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Some of the best news we've heard in a while was
reported last week: The Upstate Colorado Economic
Development organization has raised $350,000 from
private businesses in Weld County to grow jobs and
economic development in our communities.
On Wednesday afternoon at the Aims Community College
Corporate Education Center, Upstate filled a large
meeting room with a couple hundred business leaders from
northern Colorado.
The energy and enthusiasm in the room was remarkable
considering our nation's economic distress. In these
times, getting businesses to donate $10,000 to anything
is a considerable achievement.
But Upstate's CEO Larry Burkhardt and its board of
directors deserve all the credit in the world for
bringing private businesses together for a common cause.
The cause is this: Jobs. High-paying jobs. Convince
other businesses from around the world to locate in
Greeley or Weld County. Help existing businesses grow
and expand and hire more workers.
The ultimate goal is 5,000 new jobs and $1.7 billion of
new investment in the Weld County economy in the next
five years.
There's no question that job growth is crucial to Weld
County's future. That also was reinforced with some
other news last week. According to 2008 Census data,
Greeley has the worst poverty rate among the 15 largest
cities in Colorado. Slightly more than one in five
people in Greeley live in poverty. Among those younger
than 18 in Greeley, an astonishing 26.9 percent live in
poverty.
Jeff Bedingfield, a member of the newly formed
Leadership Council that will oversee the efforts,
described the seed money as a “slingshot” to propel
Greeley and Weld County into the next couple of decades
when economic prosperity returns.
“If we can come up with great ideas out of this slow
time, we'll be ahead of the curve instead of trying to
play catch-up when everybody feels better,” Bedingfield
said.
It goes without saying that our enthusiasm is tempered
to a certain degree by the uncertainty that lies ahead.
In these economic times, every community in America
lists job growth as one of its top priorities. It's a
competitive endeavor right now, and the results will be
the true test.
But at the kickoff event Wednesday, there was energy and
a unity of purpose among business leaders that is rarely
seen in Greeley. We congratulate Upstate Colorado on the
idea and the business leaders in Weld County on their
willingness to invest in our future.
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