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Colorado - Thu. 11/12/26 |
A Free Business Publication from Alpine Bank
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DENVER, COLORADO SPRINGS ARE LEADERS IN HOMEOWNERS SELLING AT A DISCOUNT
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With a high inventory of homes for sale and fewer and fewer sales because of high mortgage rates and the overall economy, homeowners seeking to sell are now making price cuts. An analysis of real estate data by Parci Labs of the Common Sense Institute showed that in 15 Colorado markets more than 40 percent of listings had price cuts. Among larger U.S. metro areas with 5,000 or more listings, Colorado Springs and Denver had the largest percentage of homes offered at a discount, with Colorado Springs at 55.7 percent of its listing and Denver with 55 percent.
However, there were many locations across Colorado with a high percentage of discounted offerings:
- Greeley, 53.7 percent
- Grand Junction, 52.4 percent
- Pueblo, 51.2 percent
- Breckenridge, 48.7 percent
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DENVER CITY COUNCIL GIVES OK TO ALTERRA MOUNTAIN LEASE
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Alterra Mountain Co., which owns Steamboat Springs and Arapahoe Basin ski resorts, and is the provider of the Ikon ski pass, had a lease for its headquarters at Zeppelin Station in the North River neighborhood of Denver. However, the company was being actively recruited to move to Salt Lake City and the economic development officials of the state of Colorado and city of Denver worked to create a package of $12 million in incentives to remain in Denver. One of those incentives was a $7 million low-interest rate loan from the Downtown Denver Development Authority to locate within Upper Downtown.
Alterra officials decided to rent the former Denver Post building at 101 W. Colfax Ave, which the city of Denver purchased in 2024 and taking over the master lease earlier this year. On Monday, the Denver City Council approved a 12-year lease to Alterra for 64,654 square feet in the building which will net the city $15.8 million in rent over the 12 years. With Alterra taking over the space, the building will become nearly half full.
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GOV.-ELECT WEISER MAKES INITIAL APPOINTMENTS TO HIS CABINET
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This week, just a week following his landslide victory, Colorado Gov.-elect Phil Weiser began making appointments to his cabinet and administration. Weiser on Tuesday nominated Cleave Simpson, the Republican minority leader in the state Senate, to become the state’s next agriculture commissioner. Simpson faces confirmation in the state Senate. Weiser selected another former lawmaker, who also served as the mayor of Fort Collins, Jeni Arndt to become the director of rural advancement. The position is a Cabinet-level advisory role designed to act as a liaison and advocate for rural communities at the highest levels of state government. Originally established during the administration of now Sen. John Hickenlooper to address feelings of abandonment among rural residents over specific regional issues (such as sage grouse conservation), the position was revitalized by Weiser as a core campaign promise to appoint a focused point-person for rural Colorado.
Dominick Moreno was selected to become budget director. The governor-elect also chose Scott Steinbrecher, who serves under Weiser now as a deputy attorney general, to become his water adviser. Steinbrecher is currently Deputy Attorney General for Natural Resources and Environment, and the director of water policy is also new, but a similar role existed under Gov. John Hickenlooper, who appointed former Agriculture Commissioner John Stulp as the state’s first water czar.
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PAGOSA SPRINGS STILL ISOLATED, CDOT HOPES FOR OPENINGS BY THANKSGIVING
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Colorado Dept. of Transportation crews and contractors are working nonstop to reopen roads across southwest Colorado after the widespread and major damage from the heavy rains Oct. 22 and Nov. 1 and 2. As of Wednesday, Wolf Creek Pass on U.S. Hwy.160 was closed for almost 30 miles. A section of Hwy. 160 between Bayfield and Pagosa was closed because of a bridge washout. And a section of Colorado Hwy. 151 near Chimney Rock was closed, with part of the road washed out. Because of the two areas of closure of U.S. Hwy. 160, Pagosa Springs is almost isolated other than access to New Mexico via U.S. Hwy. 84. Several locations along Hwy. 84 were impacted by the rain, but remain passable, and CDOT crews are working to stabilize the area.
CDOT hopes to get as many roads as possible open to traffic before Thanksgiving, but the Hwy.160 Piedra River Bridge will likely remain closed until mid-January, according to Julie Constan, regional transportation director for CDOT. The mid-January estimate is with crews working 12-hour shifts, seven days a week, but CDOT is working with the contractor to maximize time and potentially move to 24-hour workdays, Constan said.
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HISTORIC PROPERTY IN CAÑON CITY IS A RESTAURANT & LODGE
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In 1884, Lyman Robison completed his elegant 6,500-square foot mansion on four acres in Cañon City. Robison, a Scottish immigrant, earned his fortune mining for silver and gold, and the mansion, which is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, features a mansard roof with dormer windows, along with 14-foot ceilings accented by crystal chandeliers and intricate molding. Four beautifully appointed bedrooms, two spacious parlors, a gorgeous dining room, gourmet kitchen and sunroom surround a custom walnut staircase. The four acres boast 32 different species of shade and fruit trees, and a spectacular iron-cast fountain, along with a classic gazebo and two-story brick carriage house with an octagonal cupola centered upon its mansard roof. The property is enclosed by a stunning 1,400 square feet of custom iron fence adorned with gold-foiled finial accents.
Now known as the Royal Gorge Mansion, it was carefully restored by Mark and Dawn Greksa, the owners of the Royal Gorge Railroad Route, and it is home to a new fine dining establishment, Antithesis. The Greskas recruited Johnny Church, the Food Network "Chopped" champion and longtime chef in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, to run Antithesis. The Royal Gorge Mansion also has overnight accommodations for 9 people, with five bedrooms and three bathrooms. Now, the Greskas plan to refurbish the on-site carriage house and turn it into a venue for weddings and other events.
