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Colorado - Mon. 08/17/26 |
A Free Business Publication from Alpine Bank
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IN THE MIDST OF PROLONGED DROUGHT, MANY CITIES HAVE VIRTUALLY NO RESTRICTIONS
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The U.S. Drought Monitor released last Thursday showed nearly the entire state is in some level of drought. Very apparent from the Drought Monitor is that the major cities on the Front Range as well as most of the West Slope, areas that use water from the Colorado River, are in extreme drought. Despite the widespread drought, 13 of the largest cities and towns in Colorado have not implemented additional mandatory water use restrictions. Those 13 communities, including the cities of Boulder, Fort Collins and Pueblo, are home to more than 1.5 million residents or about a quarter of the state’s population.
Boulder and Fort Collins have voluntary restrictions in place, but they are not mandated. Denver Water, Aurora Water and many towns on the Western Slope have implemented mandatory rules to curb water use. Pueblo, on the other hand, has neither mandatory nor voluntary restrictions in place. Fort Collins and Colorado Springs both draw water from the Colorado River, but Colorado Springs Utilities leaders have not implemented additional drought restrictions this year, though their customers are limited to three days a week of outdoor watering every year, regardless of drought status. The state’s second-largest city draws 70 percent of its water from the Colorado River, 25 percent from the Arkansas River and 5 percent from the South Platte River.
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HIKER COUNT ON COLORADO 14ers FALLS TO 10-YEAR LOW
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The 256,000 hikers counted on 58 14ers by the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative in 2025 is down from 415,000 in 2020. The decline shows traffic is spread out, away from the most popular peaks. When Lloyd Athearn took the reins at the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative 17 years ago, the trail-building group liked to trumpet that half a million people were climbing the state’s highest peaks every year. The number, born out of the “loving our 14ers to death” trope, Athearn said, “was a totally inaccurate guess that didn’t pass the sniff test.” So, he started actually counting. First with handheld clickers. Then in 2014 using thermal people counters along trails leading to the top of five peaks. There are 20 of those infrared gizmos on trails now. Athearn has helped craft a modeling system that gives more precise — but far from exact — numbers of hikers on the state’s 58 highest peaks. And the numbers never hit half a million.
The latest estimate from the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative shows that around 256,000 people climbed fourteeners in 2025. That’s the lowest tally since the group first began crunching numbers from trailside counters in 2015. Athearn sees more traffic — up 40 percent in the Mosquito Range, up 15 percent in the Tenmile Range, and up 65 percent in the Sangre de Cristos — as a sign that hikers are exploring beyond the most popular peaks. There’s a bit more balance, with 59 percent of the state’s fourteener climbers scaling 12 fourteeners closest to metro Denver, a smaller percentage than recent years, a sign of easing traffic on those wildly popular hikes heading up Grays and Torreys and Mounts Bierstadt and Sherman.
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LEITNER-POMA TEAM MEMBER RECEIVES PRESTIGIOUS LIFETIME DISTINCTION
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Jon Mauch, a long-time Leitner-Poma of America team member, has received a prestigious lifetime distinction for his work in the industry. Mauch was appointed as an Honorary Member of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Board Standards Committee B77, a lifetime appointment for “individuals whose contributions have significantly advanced the ropeway industry and the work of the organization.” Since 2009, Mauch has worked for Leitner-Poma as sales manager for North America. He said he is now semi-retired working on special projects for the company. Over the course of his career, Mauch managed more than $200 million in aerial ropeway capital projects, guiding everything from system planning and procurement to construction, commissioning and long-term operations.
Mauch spent most of his 49-year career in the aerial ropeway industry, including overseeing lift operations, maintenance and capital development at Breckenridge and Keystone. He said he managed one of the largest network of lifts in the country at that time. “I actually did Keystone and Breckenridge together,” Mauch said. “It was 60 or 62 lifts that I had responsibility for. When I left, I left without having any accidents or incidents, mechanical or technical malfunctions that caused injury to anybody. I think that’s a big statement. I take it very seriously.”
