News

October42018

Economic Dashboard August 2018

Roger ZalneraitisEconomic Data, Featured Newslines, News

How is the economy right now in Durango and La Plata County?

Find out the latest on our employment, home construction, tourism, and other key measures of our local economic performance. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us and we can walk you through what the data means.

Local Economic Conditions

August 2018

Summary
Improved (+)	9
No Change (o)	3
Declined (-)	7
Improved (Declined)	2

	Current	Last Month	Last Year	Change (vs Last Year)
Workforce
Labor Force	32,872	32,915	31,739	+
Unemployment Rate (%)	3.1	3.0	1.9	–
Labor Force Participation (%)	58.3	58.5	57.0	+
Job Openings	1,175	1,013	1,860	–
8
Construction & Housing
New Permits (to Date)	184	165	178	+
Value of Permits ($,000) (to Date)	95,184	86,181	87,927	+
Home Sales	561	470	565	o
Average Home Price ($)	480,586	469,427	433,419	+
Earnings Needed* ($)	84,800	82,600	70,500	–
8
Travel & Tourism
Enplanements	18,648	18,959	18,003	+
Lodgers Tax ($)	142,785	125,498	164,387	–
Train Visitors	14,001	16,088	25,383	–
8
Gas & Oil
New Permits (to date)	79	76	81	–
Production (mmcf)	24,179	21,032	24,223	o
8
Other
Sales Tax, Durango ($,000)**	1,487	1,551	1,548	–
Commercial Sales ($,000) (to date)	22,487	16,063	18,376	+
Foreclosures (to date)	32	32	36	+
Energy Use
Commercial (mwh)	58,867	58,859	55,282	+
Commercial Accounts	6,468	6,469	6,424	o

Notes:

*”Earnings needed” is the household income necessary to purchase an average-priced home in La Plata County.

**Sales tax for Durango includes Use Tax.

Sources:Employment: Colorado Department of Labor and US CensusConstruction & Housing: City of Durango, La Plata County, Mortgage-X.com, and the Wells Group Travel & Tourism: City of Durango, Durango Area Tourism Organization (DATO), and Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad Gas & Oil: Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Other: City of Durango (Sales tax and business permits), La Plata County Treasurers Office (Foreclosures), and LPEA (Energy Use) (LPEA data is unaudited)

August292018

Economic Dashboard July 2018

Roger ZalneraitisEconomic Data, Featured Newslines, News

How is the economy right now in Durango and La Plata County?

Local Economic Conditions

July 2018

Summary
Improved (+)	9
No Change (o)	3
Declined (-)	7
Improved (Declined)	2

	Current	Last Month	Last Year	Change (vs Last Year)
Workforce
Labor Force	32,915	32,625	31,594	+
Unemployment Rate (%)	3.0	2.7	2.1	–
Labor Force Participation (%)	58.5	58.0	56.8	+
Job Openings	1,013	1,008	2,218	–
8
Construction & Housing
New Permits (to Date)	165	126	149	+
Value of Permits ($,000) (to Date)	86,181	66,560	73,818	+
Home Sales	470	384	476	o
Average Home Price ($)	469,427	476,687	433,349	+
Earnings Needed* ($)	82,600	84,300	71,300	–
8
Travel & Tourism
Enplanements	18,959	17,724	18,499	+
Lodgers Tax ($)	125,498	99,671	144,637	–
Train Visitors	16,088	1,465	36,542	–
8
Gas & Oil
New Permits (to date)	76	76	62	+
Production (mmcf)	24,823	23,728	24,633	o
8
Other
Sales Tax, Durango ($,000)**	1,551	1,432	1,620	–
Commercial Sales ($,000) (to date)	16,063	14,742	17,631	–
Foreclosures (to date)	32	32	36	+
Energy Use
Commercial (mwh)	58,859	54,896	55,789	+
Commercial Accounts	6,469	6,471	6,423	o

Notes:

*”Earnings needed” is the household income necessary to purchase an average-priced home in La Plata County.

