered impacts from your decisions?  Some decisions I recollect vividly – that vote on the leash law after 3 packed public hearings.  Others leave me wondering “well…how did we

I’ve recently written letters to both of my children and read them aloud expressing how grateful I am to each for who they are and what they’ve brought to my life. The exercise was more impactful than I expected. Even if you have appreciation for those around you, it is likely that you express that