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- GJ Daily Sentinel, 08.13.26
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BLM SEEKING PUBLIC COMMENT ON PROPOSED LEASE SALE THAT INCLUDES ROAN PLATEAU PARCELS
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The Bureau of Land Management opened a 30-day public comment period Aug. 12, 2026, to gather feedback about a proposed December oil and gas lease sale that includes parcels on the Roan Plateau northwest of Rifle. The lease sale proposes 113 oil and gas parcels totaling 126,445 acres in Colorado that could be offered at auction in December 2026. The comment period ends Sept. 11, 2026. The BLM completed scoping on these parcels in July 2026 and is now seeking public comment and related environmental analysis. The BLM stated in a news release that it will use input from the public to help complete its review of each parcel. Leaders from conservation groups across Colorado issued statements Wednesday calling for the Roan Plateau parcels to be removed from the lease sale.
Leasing is the first step in the process to develop federal oil and gas resources. Operators are required to apply for a permit before drilling development can occur. The BLM reviews applications for permits to drill, posts them for public review, conducts an environmental analysis and coordinates with state partners and stakeholders. All parcels that are included in a federal oil and gas lease sale include stipulations to protect important natural resources. Comments can be submitted at the BLM’s ePlanning website at a link in the article.
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- GJ Daily Sentinel, 08.13.26
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WANT TO RENT YOUR HOME DURING SUNDANCE? AIRBNB OFFERS $200 BONUS TO BOULDER RESIDENTS
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The fee for a new license that allows Boulder residents to rent their homes out during the Sundance Film Festival can be as much as $215. A new incentive from Airbnb would cover most of that fee. The short-term rental service this week announced a $200 bonus for property owners putting their homes up on Airbnb. The incentive applies only to someone who has no active listings in the city as of Aug. 1. The listing must also be for an entire home, be open in January 2027, have a January 2027 booking confirmed by Dec. 31 this year, and cost at least $100 before taxes. The bonus is added to any hosting income. Tenants who are renting a house and have an agreement with their landlord to rent it out during Sundance are eligible for the bonus, so long as they meet the other requirements.
Airbnb rental prices for Jan. 21 to Jan. 31, the Sundance dates, are thousands of dollars. Multiple homes in the Mapleton Hill neighborhood are listed for more than $20,000 for the length of the festival. A four-bedroom home in the neighborhood with 2½ bathrooms is listed at $129,120 for 10 nights for up to six guests. When parsed down to a single night, those prices budge a bit. For example, listings for Jan. 25-26 range from $92 for a room to thousands for luxurious multi-bedroom homes. Another listing for a single bedroom that night in a home near Hayden Reservoir goes for $834. A majority of the listings for those check-in, check-out dates go for a few hundred dollars. There are 21 house listings in Boulder proper on Airbnb for Sundance’s first night in Boulder, which is Jan. 21-22. Those listings range in price from $183 for a townhome near Parkside Park to $7,989 for a four-bedroom, five-bed and five-bath home in north Boulder near Lover’s Hill Park.
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- Boulder Daily Camera, 08.13.26
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CU BOULDER OPENS CODE TALKER HALL, FIRST NEW RESIDENCE HALL SINCE 2019
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The University of Colorado Boulder opened Code Talker Hall, its first new residence hall since 2019. Code Talker Hall is open to students this fall, adding 332 beds in six-story apartment-style living. The $124.4 million building operates without any natural gas, and it’s the first residence hall at CU Boulder with a fully electric food service facility. Code Talker Hall is named after Native American code talkers who played a critical role during World War I and World War II. Hundreds of Native American servicemen from more than 20 tribes used their Indigenous languages to send secret, coded messages that enemies were unable to decipher. There were 11 tribes with historic ties to Colorado and direct connections to the Code Talker legacy, such as the Cheyenne, Comanche, Kiowa, Navajo Nation and Osage Nation. The Great Sioux Nation, the Mescalero Apache and Fort Sill Apache and the Laguna Pueblo, Zuni Pueblo and Hopi Tribe were also code talkers with Colorado roots.
Code Talker Hall is built on the site of a former Boulder student veteran community location, called Vetsville. Vetsville was established in 1945 as temporary housing for World War II veterans who returned to school with their families under the GI Bill. Vetsville officially closed in 1973. The name Code Talker Hall intends to honor those veterans, as well. Code Talker Hall is designed to achieve at least LEED Gold certification, the name of a ranking within a globally used green building rating system. Gold is the second highest rating, with platinum being the highest. LEED Gold certification requires a building to score 60 to 79 points out of a possible 110 points in categories including energy use, water and efficiency.
