ALPINE BANK'S HOLIDAY HOURS

All Alpine Bank branches will close today at 3 p.m., and will remain closed Wednesday, Dec. 25 for the Christmas holiday. Although our branch locations will be closed, you can still bank with us anytime, anywhere using Alpine Online at alpinebank.com, AlpineMobile or by calling the Alpine InfoLine at 888-4-ALPINE (888-425-7463). Have a safe and happy holiday!

COLORADANS BUYING MORE USED CARS

Sales of new cars and light trucks in Colorado continue a downward spiral. For the 11 months through November, registrations in the state for new cars and light trucks were down 3.4 percent. New light truck registrations were down 0.1 percent year-to-date, with new passenger car registrations down 14.9 percent. By comparison, through October, used car and truck registrations were up 6.3 percent.

SHAKE-UP AT BOEING: MUILENBURG OUT; CALHOUN IN

Boeing Co. Monday ousted Chief Executive Dennis Muilenburg as the company struggles to deal with problems of its 737 MAX jetliner and its attempts to get the grounded 737 MAX back in service. Boeing announced Tuesday that longtime Boeing director David Calhoun, who is a senior executive at private-equity giant Blackstone Group, will become CEO in January. Calhoun is an experienced corporate fixer and was also a former top executive at jet-engine manufacturer General Electric Co.

SMOOTH SLEDDING FOR SANTA AND CHRISTMAS TRAVEL

Much of the central and eastern U.S. should have no major travel concerns on Christmas Eve and the major travel hubs in the Northeast and Midwest should have clear skies on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. The only area with any major weather events will be the Southwest, where precipitation will move across parts of Nevada and Utah, with snow expected in the San Juan Mountains in Colorado as well as northern Arizona and New Mexico, with the rest of the Southwest seeing rain.

OVERWHELMING NUMBERS DURING PEAK-SEASON BUS SERVICE AT THE BELLS

The U.S. Forest Service and Roaring Fork Transportation Authority will begin meeting with elected officials in Pitkin County, the city of Aspen and the town of Snowmass Village in early 2020 to explore possible solutions to address the overwhelming volume of visitors wanting to view the colors during autumn weekends from mid-September to early October. The RFTA bus service to Maroon Bells recorded a record daily ridership of 3,840 passengers, one-way, on Sept. 28. On Oct. 5, there were 3,266 one-way ticket holders.

SILVERTON FIRE DIFFICULT TO DOUSE, WIDESPREAD IMPACT

Late Saturday night, a fire broke out at the Great Divide Co., a gift and souvenir store in downtown Silverton, but when observers noticed the flames, they could not report it because cell phone service was out. That was just the beginning. The fire took 17 hours to finally extinguish as firefighters battled the blaze through the night with temperatures hitting about 10 below zero. It took so much water that town officials asked residents to voluntarily conserve water until the town's storage tanks refill. Cellphone service and internet service was finally restored early Monday morning.

ONE PLACE A WHITE CHRISTMAS IS IN THE FORECAST

Southwest Colorado is likely to have a white Christmas, or at least that is what is in the forecast, as the National Weather Service has issued a winter weather advisory from noon today through 6 p.m. on Christmas Day. It includes the towns of Silverton, Hesperus and Rico, along with 2-to-4 inches of snow forecast for Cortez, Durango and lower elevations, with up to a foot of snow for the San Juan Mountains. Travel could be difficult over Coal Bank, Molas and Red Mountain passes.

A LOOK AT THE LOCAL ECONOMY IN THE 4TH QUARTER

The Northwest Colorado Council of Governments released a fourth-quarter report which showed that tourism accounted for 46 percent of the jobs in the five-county NWCCOG, which includes Eagle, Pitkin, Jackson, Summit and Grand counties. Total employment was 76,498, with the average wage across the region ranging from a high of $54,964 in Pitkin County to $37,128 in Grand County. The statewide average is $58,656. Unemployment across the five-county region remains very low at 2.2 percent.

COLORADO IS MOST DANGEROUS STATE FOR AVALANCHES

The Colorado Avalanche Information Center released its annual report earlier this month. The report confirms that Colorado, at least for the last 70 years or so, is by far the country's most dangerous state for avalanches, with far more deaths from avalanche than any other state. Since the 1950-51 winter season, Colorado has recorded 287 avalanche fatalities. The closest states are not that close: Alaska, 158; Washington, 130; Utah, 120; and Montana, 119. In the 2018-19 season, Colorado had 4,273 recorded slides, with 135 people in total caught in avalanches, and eight people killed.

"SUPER" SATURDAY SET ALL-TIME, ONE-DAY U.S. SALES RECORD

Last Saturday, the last Saturday before Christmas, was the largest U.S. shopping day ever, with one-day sales reaching $34.4 billion. So far this year:

• Average sales on a holiday day: $11.7 billion
• Black Friday, Nov. 29: $31.2 billion
• Cyber Monday, Dec. 2: $19.1 billion
• Second Saturday, Dec. 14: $28.1 billion
• Super Saturday, Dec. 21: $34.4 billion

UP-AND-COMING TRAVEL DESTINATIONS FOR 2020

Forbes travel writer Geoff Whitmore presents these as his up-and-coming travel destinations for 2020:

1. Croatia
2. Antarctica
3. Bilbao
4. Vanuatu
5. Quadra Island
6. Benin
7. Salta

GARFIELD COUNTY AG EXPO: FEB. 1

The family-friendly Garfield County Ag Expo takes place Saturday, Feb. 1 at the Garfield County Fairgrounds in Rifle. There will be activities for all ages with a Kids’ Corner, a great line-up of speakers, breakout sessions and exhibitors. Adults can attend the sessions while their kids are learning at the Kids’ Corner. Additional activities will include the “Next Generation of Agriculture” photo contest. Please bring your framed photos marked with your name to display on the photo wall. The recipient of the $2,500 Ag Expo Scholarship will be announced. Please call the Conservation District office at 970-404-3439 for more information. The agenda, list of speakers and registration forms can be found at the link below. Alpine Bank is a proud sponsor of this event.

HILLTOP TO SERVE CHRISTMAS EVE DINNER TO HOMEBOUND SENIORS

Hilltop Community Resources in Grand Junction will be preparing Christmas Eve dinner for an expected 350 seniors who are homebound for the holidays. This is Hilltop’s sixth year providing holiday dinners to the clients of Meals on Wheels, St. Mary’s Medical Center programs that delivers nutritious meals to area seniors 363 days a year. Hilltop wanted to not only support Meals on Wheels staff with a much needed day off, but to ensure their clients receive a hot meal and companionship on Christmas Eve. The meals are provided free of charge. Hilltop and community volunteers will deliver the meals to seniors between 1 and 3 p.m.. Individuals interested in volunteering a few hours are encouraged to contact Paige Cadman, Hilltop’s Event Coordinator, by calling 970-244-0422 or emailing paigec@htop.org.

ASPEN FILM ACADEMY SCREENINGS JAN. 4-7

The Aspen Film Academy Screenings take place Jan. 4-7. From buzzy, big name features to fresh independent voices, Aspen Film Academy Screenings brings award season contenders to the mountains for a showcase of some of the year's highest quality cinematic achievements! Tickets are on sale now at the Wheeler Opera House box office and at www.aspenshowtix.com. Complimentary tickets are available for active entertainment guild members by emailing info@aspenfilm.org or calling 970-925-6882. Start the New Year by seeing some of this year's film highlights on the big screen. Full details are at aspenfilm.org.