**Sales tax for Durango includes Use Tax.

August82018

Economic Dashboard June 2018

Roger ZalneraitisEconomic Data, Featured Newslines, News

How is the economy right now in Durango and La Plata County?

Local Economic Conditions

June 2018

Summary
Improved (+)	10
No Change (o)	4
Declined (-)	5
Improved (Declined)	5

	Current	Last Month	Last Year	Change (vs Last Year)
Workforce
Labor Force	32,625	32,245	32,619	o
Unemployment Rate (%)	2.7	2.1	2.1	–
Labor Force Participation (%)	58.0	57.4	58.7	o
Job Openings	1,008	881	1,729	–
8
Construction & Housing
New Permits (to Date)	126	98	115	+
Value of Permits ($,000) (to Date)	66,560	44,128	57,495	+
Home Sales	384	299	399	–
Average Home Price ($)	476,687	474,748	428,348	+
Earnings Needed* ($)	84,300	84,100	69,900	–
8
Travel & Tourism
Enplanements	17,724	15,449	16,896	+
Lodgers Tax ($)	99,671	59,335	91,575	+
Train Visitors	1,200	13,463	27,467	–
8
Gas & Oil
New Permits (to date)	76	66	56	+
Production (mmcf)	24,370	25,126	23,794	+
8
Other
Sales Tax, Durango ($,000)**	1,432	1,259	1,350	+
Commercial Sales ($,000) (to date)	17,298	13,698	17,298	o
Foreclosures (to date)	32	27	34	+
Energy Use
Commercial (mwh)	54,896	55,288	53,385	+
Commercial Accounts	6,471	6,470	6,426	o

Notes:

*”Earnings needed” is the household income necessary to purchase an average-priced home in La Plata County.

**Sales tax for Durango includes Use Tax.

August62018

12th Annual Economic Summit Registration is Now Open!

laplata-adminFeatured Newslines, News

Registration for the 2018 Economic Summit on October 24th is now open.

Click here to register!

July92018

Economic Dashboard May 2018

Roger ZalneraitisEconomic Data, Featured Newslines, News

How is the economy right now in Durango and La Plata County?

Local Economic Conditions

May 2018

Summary
Improved (+)	11
No Change (o)	3
Declined (-)	5
Improved (Declined)	6

	Current	Last Month	Last Year	Change (vs Last Year)
Workforce
Labor Force	32,245	32,039	32,136	o
Unemployment Rate (%)	2.1	2.3	1.9	–
Labor Force Participation (%)	57.4	57.1	57.9	o
Job Openings	881	924	2,055	–
8
Construction & Housing
New Permits (to Date)	98	71	82	+
Value of Permits ($,000) (to Date)	44,128	31,095	35,843	+
Home Sales	299	209	310	–
Average Home Price ($)	474,748	486,673	426,968	+
Earnings Needed* ($)	84,100	85,000	70,600	–
8
Travel & Tourism
Enplanements	15,449	13,734	14,651	+
Lodgers Tax ($)	59,335	61,323	53,479	+
Train Visitors	13,463	3,737	12,536	+
8
Gas & Oil
New Permits (to date)	66	52	55	+
Production (mmcf)	25,426	23,948	24,766	+
8
Other
Sales Tax, Durango ($,000)**	1,259	1,363	1,158	+
Commercial Sales ($,000) (to date)	13,698	12,153	16,723	–
Foreclosures (to date)	27	19	29	+
Energy Use
Commercial (mwh)	55,288	52,775	53,401	+
Commercial Accounts	6,470	6,461	6,425	o

Notes:

*”Earnings needed” is the household income necessary to purchase an average-priced home in La Plata County.

**Sales tax for Durango includes Use Tax.

June252018

Economic Dashboard April 2018

Roger ZalneraitisEconomic Data, Featured Newslines, News

How is the economy right now in Durango and La Plata County?

