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Colorado - Thu. 10/29/26 |
A Free Business Publication from Alpine Bank
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ON THE SPUR OF THE MOMENT, ARAPAHOE BASIN OPEN FOR 2026-27 SEASON
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On Wednesday morning, officials at Arapahoe Basin Ski Area announced that lifts would begin operating at 11 a.m. The Black Mountain Express will provide access to the intermediate High Noon run, making A-Basin the first Colorado ski area to open for the 2026-27 season. Additionally, the 6th Alley Bar & Grill at the base opened at 9 a.m., the Black Mountain Lodge opened in the afternoon, and with live music in the base area all day. The Ikon Base Pass was welcomed as well as walk-up lift tickets were for sale. A-Basin is expected to open each day until 4 p.m. going forward, for as long as the season allows. Crews plan to continue snowmaking and open more terrain as quickly as possible along the Front Side of the mountain. Last year, Keystone opened on Oct. 25, and A-Basin opened on Oct. 26.
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FED VOTES TO HOLD INTEREST RATES STEADY
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The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged at its regular October meeting, buying time to decide whether more rate hikes are needed to keep energy costs elevated inflation in check and prevent even further strain on already-tight household budgets. The decision, which maintained the Fed’s benchmark rate in a range between 3.75 percent and 4 percent, was approved on a 10-2 vote. Fed governor Lisa Cook and Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack dissented in favor of a quarter-point increase. Higher energy prices stemming from the war with Iran may prove stickier than expected, but the central bank’s decision to hold rates steady gives policymakers more time to assess the economic fallout. The dynamic could also lead Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh and the Federal Open Market Committee to consider raising rates at their December meeting in order to bring inflation down to the Fed’s 2 percent target.
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DENVER FASHION WEEK IS NOV. 7-14; BUT IT IS DIVA TIME AT THE ART MUSEUM
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On Oct. 4, the Denver Art Museum opened its DIVA exhibit, which will continue through January 2027. According to the museum, DIVA celebrates the radical power, creativity, and cultural impact of nearly 100 iconic performers, from 19th and 20th century divas like Josephine Baker, Sarah Bernhardt, and Maria Callas to modern-day powerhouses like Cher, Aretha Franklin, Lady Gaga, Dolly Parton, Prince, Rihanna, Taylor Swift, and more. There are some 250 pieces in the exhibit including pieces from Marilyn Monroe to a stunning look from one of Rihanna’s Met Gala appearances. It’s a dazzling exploration of how these stars use fashion and performance to not just entertain, but to demand visibility and ignite social change. The exhibit’s main focal point beyond the fashion is a redefinition of what makes a diva a ‘diva.’ Complete information available at denverartmuseum.org/en/exhibitions/diva.
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DENVER WATER LOOKING AT HIGHER RATES FOR HEAVY USE & “LAWN PATROL”
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Denver Water imposed a cutoff of all lawn irrigation on Oct. 1, and Wednesday the Board of Water Commissioners voted to impose higher rates aimed at homeowners with large, irrigated lawns. Indoor water use will cost $2.33 per 1,000 gallons, and outdoor water use will cost $5.83 per 1,000 gallons. Under drought conditions that limit lawn watering to two days a week, the outdoor water price will jump to $7.23 per 1,000 gallons. In terms of net impact, the price changes, which go into effect Jan. 1, are expected to raise monthly water bills for single-family homes by an average of about $3.25 to $4.50. In addition, the board implemented a plan for creating 15 temporary positions for summer 2027, which would see monthly charges rise 5.7 percent to $60.21. Suburban customers served by Denver Water’s resources would see their rates rise 7.9 percent, to an average of $61.57 a month. at $25 an hour, to more than double warnings and violations from 2026 levels.
Having a dedicated staff would “demonstrate that Denver Water is enforcing its rules,” according to Denver Water staff. Denver Water had targeted a 20 percent cut in use in 2026. By Sept. 30, Denver Water’s demand was down 9 percent from the five-year average. The Oct. 1 lawn shutdown has further boosted that savings to 11 percent from the five-year average and saved another 3,700 acre-feet of water. An acre-foot can serve the indoor and outdoor needs of two to four average households for a year.
