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Colorado - Thu. 03/27/25 |
A Free Business Publication from Alpine Bank
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CU’S 77TH WORLD AFFAIRS CONFERENCE GETS BIG BOOST FROM “WICKED” STAR
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The University of Colorado Boulder will host its 77th World Affairs Conference April 7-10. The CU conference brings in dozens of speakers and panelists annually from around the U.S. and the world with past speakers including Eleanor Roosevelt, Molly Ivins, Roger Ebert, Amanda Gorman and Steve Wozniak. This year, conference organizers are seeing a heightened level of enthusiasm and interest in the four-day event. That excitement has been generated by the kick-off speaker, "Wicked" star Cynthia Erivo. The estimated attendance at last year's conference was 1,500 in-person and 1,000 attending online. So far, more than 1,000 people have registered for this year's conference. In addition to Erivo, there are about 77 speakers, and some 50 panels scheduled. CWA is free and open to the public. Most events are available in person and via a live stream. For more information, including registration and a full event schedule, visit colorado.edu/cwa.
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LONDON FIRM LOOKING TO BRING WORLD-CLASS CYCLING BACK TO COLORADO
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USA Cycling this week announced that London-based Infinity Events Group is working on the organization of the Tour of Colorado, which would be a five-day professional road cycling event beginning in September 2026. If Infinity Events Group’s efforts prove successful it would bring elite-level road racing back to the state for the first time in over six years. Infinity Events Group has not yet settled on specific September 2026 dates or where the races would be, but plans are that the five stages would cover around 500 miles. The group is now in the process of raising the millions of dollars necessary to host the event, mostly seeking corporate sponsorships. There has not been elite racing in the state since the Red Zinger Classic in the 1970s and 80s and the Coors Classic which ended due to funding issues in 2019.
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LOW-COST JAPANESE RETAILER HAS 2 COLORADO STORES, MORE COMING
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Daiso is a very popular Japanese household goods retailer, known for its low prices and expansive range of products, including home décor, kitchenware, beauty products, stationery and Japanese snacks. Daiso opened its first outlet in Colorado on March 15 in the Pavilion Shopping Center in Fort Collins. Its second store opened in Aurora’s Village on the Park on March 22. Both of the stores held two-day grand openings, and the response was overwhelming with customers at the Aurora location stretching around the building and some customers waiting up to four hours to get in. Daiso USA says this is just the beginning with plans to open a store in early April in the Cherry Knolls Shopping Center in Centennial and one scheduled to open in the Southlands Shopping Mall in Aurora this summer.
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MLB OPENS TODAY: 2 TEAMS WITHOUT A STADIUM, WHAT NAME DO THEY GO BY?
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Today, March 27, is the traditional opening day for Major League Baseball, however, there will only be 26 teams playing. Two teams, the Colorado Rockies and Tampa Bay Rays, had their game postponed until Friday, March 28. That game is an indication of an interesting problem for MLB, namely, two teams, the Rays and the A’s (Athletics), don’t have a home stadium. The A’s don’t even have a place name to go with Athletics.
The Tampa Bay Rays had their home field Tropicana Park ravaged by Hurricane Milton last October and the St. Petersburg City Council will not even vote on whether to replace the roof until April 3. As a result, the Rays will play this season at Steinbrenner Field, the spring training home of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball and the home of the Tampa Tarpons, the Yankees' affiliate in the Florida State League.
The Athletics situation is even weirder as the team left Oakland after 56 years to move to Las Vegas. However, the stadium in Las Vegas will not be completed until 2028, so they will play in Sacramento’s Sutter Health Park until then. As to what to call them, there will be no place name, just the "A's" or "Athletics" but the uniforms will have a "Las Vegas" patch on the sleeve.
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FACING REPAIR COSTS, VAIL LOOKING TO IMPOSE PARKING FEES THIS SUMMER
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The town of Vail recently received a structural assessment of the Vail Village and Lionshead parking structures, and the recommendation came back that an estimated $12,421,228 is needed for capital repairs over the next 10 years. The Parking and Mobility Task Force has been meeting periodically over the past year to discuss the idea to start charging for parking in the summer. The task force has presented the idea of charging $2 per hour in both parking structures this summer, between 4 a.m. and 3 p.m., with a per day maximum of $10. The Parking and Mobility Task Force will meet again today, Thursday, March 27 at the Vail Public Library at 9:30 a.m. The public is welcome to attend.
If the town is planning on implementing the change for this summer, the decision will need to be made no later than the town’s April 1 meeting, said Greg Hall with Vail’s public works department. Since the summer charge would mark a significant change, there are several options proposed in addition to the charge including discounted local passes, which would allow two hours free and lower the cost to $1 per hour after that, with a maximum of $5 per day. The recommended time frame for paid summer parking would be May 30 to Sept. 28.