Local Economic Conditions

April 2018

Summary
Improved (+)	10
No Change (o)	4
Declined (-)	5
Improved (Declined)	5

	Current	Last Month	Last Year	Change (vs Last Year)
Workforce
Labor Force	32,039	31,381	31,589	o
Unemployment Rate (%)	2.4	2.9	1.9	–
Labor Force Participation (%)	57.1	56.0	56.9	o
Job Openings	924	881	1,863	–
8
Construction & Housing
New Permits (to Date)	71	52	55	+
Value of Permits ($,000) (to Date)	31,095	18,655	24,066	+
Home Sales	209	148	219	–
Average Home Price ($)	486,673	476,352	432,425	+
Earnings Needed* ($)	85,000	82,900	71,900	–
8
Travel & Tourism
Enplanements	13,734	15,201	12,370	+
Lodgers Tax ($)	61,323	42,056	55,983	+
Train Visitors	3,737	4,676	4,049	–
8
Gas & Oil
New Permits (to date)	52	47	47	+
Production (mmcf)	21,757	25,532	21,862	o
8
Other
Sales Tax, Durango ($,000)**	1,363	1,046	1,287	+
Commercial Sales ($,000) (to date)	12,153	11,673	7,040	+
Foreclosures (to date)	19	16	22	+
Energy Use
Commercial (mwh)	52,775	56,074	50,812	+
Commercial Accounts	6,461	6,415	6,420	o

Notes:

*”Earnings needed” is the household income necessary to purchase an average-priced home in La Plata County.

**Sales tax for Durango includes Use Tax.

May162018

Economic Dashboard March 2018

Roger ZalneraitisEconomic Data, Featured Newslines, News

How is the economy right now in Durango and La Plata County?

Local Economic Conditions

March 2018

Summary
Improved (+)	10
No Change (o)	2
Declined (-)	7
Improved (Declined)	3

	Current	Last Month	Last Year	Change (vs Last Year)
Workforce
Labor Force	31,381	31,411	30,750	+
Unemployment Rate (%)	3.0	3.3	2.2	–
Labor Force Participation (%)	56.0	56.1	55.4	o
Job Openings	881	975	1,807	–
8
Construction & Housing
New Permits (to Date)	52	33	33	+
Value of Permits ($,000) (to Date)	18,655	10,836	12,002	+
Home Sales	148	91	158	–
Average Home Price ($)	476,352	467,440	415,063	+
Earnings Needed* ($)	82,900	80,300	69,600	–
8
Travel & Tourism
Enplanements	15,201	12,588	15,901	–
Lodgers Tax ($)	42,056	34,185	38,893	+
Train Visitors	4,676	1,856	4,397	+
8
Gas & Oil
New Permits (to date)	47	35	2	+
Production (mmcf)	23,010	22,887	23,940	–
8
Other
Sales Tax, Durango ($,000)**	1,046	1,142	1,068	–
Commercial Sales ($,000) (to date)	11,673	10,284	3,950	+
Foreclosures (to date)	16	10	19	+
Energy Use
Commercial (mwh)	56,074	53,890	52,718	+
Commercial Accounts	6,415	6,401	6,368	o

Notes:

*”Earnings needed” is the household income necessary to purchase an average-priced home in La Plata County.

**Sales tax for Durango includes Use Tax.

May112018

Across the Divide 5/11/18: Who is driving the population growth?

laplata-adminFeatured Newslines, News

lpceda logo

Across the Divide

New ideas from around the world that could impact your business here in La Plata County!
Brought to you by your La Plata County Economic Development Alliance

May 11, 2018

In the April 6^th Across the Divide, we talked about Census data showing that mid-sized cities and suburbs were making a comeback.