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- Boulder Daily Camera, 08.12.26
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A DROUGHT-STRICKEN SOUTHEASTERN COLORADO RIVER IS DRYING UP
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As major rivers run dry throughout the West, many small rivers face the same fate, like the Cucharas River in Southeastern Colorado. It's the primary water source for the rural town of La Veta. This summer may be the worst drought in the community's history. To understand the impact of the drought along the Cucharas River, KRCC’s Orion Cenkl traveled from the headwaters in the mountains southwest of Walsenburg to where it runs dry near La Veta. Cucharas Creek starts at the edge of the alpine area below Trinchera Peak around a half mile up from the campground. The creek flows into Bear Lake before meandering downhill through the forests. Campground host Richard Scott Taylor said the lake levels are more than one-third below average. At the La Veta town limit, the river is completely dry.
Mayor Doug Brgoch said in an interview with Colorado Matters that there is no water at the town’s headgate and if they run out of water they might have to ask other towns for help. “The worst-case scenario is that we will have to rely on the generosity of our neighbors and hope that somebody has a water supply that we can truck in,” he said. “That is unfathomable.” On a normal year, the Cucharas river runs through La Veta to Walsenburg, another 16 miles downstream and eventually into the Huerfano River, a tributary of the Arkansas River.
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- Colorado Public Radio, 08.13.26
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PITKIN COUNTY GIVES GO AHEAD FOR USFS PURCHASE OF SNOWMASS FALLS RANCH FOR $34 MILLION
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The Pitkin County Board of County Commissioners approved on first reading Wednesday the purchase of the Snowmass Falls inholding by the U.S. Forest Services for $34 million. This approval comes at the recommendation of the Pitkin County Open Space and Trails Board, who supported the purchase at their Aug. 6 meeting. While commissioners are able to authorize the purchase, it will still be subject to certain conditions that include the county’s vacation of any interest in roads within the inholding, the county’s retention of water rights within the inholding, the removal of existing cabins on the property and the completion of the new Snowmass Trailhead, anticipated to be completed by November.
The county originally made the historic purchase of the 650-acre property, in partnership with the Wilderness Land Trust, in February 2024 for $34 million. The Snowmass Falls inholding already lies largely within the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness boundary, created in 1964 under The Wilderness Act along with four other areas in Colorado.
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WINTER IN COLORADO IS ON TRACK TO BE SNOWIER, BUT NOT COLDER
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New winter forecasts favor above-average snowfall for southern and eastern Colorado, promising some much-needed relief after months of drought and hotter-than-average temperatures. For Colorado’s northern and central mountains, however, predictions of snowfall are less clear. When El Niño conditions officially arrived in June, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration noted that it could intensify into a “strong” or “super” El Niño by the end of the year — potentially breaking historical records going back to the 1950s. El Niño conditions — characterized by above-average sea surface temperatures across the central to eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean — have strengthened since June, which OpenSnow Meteorologist Alan Smith said has increased confidence that a very strong, or “super” El Niño, will prevail through the upcoming winter.
While most of the state is on track to recover some of the lost snowfall from the lackluster 2025-26 season, OpenSnow’s 2026-27 winter forecast shows equal chances of above- or below-average snowfall for the Western Slope mountains. Events from strong El Niños could result in above-average snowfall across the San Juan Mountains, as well as in the eastern mountains near or east of the Continental Divide. This includes Telluride, Silverton, Wolf Creek, Eldora, Winter Park and Loveland. OpenSnow meteorologists are favoring above-average temperatures across a large portion of North America, including the northern half of Colorado. The southern half of Colorado is showing equal chances of above- or below-normal temperatures. Above-average moisture and rainfall are favored heading into September, which could stem from an active monsoon season lingering late into the summer.