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I.O.C. GETS ITS FIRST FEMALE PRESIDENT
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The International Olympic Committee held its election for its 10th president last Thursday. The election involves a month-long process that has been described as the lay version of a papal enclave, filled with secrecy, prohibitions on campaigning and silence until the decision is announced. That decision was to select Kirsty Coventry the first woman, the first African and the youngest president in more than 150 years. Coventry, 41, is from Zimbabwe, was the only woman among seven candidates and as a swimmer she holds seven of her country’s eight Olympic medals, including golds at the 2004 and 2008 Games. Her position is recognized as the most powerful role in sports, managing an institution responsible for awarding and staging Games every two years that generate billions of dollars and is the focal point of politicians around the world seeking to advance their world status.
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A EUROPEAN LOOK AT WILD HORSES: A TOURISM BONUS
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Trying to manage the herds of wild horses in Colorado has been an ongoing exercise for many years. Many agencies involved, both state and federal, and round ups of the horses have proven to be very controversial. There is a similar, yet different, perspective in Europe. In a location that has a resemblance to western Colorado, the rock-strewn valleys and rugged mountains of western Bosnia and Herzegovina, semi-wild horses roam freely. There are some 1,000 horses covering the areas around the Cincar Mountains, between the towns of Livno and Kupres, the city with the highest elevation in the country.
The horses are Bosnian Mountain Horses, descendants of domesticated horses that were released into the wild due to various reasons, from war to industrialization, and have since been saved from extinction. Because of their domesticated roots, the horses are less wary of humans than true wild horses, which has made them a draw for tourists but also a source of tension. In winter, they can often be found licking salt from roads, becoming a danger both to drivers and themselves. They have also been known to raid local farms for food, destroying crops and stealing water from livestock. Many locals see them as a nuisance, and some farmers have even gone so far as to kill horses found on their land.
Now those attitudes are changing. As tourism to the country has increased in the past two decades, so has visitor interest in the animals. Their nomadic nature means that local guides are necessary to view the horses, and a host of local tourism businesses have cropped up to meet this demand, creating a significant economic impact in this rural region. Local tour companies also provide transportation from town to the more remote areas where the herds can be found. Many of these businesses donate some of the proceeds from their tours to the care of the animals, ensuring they can continue to roam these wild landscapes for years to come.
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WHY A ONE-DAY CLOSURE OF HEATHROW AIRPORT HAD SUCH MAJOR IMPACT
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A fire erupted at a major electricity substation near London's Heathrow Airport early Friday morning, resulting in a complete shutdown of one of the world's busiest airports. The compounding factor is that almost all the 200,000 travelers affected by the shutdown were headed to international destinations, making rescheduling an even more difficult issue.
World's busiest airports by number of seats available 2025:
- ATL: Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Atlanta, 5,369,683 (seats)
- DXB: Dubai International, Dubai, 5,159,409
- HND: Tokyo International, Haneda, Tokyo, 4,7834,646
- DFW: Dallas/Fort Worth International, Dallas, 4,418,156
- LHR: Heathrow, London, 4,296,701
- PVG: Pudong International Airport, Shanghai, 4,199,739
- DEN: Denver International Airport, Denver, 4,120,146
- DEL: Delhi Airport, Delhi, 4,009,791
- ORD: O’Hare International Airport, Chicago, 3,991,850
- CAN: Baiyun International Airport, Guangzhou, 3,989,237
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WHY A ONE-DAY CLOSURE OF HEATHROW AIRPORT HAD SUCH MAJOR IMPACT
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World’s busiest airports, using only international seats available, 2025:
- DXB: Dubai International, Dubai, 5,159,409
- LHR: Heathrow, London, 4,008,644
- SIN: Changi Airport, Singapore, 3,594,022
- ICN: Incheon International Airport, Seoul, 3,580,050
- AMS: Amsterdam Airport, Amsterdam, 3,297,607
- HKG: Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong, 3,235,937
- IST: Istanbul Airport, Istanbul, 3,179,140
- CDG: Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris, 3,168,122
- FRA: Frankfurt International Airport, Frankfurt, 2,817,969
- BKK: Suvarnabhumi International Airport, Bangkok, 2,788,309
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MONEY FROM SHORT-TERM RENTALS IN ASIA
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Short-term rentals have become a controversial issue in many locations in the U.S. Many communities establish limits on the number of STRs and many have instituted licensing and other fees on them. Short-term rental analytics platform AirDNA broke down Asian markets (Japan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia) including markets with 20,000 or more STRs to rank those providing top returns:
- Hakuba, Japan: Average annual return: $61,813; average daily rate: $413
- Onna, Japan: $44,737; $249
- Kyoto, Japan: $43,882; $181
- Ko Samui, Thailand: $43,465; $311
- Tokyo, Japan: $42,829; $160
- Hakata-ku, Japan: $35,842; $141
- Chuo-ku, Japan: $31,642; $153
- Phuket, Thailand: $28,381; $223
- Dubai, UAE: $27,798; $206
- Assagao, India: $26,696; $225
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MARKET UPDATE - 03/26/2025 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 03/20/2025)
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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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