December 3-December 16, 2014 —
COLORADO REAL ESTATE JOURNAL
— Page 13AA
The board of directors and
executive committee of the
Colorado Springs Regional
Business Alliance announced
that Joe Raso has tendered his
resignation as the president
and CEO of the organization.
The executive committee
appointed board member Toby
Gannett to temporarily serve as
the board-designated leader of the
business alliance until an interim
president and CEO are identified.
“It is with regret that we
accept Joe's resignation. He has
succeeded in positioning the
organization for the next chap-
ter of growth and we under-
stand his desire to now pur-
sue a new challenge that best
makes use of his skills and
expertise,” the alliance said in
a statement.
The alliance is seeking inter-
im and permanent candidates
for the president and CEO
position who have an extensive
local experience and strong
community bonds.
The business alliance will
continue to move forward on
implementing its five-year
strategic business plan and will
keep in place the governance
structure that Raso and the
staff, working alongside the
board, developed.
s
Six new companies have made
Longmont home.
New companies include Del-
phix, a data agility software com-
pany with six employees. Spark-
Fun Electronics, which makes
electronics kits, built a new facil-
ity in the Boulder Tech Center.
The company has 155 employees.
Also coming to Longmont
is Boulder Soup Works, which
makes fresh, organic and glu-
ten-free soup products and has
48 employees. Lucky’s Market
relocated its headquarters to
the Longmont area and has 40
employees. SK Hynix Memory
Solutions is a global technology
company that just opened with
12 employees and UASUSA is
an unmanned-aircraft vehicle
manufacturer that located at
the Longmont airport with six
employees.
s
The Metro Denver Economic
Development Corp. recently
released the 10th edition of
Toward a More Competitive
Colorado, its annual bench-
mark study of Colorado’s
strengths, challenges, and
opportunities for job growth
and economic expansion.
The comprehensive study is
researched by the Metro Den-
ver EDC’s Chief Economist
Patty Silverstein, president of
Development Research Part-
ners, and is presented in coop-
eration with Wells Fargo.
Over the past decade, the
Metro Denver EDC has ana-
lyzed hundreds of data sources
to evaluate Colorado’s compet-
itive position against the other
49 states.
“The 10th anniversary of
TMCC is significant as the
report has proven to be invalu-
able in guiding our economic
development strategy and leg-
islative focus,” said Tom Clark,
CEO of the Metro Denver EDC.
“We utilize each year’s find-
ings to create a business envi-
ronment where all of the state's
companies – especially those in
our top industry clusters – can
prosper.”
This year’s report shows
another leap by Colorado in
adding new jobs to its econ-
omy. The state ranked third
highest in 2013 for employ-
ment growth, up from No. 5
in 2012.
“Contrasted with a dismal
49th place ranking for creating
new jobs in 2002, the state has
truly cemented its position as
a top choice for relocating and
expanding companies,” said
Clark.
According to Silverstein,
Colorado’s population growth
continues to outpace the nation
and nearly every other state.
Colorado was the third-fastest-
growing state in 2013, up from
sixth in 2012. From 2012 to 2013,
the state’s population grew 1.6
percent compared with 0.7 per-
cent nationally, placing among
the top-10 states since 2006.
“Population growth is a cru-
cial factor in economic compet-
itiveness, since people move to
states deemed to have econom-
ic opportunity and abundant
jobs,” explained Silverstein.
“In addition, high rankings for
innovation and entrepreneur-
ism create a vibrant business
atmosphere in Colorado.”
On the flip side, TMCC notes
one impediment related to Col-
orado’s reputation as a leading
state in which to live and work
– rising housing costs. Find-
ings this year peg Colorado
among the top-10 most expen-
sive housing markets.
“We view the cost of hous-
ing as both a short- and long-
term challenge to our economic
growth and competitiveness,”
said Clark. “As one of the top
areas of the country in attract-
ing millennials, we face sig-
nificant obstacles in assuring
they aren’t priced out of our
market. Coupled with the legal
challenges related to new con-
struction, we’re advocating for
increased and affordable hous-
ing options for millennials and
the middle class.”
During each of the past 10
years, the TMCC report has
echoed taxes as a continued
stumbling block to Colorado’s
ongoing competitiveness. A
chaotic and unbalanced state
and local tax system creates
hurdles for companies and citi-
zens. In addition, Colorado’s
property tax system – driven
by the strictures of the Galla-
gher Amendment – continues
to place significant costs on any
type of commercial property.
The full report is available
on Metro Denver EDC’s web-
site.
s
Metro Denver Economic Development Corp.
Economic Development News
• Employers with fewer than
50 employees, including full-
time equivalent employees,
continue to remain exempt
from any mandate.
• Employers with 50 to 100
employees are exempt from
the employer mandate until
2016.
• Employers with 100 or
more employees are subject
to the mandate starting in
2015, with some select relaxed
standards. (For example, if any
of these employers maintain
noncalendar year health plans
as of Dec. 27, 2012, they may
wait to achieve compliance
until the first day of the 2015
plan.)
n
Revenue Recognition
changes.
Following impactful
feedback from the real estate
and construction industry,
the Financial Accounting and
Standards Board released
Accounting Standards Updates
2014-09 Revenue from
Contracts with Customers. All
existing industry-based revenue
recognition guidance will be
replaced by this new standard
and becomes effective in
2017 and 2018 for public and
nonpublic entities, respectively.
The new guidance requires
management use a larger
degree of judgment when it
comes to revenue recognition
and related costs. It also
significantly increases revenue
disclosures.
Strategic businesses should
begin analyzing if this change
will impact their reporting and
formulate a plan for a smooth
transition. This analysis should
include assessing revenue
contracts and accounting
policies, data systems,
processes, and controls to
support implementation, and
timing changes in relation to
sales agreements, long-term
compensation agreements, and
compliance related to debt
covenants, among others.
n
Conclusion.
With these
four areas as a focus, real estate
and construction companies
will be able to identify
important timing-dependent
strategies, ensure compliance
with the IRS, and achieve
confidence in their strategic
approach entering the new
year.
For complete contact information, links and
Key Facts, visit our Web sit
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