Colorado Springs is positioned well for growth and business development because its population is younger, on average, than the rest of the nation, and because of its investments in job creation, according to speakers at Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC’s inaugural State of the Chamber.

An increasing population is a key factor for economic growth because it provides a strong workforce and El Paso County is projected to continue to grow with an estimated population of over 1 million by 2050, Joe Craig, University of Colorado Colorado Springs (UCCS) economics professor and interim director for the UCCS Economic Forum, said during Thursday’s event, held at the Ent Center for the Arts.

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“We have a younger population by an average of four years,” Craig said. “It’s fantastic news for our future economic growth.”

As for business development during 2022, the Chamber closed on 10 projects including the expansion of Caliola Engineering, Microchip Technology and Entegris in an effort to diversify the city’s industries in defense, high tech and advanced manufacturing, Andrea Barker, the Chamber’s past executive committee chair, said.

“These 10 projects created 2,060 jobs,” Baker said. “Nearly $750 million in capital investment for the region.”

The expansion of Entegris, which plans to spend up to $600 million to build “a manufacturing center of excellence” on Colorado Springs’ northwest side and intends to add as many as 600 jobs over the next several years, was the largest manufacturing project announcement in the state over the past 10 years, Barker said, citing Deloitte.

She added that another economic development announcement would be made on Friday that is bigger than Entegris.

The launch of the Deal Closing Fund during 2022, in partnership with the city, was an integral step in closing four projects. Using just over $2.5 million of the fund, the projects will create a total of 1,300 jobs and add a payroll of over $122 million for the local economy annually.

“That is quite a return on our investment,” Barker said.

But the future isn’t without unknown factors and potential obstacles that include bolstering the proper type of growth in the region, the affordability of housing for those with less money and other national issues such as a less motivated workforce.

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The challenge of producing the right type of growth in El Paso County and Colorado Springs stems from a low unemployment rate. In December, Colorado Springs had about half a person available for every open job.

“Some level of unemployment allows persons to find and be matched to the right job,” Craig said. “For instance, you wouldn’t want a university professor working the drive-thru at Chick-fil-A. … With more tech companies choosing to locate to Colorado MSA (metropolitan statistical area) we want to make sure we have the right talent available.”

At the same time, data shows most people can afford housing in Colorado Springs, but the data is biased, Craig said. That’s because retired veterans with accumulated wealth make up a large chunk of the community.

“This does create a real issue whereby it crowds out individuals who don’t have this accumulated wealth,” Craig said. “We don’t want an Aspen situation where no one who works there can afford to live within 100 miles.”

Additionally, the workforce is less motivated than 20 years ago, Craig said, noting that the nation’s labor force participation rate has fallen from 66% to 62% in the last couple of decades and will likely continue in that direction.

“We have a lot of work to do right,” Ramon Alvarez, the Chamber’s executive committee chair, said. “But we also have great momentum that we’ve got to leverage. We are facing some growing pains … however … Colorado Springs and El Paso County are poised for smart growth.”

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