It’s not just anyone that is driving that population growth though. Anecdotal and increasingly statistical data is suggesting millennials are powering this trend:

https://www.curbed.com/2018/5/1/17306978/career-millennial-home-buying-second-city

Author Patrick Sisson finds that millennials can “boomerang” to midsized cities under the right conditions. First, it is typically millennials who are “settling down” and either getting married or considering starting families. Second, the economics also have to work: generally, the communities need to be cheaper than the big cities; as well as afford good home ownership opportunities. Finally, there should also be better career opportunities available. The article also finds that an increasing number of tech jobs are locating to smaller cities. Other writers, such as Joel Kotkin at City Journal, have documented that there has been strong growth in professional service jobs within small cities which could also be creating opportunities.

Are millennials moving to La Plata County? Over the last 16 years, the 25-39 year old population has been growing, at best, at the same pace as the county overall. Usually it’s slower though. But in the City of Durango, the story is startlingly different:

In the 1990s, barely anyone between 25 and 39 years old moved to Durango. However, in the 2000’s growth in the 25 to 39 year old age group was almost two times faster than the city as a whole. So far this decade, growth in older millennials is three times as fast as the city overall.

Durango is not only offering more professional opportunities, but remote working is allowing talented young individuals to work from anywhere. It is getting harder to find couples in and around Durango where at least one of them isn’t working remotely. If we lack local opportunities, high speed internet is allowing many young professionals to fill the gap.

So, it seems like Durango at least is seeing the millennial boomlet that other small cities are experiencing. Will other areas in La Plata County benefit? Only time will tell!

-Roger Zalneraitis, Executive Director

If you come across an article on business, politics, or economics that can have an impact here in the Four Corners, send it over to info@yeslpc.com and we will give you a special thank you courtesy of the investors in the Economic Development Alliance!

May42018

May 2018 Investor Meeting

laplata-adminFeatured Newslines, News

Be the first to know about important local issues…

Join Us for the May Investor Meeting
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
7:30 am – 9:00 am
La Plata County Fairgrounds
2500 Main Ave, Durango

Meeting documents are available by clicking on the links below:

Agenda
Balance Sheet
Statement of Operations

Thank You to our
May Coffee Sponsor!

We look forward to seeing you next week!

Thank You,
Roger Zalneraitis
Executive Director

April262018

Economic Dashboard February 2018

Roger ZalneraitisEconomic Data, Featured Newslines, News

How is the economy right now in Durango and La Plata County?

Local Economic Conditions

February 2018

Summary
Improved (+)	11
No Change (o)	2
Declined (-)	6
Improved (Declined)	5

	Current	Last Month	Last Year	Change (vs Last Year)
Workforce
Labor Force	31,411	31,426	30,804	+
Unemployment Rate (%)	3.4	3.1	3.1	–
Labor Force Participation (%)	56.1	56.2	55.6	o
Job Openings	975	939	1,422	–
8
Construction & Housing
New Permits (to Date)	33	19	15	+
Value of Permits ($,000) (to Date)	10,836	3,673	5,034	+
Home Sales	91	46	94	–
Average Home Price ($)	467,440	436,731	501,010	–
Earnings Needed* ($)	80,300	72,400	84,500	+
8
Travel & Tourism
Enplanements	12,588	13,563	13,114	–
Lodgers Tax ($)	34,185	61,413	31,496	+
Train Visitors	1,856	2,691	1,817	+
8
Gas & Oil
New Permits (to date)	35	33	2	+
Production (mmcf)	21,203	22,941	22,331	–
8
Other
Sales Tax, Durango ($,000)**	1,142	1,793	1,057	+
Commercial Sales ($,000) (to date)	10,284	4,743	920	+
Foreclosures (to date)	10	6	11	+
Energy Use
Commercial (mwh)	53,890	55,708	48,940	+
Commercial Accounts	6,401	6,396	6,359	o

Notes:

*”Earnings needed” is the household income necessary to purchase an average-priced home in La Plata County.

**Sales tax for Durango includes Use Tax.