The directors of the National Association of Realtors last week voted 729 to 70 to ban anyone using the Multiple Listing Service, or MLS, which are controlled by local Realtor associations, from publicly marketing a home without listing it first, a practice known as "pocket" or "coming soon" listings. It is estimated that of the last 5,000 sales on REColorado, a local MLS, 194 or about 4 percent, were zero-day listings, meaning they were already sold when they were listed.

A big change in the national weather pattern could signal more precipitation for Colorado, especially for southern Colorado, where it is badly needed. The Climate Prediction Center (CPC) 6-10 day-outlook forecasts the state as having above-average chances of a wet weather pattern. Both the European and GFS (American) computer forecast models show a low pressure area positioned in the southwestern U.S. will draw up moisture from the remnants of Tropical Storm Raymond.

Americans spent more on shopping in October than September, but much of the spending was focused on essentials. Retail sales, purchases at stores, restaurants and online, rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent in October from a month earlier, according to a U.S. Commerce Department report Friday. The slight increase follows a decrease in September. Consumer spending at gas stations and at food and beverage stores rose by 1.1 percent and 0.5 percent but Americans spent less on items like clothing and dining and drinking out.

The city of Glenwood Springs will allocate $319,000 and the Roaring Fork Transit Authority will chip in about $290,000 to the Grand Avenue Alternative Analysis, a study to evaluate ways to reduce commuter traffic, provide Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service to downtown Glenwood as well as add parking. One area of concentration in the study will be the identification of a BRT facility in downtown as opposed to the current transit centers on 27th Street and at the West Glenwood Park and Ride.

Officials of the Colorado Department of Transportation and the city of Aspen are working to educate drivers about using the "zipper." The zipper is the use of a late merging of lanes when roads or highways narrow. In Aspen, it applies to traffic heading out of town where motorists are supposed to use both lanes and then merge to one lane just ahead of the right-turn when the road goes to one lane in the "S" curves. The city has hung a banner over Main Street at Fourth Street reminding people to zipper up ahead.

Last week, the Bureau of Reclamation announced awards of $2 million to 10 water projects across the country, including $315,721 to the Colorado River District to study issues related to a water demand management program in the Upper Colorado River Basin. Demand management would involve voluntary, temporary, compensated curtailment of uses of Colorado River water in order to reserve that water in Lake Powell. The issue of curtailment extends from cutbacks in municipal and other uses to not planting fields and the economic impacts associated with the cutbacks.

In the planning of the 2020 budget, the Grand Junction City Council has added an additional $150,000 to the city's allocation to the scholarship program at Colorado Mesa University. In the current budget, the city provided $400,000 for the scholarship program, which is provided for District 51 students that want to attend CMU. Scholarships are also available for students studying for technical certifications at CMU, as well as for students pursuing two-year associate's degrees.

Last Thursday, the board of directors of the San Miguel Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART), unanimously approved the town of Rico as an official, voting member. The town has been working with SMART on its membership for more than a year, after the town and the SMART board entered into a service agreement in January 2019. The voters in Rico approved the measure to join SMART in the Nov. 5 ballot. Rico will contribute about $6,500 in sales tax revenue which will go to offset the costs of operating a Rico route.

SkyWest, one of the two companies contracted to provide ground services at the Yampa Valley Regional Airport in Hayden, announced that was ending its service in December. Last week, United Ground Express, a subsidiary of United Airlines, announced it will replace SkyWest and handle ground services for United and Alaska airlines. G2 Secure Staff will continue to provide services for American Airlines and Jet Blue. G2 also added Delta Air Lines, which was formerly served by SkyWest.

The city of Glenwood Springs launched its campaign to fight the proposed expansion of the limestone quarry north of town by Rocky Mountain Resources. RMR, which has owned the Mid-Continent Limestone Quarry since 2016, wants to expand its federal permit with the BLM from 15.7 acres to 447 acres, with mining of chemical-grade limestone and dolomite on 320 acres within that boundary. The city has allocated $250,000 in the 2020 budget to oppose the expansion and has set aside another $1 million in reserve funds. At the news conference Friday, Glenwood Springs Mayor Jonathan Godes said the issue goes beyond Glenwood Springs, with the proposed expansion constituting a "regional threat." That is reflected by the fact Glenwood Springs has secured resolutions opposing the expansion from the Pitkin County commissioners, and trustees and council members from Rifle, Silt, New Castle, Carbondale, Basalt, Aspen and Snowmass Village. In every community, the vote was unanimous.

Colorado Uncorked is the public tasting event of the annual Colorado Governor's Cup competition and was held Friday evening at the History Colorado Center. The tasting event featured the 14 Governor’s Cup award-winning Colorado wines selected by a national panel from 251 entries. Colorado's wine industry:

• In the last fiscal year, Colorado wineries produced and sold 541,877 gallons of wine
• That is equivalent to 227,913 cases
• Statewide sales of Colorado-produced wine reached 6.1 percent of total wine sales in the state for the 12 months ended June 30
• While that doesn't sound like much, it is almost double the 3.1 percent market share in the 2004-05 year