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CDOT SEEKING $65 MILLION IN FEDERAL AID TO REPAIR WATER DAMAGED ROADS
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The Colorado Dept. of Transportation on Wednesday requested $65 million in emergency federal funding to repair damage to three federal-aid roadways. State officials also asked the Federal Highway Administration to release 10 percent of that funding through a quick-release process for work to start immediately. Colorado’s Transportation Commission has already approved $5 million in emergency funds to assist with immediate repairs along U.S. 160, U.S. 550 and Colorado 151. Up to 7 inches of rain fell in southwest Colorado between Thursday and Sunday, causing widespread flooding that topped four feet on some federal-aid roadways and closed several highways and local roads.
As of Thursday morning, Colorado 151 remained closed in both directions southwest of Pagosa Springs. Floodwaters decimated two sections of the highway south of the U.S. 160 junction, prompting the long-term closure. U.S. 160 was still alternating one-way traffic between Deer Trail and Hersch Avenue, west of Pagosa Springs, and between Forest Service Road 667 and County Road 20, south of South Fork, on Thursday. U.S. 550 was also alternating traffic on a stretch of highway north of Silverton, where the road’s washed-out embankment and shoulder were being stabilized. There is more rain in the forecast for southwest Colorado this weekend.
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HEAVY RAIN IN SOUTHEAST UTAH PROMPTS RISE IN LAKE POWELL'S WATER LEVEL
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Heavy rain that caused flooding last week in the Four Corners area of Utah, Colorado and New Mexico has had what water experts say is a beneficial side effect: A marked rise in the water level of Lake Powell. Saturday’s daily measurement of Lake Powell’s level was at 3,526.1 feet above sea level — which is 1.1 feet above the level the day before, and 7.1 feet above where the lake was two weeks ago. It’s also 9.5 feet above the lake’s lowest point on Sept. 15. That rise amounts to about 600,000 acre-feet of water going into Lake Powell. Saturday’s measurement was 19.55 feet below where the lake was exactly one year earlier.
The lake’s lowest point in September was 180 feet below where the lake would be if it were full — which hasn’t happened since 1983. Paul Miller, service coordination hydrologist for the National Weather Service’s Colorado Basin River Forecast Center, said Sunday that the 9.5-foot rise is “a drop in the bucket,” but still good news. Shawcroft said that because most of the rain falling in the last two weeks has been upstream of Glen Canyon Dam, Lake Powell’s downstream sister, Lake Mead, has not seen a similar rise in its water level. In the last two weeks, Lake Mead’s water level has risen just 0.06 feet.
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- The Salt Lake Tribune, 10.26.26
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COLORADO'S GLACIERS THINNED DRAMATICALLY DUE TO RECORD LOW SNOW & HEAT IN 2026
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The most prominent glaciers in Colorado thinned dramatically over the past year due to record low mountain snow and record warm temperatures, according to new research. Their shrinking is on par with recent observations of glacier loss across the planet as warmer temperatures accelerate melting and less snow falls to replenish their ice, threatening water sources, increasing mountain hazards and contributing to sea level rise. While glaciologists typically measure changes over longer intervals, glaciologist Dan McGrath at Colorado State University sought to find out what happened over 2026 since it was such an exceptional year. The state’s worst snowpack on record, followed by record summer heat, left the year-round ice masses in the Rocky Mountains exposed.
- The Andrews Glacier thinned by more than 12 feet in this single year, the Arapaho Glacier lost nearly 10 feet, and the Isabelle Glacier lost about 6.5 feet — doubling their rate of thinning from the prior five years. In the decade before that, the thinning measured a foot or less per year.
- St. Mary’s Glacier, a perennial snowfield popular among hikers and skiers, melted completely in September.
- More than 7 trillion tons of ice has been lost worldwide since 2000, according to research, a slow-motion disaster that sometimes provokes sudden devastation: More than 1,300 people were killed in August after a massive section of rock and overlying glacier collapsed near Nepal’s border with China.
- Glaciers in Switzerland lost 5.5 percent of their ice volume this year, the second-biggest percentage drop on record, due to heat waves and low winter snowfall. The GLAMOS Swiss glacier monitoring service and Swiss Academy of Sciences said this month that alpine glaciers have no chance of surviving long-term under such conditions. Switzerland is home to the most glaciers in the Alps.