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WHITE RIVER NATIONAL FOREST CHRISTMAS TREE PERMITS AVAILABLE NOV. 12
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White River National Forest officials announced that Christmas tree cutting permits will be available online, and from local vendors, district offices and recreation.gov beginning Nov. 12. Permits are $10 from district offices and local vendors and $12.50 at recreation.gov. Local vendors include Timberline Sporting Goods, Rifle; Aspen Chamber Resort Association, Aspen; Bristlecone Mountain Sports, Basalt; Roaring Fork Valley Coop, Carbondale; Big John’s Ace Hardware, Glenwood Springs; Vail Valley Ace Hardware, Vail; Breckenridge Welcome Center, Breckenridge; and Friends of the Dillon Ranger District, Silverthorne. Details are available at fs.usda.gov, including district office and local vendor locations, rules for cutting Christmas trees and maps of cutting areas.
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PARKING AT DURANGO-LA PLATA COUNTY AIRPORT WILL INCREASE OVER THANKSGIVING
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The city of Durango is advising travelers that parking rates at Durango-La Plata County Airport will increase to $15 a day over the Thanksgiving holiday, from Nov. 23 through Dec. 2. The increases will apply to the main, south and remote parking lots. Passengers are encouraged to consider drop-off options, carpooling or using local ground transportation services. Tony Vicari, aviation director at DRO, said parking demand during holiday periods is about 25 percent to 30 percent higher than normal and demand exceeds the airport's parking capacity of 1,304 spaces. This year is projected to have higher demand as DRO is experiencing record levels of passenger and vehicle traffic.
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HOUSE IN ASPEN SELLS FOR $42 MILLION TO GRANDSON OF FORMER SKICO OWNER
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Australian billionaire James Packer, who along with his ex-wife Erica Packer, had a limited liability company that owned a mansion in the Buttermilk neighborhood of Aspen, has sold the property for $42.68 million, down from the $48.9 million it was originally listed for five months ago. The buyers are tech entrepreneur Alex Davis and his wife, Lindsay Davis. Alex Davis is one of the 14 grandchildren of Marvin Davis. Marvin Davis was an oil industry billionaire who purchased Twentieth Century Fox in 1981. Davis began selling off elements owned by Twentieth Century Fox, one of which was the Aspen ski area. Davis took the ski area private, renaming it the Aspen Skiing Company. In 1985, the Crown family bought out all of Davis’ ownership.
The Packer house features eight bathrooms, timber and stone finishes, multiple chandeliers and soaring windows framing sweeping mountain views, along with resort-style amenities, including a pool, waterslide, hot tub and firepit. The sale comes as the Aspen real estate market, as most resort markets, is cooling off. Year-to-date sales in Aspen and Snowmass, Colo., were down in dollar volume by 19 percent in October, compared with the same period last year, according to a report by Tim Estin of Aspen Snowmass Sotheby’s International Realty.
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WANT TO SEE ROME’S RUINS, GO TO THE METRO C STATION
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For most cities around the world, building a new subway system involves underground blasting and excavation of tunnels to allow the trains to run underground. However, building the metro system in Rome was much more complex and time-consuming as the entire city is built on remains of the past and any tunnels to be constructed were boring through some 3,000 years of history. As a result, until 2014, Rome had just two metro lines (Metro A and Metro B), and in 2014 construction of Metro C began and progress has been very slow from its beginning at the suburb of Monte Compatri-Pantano to the center of Rome, with the construction of the first three stops taking more than 20 years and unearthing so many ancient treasures that some say, “Metro C isn’t a subway, it’s an archaeological dig with trains.”
So far construction has revealed: Ancient Roman drinking wells, a farm, military barracks, a 16-room home and more than half a million smaller artefacts like pottery, coins and jewelry have been discovered – mostly dating from the 7th Century BCE to the 5th Century CE. However, the stations have become "archaeo-stations," with four more to be added to the first three. The first archaeo-station, San Giovanni, opened in 2018. The second, Colosseo-Fori Imperiali, opened in December 2025. A trip down the almost 90 feet underground at the San Giovanni station, provides travelers timelines on the walls, with markers indicating the geological depth from present day to the city's Medieval period, then markers showing the Imperial and Republican periods, all the way down to the Paleolithic strata, highlighting important moments in Rome's architectural history along the way.
You're free to hop off at any of the station's three floors to browse artefacts unearthed during the digs, each showcased on the level corresponding to the geological strata where it was found. The cost of a metro ticket is €1.50 (around USD$1.70), and visitors may take in all three stations in one trip and stay as long as they like. The atrium of the Colosseo-Fori Imperiali station is free to visit and features multimedia exhibits about the history of the area. The station provides direct access to the Colosseum, Roman Forum and the Belvedere Cederna panoramic terrace.
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INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL/SPENDING HOLDING STEADY SO FAR IN 2026
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The National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) recently released data showing that in September 2026:
- International visitors spent nearly $20.4 billion on travel to, and tourism-related activities within, the United States during the month of September
- That is an increase of more than 1 percent over September 2025
- For year-to-date through September 30, 2026, international visitors have spent an estimated $185.6 billion on U.S. travel and tourism-related goods and services
- That is a decrease of less than one-half of 1 percent compared to the comparable January-September period of 2025
- International visitors injected, on average, $680 million a day into the U.S. economy in 2026
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MARKET UPDATE - 11/11/2026 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 11/05/2026)
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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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