EXECUTIVE UPDATE / August 15, 2005

SkyWest Airlines has announced plans to build a $20 million, 124,000 square foot hangar at the Colorado Springs Airport to house its maintenance operations in Colorado Springs. The airline chose the Springs over Tucson and Wichita as the location for their newest and second largest maintenance facility in the country. SkyWest is anticipating having over 200 maintenance personnel working in the facility earning between $30,000 and $60,000 per year. EDC assisted the Colorado Springs Airport in helping "land" SkyWest for Colorado Springs. (Source: EDC/The Gazette)
“K-12 Challenges" were the topic of the July 28 luncheon. To review the presentation, go to www.coloradosprings.org/Publications/EDC_K-12_Challenges.pdf. In addition to the challenges of funding, social issues have become an additional burden on school districts. Before and after school daycare, family and domestic abuse, and obesity are among the issues assumed by local K-12 schools.
Colorado Springs was recently ranked 14th among the 25 Best Running Cities in America. Source: Road Runners Club of America (www.rrca.org).
Why does the Colorado Springs business community support Referenda C and D? From a business perspective it’s all about quality jobs, which fuel the economic engine and wealth of our community. Are we adequately investing in our future by providing funding to those areas of our community that make us competitive for those quality jobs, in a global market place? According to Michael Porter, professor at Harvard University, to be competitive a community must invest in: physical and information infrastructure; K-12 education; higher education; and specialized research centers. While these are the areas that make a community attractive to current and prospective employers, they are also the areas that are slowly decaying in our community. Referenda C & D simply ask that the voters decide whether or not to retain the projected revenues in excess of the TABOR limit, for the next five years, to invest in these important areas. For more information on the Citizen’s Coalition for “YES” on Referenda C & D, contact Annie Oatman-Gardner at Ccyescandd@aol.com or Mike Kazmierski at mjkazmierski@csedc.org.
Colorado’s biotechnology push garners attention. Colorado is “charging hard” in its quest to be a leading center for biotechnology, according to James Greenwood, president and chief executive of the Biotechnology Industry Organization. Colorado is home to research and manufacturing divisions of Roche Pharmaceuticals employing 380 in Boulder. Amgen Inc. employs 800 at two manufacturing facilities in Longmont and Boulder. Source: Denver Post (www.denverpost.com)
Rocky Scott, EDC’s former CEO, has been named Executive Director of the Institute for Science and Space Studies at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. The position is part-time and Rocky will remain in his current role at McWhinney Enterprises, a Loveland real estate investment and development firm.
City Manager Lorne Kramer will be the keynote speaker at EDC's luncheon on Thursday, September 22. Invitations will be mailed. Call (719) 471-8183 for more information.
The 2nd Annual Colorado Springs Real Estate Update will be held Friday, September 23, at the Double Tree Hotel-World Arena. The mayors of Colorado Springs, Denver and Aurora will be among the panelists. Steve Schuck will be honored at this event. For more information, go to www.daniels.du.edu/burns.
The spectacular Colorado Balloon Classic will be held September 3-5 at Memorial Park. 99 Balloons are scheduled to fly beginning at 7:00am each morning. www.balloonclassic.com