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- Steamboat Today, 08.13.26
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NEW CIO ROLE UNDERSCORES ALPINE BANK’S INVESTMENT IN INNOVATION
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Alpine Bank has named Brenden Smith as its first chief information officer (CIO). This new leadership position reflects the growing importance of technology in driving operational excellence and supporting the bank’s long-term strategic goals. Smith joined the Alpine Bank team on Aug. 3 and has nearly 20 years of experience in banking technology, cybersecurity and risk management. Most recently, he served as chief information security officer (CISO) at FirstBank. The creation of the CIO role marks an important step in Alpine Bank’s strategic growth. It demonstrates a commitment to keeping technology infrastructure and data capabilities aligned with evolving customer and business needs.
Over his career, Smith has built and led high-performing teams while helping guide infrastructure modernization and cybersecurity efforts. In his new role, Smith will oversee Alpine Bank's information technology strategy and operations. He will focus on strengthening technology governance, supporting business growth, and ensuring the bank's systems and capabilities remain scalable, secure and customer focused. Smith holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems from the University of Northern Colorado and serves on multiple industry advisory boards. His professional achievements include being named Top Global CISO by Cyber Defense Magazine in 2024 and 2025. He also regularly serves as a speaker at major industry conferences including the RSA Conference and FS-ISAC.
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DROP IN WINTER SPENDING HAS COLORADO MOUNTAIN TOWNS CUTTING BUDGETS
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Spending in 18 Colorado mountain towns fell in the winter of 2025-26, reaching a four-year low. It’s the second winter in a row that the 18 communities have seen wintertime declines in net taxable sales tracked by the state. The decline in spending is a national trend, but in communities that rely heavily on sales tax revenue, even small dips in taxable revenue can have large impacts. It could have been much worse. The small slowdown in spending does not compare to the historic drop in visitation in 2025-26, which saw Colorado’s ski resorts host the lowest number of visitors since the early 1990s. That disparity between spending and visits reflects a resiliency in mountain towns that are weaning themselves from a long history of dependency on tourists. That weaning includes support for a growing population of remote workers and transitioning from a tourism economy to an amenity economy.
The Colorado Sun tracks winter and summer taxable sales in 18 large and small mountain towns near ski areas:
- The November-through-April stretch of the 2025-26 winter saw $4.8 billion in spending, down from $5 billion the previous winter and $5.1 billion in 2023-24.
- Only two communities posted slight annual increases in winter spending – Durango and Glenwood Springs – while the annual declines ranged from 18.7 percent in Mountain Village to 2.6 percent in Aspen.
- The state’s ski areas reported a 24 percent collapse in visitation for the 2025-26 season, ending a four-year stretch of record-setting traffic, with 10.5 million visits marking the least trafficked season since 1991-92.
- Vail Resorts, which accounts for more than a third of all ski traffic in Colorado, reported a 25 percent decline at its Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Crested Butte, Keystone and Vail ski areas as well as its Park City Mountain Resort in Utah.
- The National Ski Areas Association reported 20.1 million visits to its six-state Rocky Mountain Region in 2025-26, down 24 percent from the previous season.
- Vail Resorts, the largest ski area operator in North America with 37 ski areas in the U.S. and Canada, reported only a 5.6 percent decline in lift ticket revenue for the 2025-26 season, affirming its strategy of shifting the uncertainty around snowfall onto the shoulders of skiers who buy tickets and passes months before the snow flies.
- Spending in the towns closest to Vail Resorts’ Colorado ski areas fell only slightly, compared with the collapse in visits.
- Spending was down 13.9 percent in Avon outside Beaver Creek, down 8.3 percent in the town of Breckenridge, down 2.7 percent in Silverthorne near Keystone, down 6.3 percent in Mount Crested Butte and down 7 percent in Vail.
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- Durango Herald, 08.12.26
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MARKET UPDATE - 08/14/2026 Close
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(Courtesy of Alpine Bank Wealth Management*)
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Canadian dollar (per U.S. dollar)
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Mexican peso (per U.S. dollar)
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30-year fixed mortgage rate (Freddie Mac 08/13/2026)
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*Not FDIC insured. May lose value. Not guaranteed by the bank.
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Alpine Bank is an independent, employee-owned organization with headquarters in Glenwood Springs and banking offices across Colorado's Western Slope, mountains and Front Range. Alpine Bank serves customers with retail, business, wealth management*, mortgage and electronic banking services. Learn more at alpinebank.com.
*Alpine Bank Wealth Management services are not FDIC insured, may lose value and are not guaranteed by the bank.
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