- In Washington state, researchers with the North Cascade Glacier Climate Project have surveyed six glaciers on Mount Baker during an annual summer trip. This year’s survey shows the fastest average retreat since 1950 with the collapse of several large ice caves, which form as warm air circulates in retreating glaciers.
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DICTIONARY.COM'S 2026 WORD OF THE YEAR: "MAXXING"
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From AI chatbots to lifestyle trends, the concept of optimizing one's life came sharply into focus in 2026. That's why Dictionary.com picked "maxxing," a reflection of our increasingly online society, as its latest Word of the Year. "Maxxing (sometimes -maxxing) is short for 'maximizing,'" says Dictionary.com. "This trendy term can be used on its own or added to the end of any word to convey you're doing something to the fullest or optimizing it as much as possible." Maxxing works as a noun, verb, adjective and adverb all at once.
Leveling up your workout routine? "Gymmaxxing." Your personal care practices? "Healthmaxxing," an umbrella term that covers numerous subgenres, including "proteinmaxxing" and "fibermaxxing." At work, people talked about "tokenmaxxing," meaning leaning ever harder on AI. In wellness circles, there was "sleepmaxxing." Even leisure received the "maxxing" treatment, with "cozymaxxing," as did politics, when the federal government used "homelandmaxxing" in some of its messaging. A favorite maxxings? Nothingmaxxing - going all in an optimizing doing nothing, which requires a lot of effort.
2026 Word of the Year finalists:
- Affordability: the quality of being inexpensive, which is an issue at the center of American life and now, the upcoming midterm elections, as people face increasing costs of housing, groceries, childcare and more.
- Data center: a building or facility used for processing, storing or transmitting large amounts of computer data, which are cropping up more often around the U.S. with the rise of artificial intelligence.
- Unc: short for "uncle," Gen Z and Gen Alpha popularized this humorous and lightly pejorative slang term for an older person who's uncool, trying too hard, or just doesn't get it.
- Odyssey: a long and eventful journey, such as that of Homer's protagonist in his epic poem of the same name, which this summer was adapted into an ensemble blockbuster by director Christopher Nolan.
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THE 25 SAFEST CITIES IN THE U.S.
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The new Safest Cities in America report from WalletHub compares 182 U.S. cities across 41 safety indicators, looking beyond crime to consider everything from traffic fatalities and natural disasters to unemployment and fraud complaints. WalletHub evaluated cities across these categories: home and community safety, natural disaster risk and financial safety. This year, Juneau, Alaska takes the No. 1 spot as the safest city in America. Juneau is among the cities with the lowest murder and pedestrian fatality rates. Juneau has the ninth-highest median credit score among the cities studied, along with the 21st-lowest share of residents living below the poverty line and the 20th-highest annual employment growth. Juneau moves up from fourth place in the 2025 report.
New Orleans finished last overall, at No. 182. It also places last for home and community safety, alongside positions of 104th for natural disaster risk and 172nd for financial safety. Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is second from the bottom, followed by Baltimore, Memphis and Philadelphia. The 10 lowest-scoring cities overall, starting with the lowest, are New Orleans; Baton Rouge; Baltimore; Memphis; Philadelphia; Detroit; Jacksonville, Florida; Houston; Cleveland; and St. Louis.
The 25 Safest Cities in the U.S. For 2026:
- Juneau, Alaska
- Warwick, Rhode Island
- Overland Park, Kansas
- Burlington, Vermont
- South Burlington, Vermont
- Virginia Beach, Virginia
- Cedar Rapids, Iowa
- Casper, Wyoming
- Boise, Idaho
- Yonkers, New York
- Portland, Maine
- Madison, Wisconsin
- Honolulu, Hawaii
- Fremont, California
- Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Fargo, North Dakota
- Missoula, Montana
- Bismarck, North Dakota
- Columbia, Maryland
- Salem, Oregon
- Pearl City, Hawaii
- Nashua, New Hampshire
- Nampa, Idaho
- Aurora, Illinois
- Port St. Lucie, Florida
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MARKET UPDATE - 10/28/2026 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 10/22/2026)
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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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