Colorado ranked as bike-friendly state
The League of American Bicyclists recently ranked Colorado #2 on their list of Bicycle Friendly States. Zooming in on Northern Colorado, Fort Collins was only one of four communities in the nation to be named a Platinum Bicycle Friendly Community. This is in recognition of the city’s pro-bicycling policies, educational programs and infrastructure. Greeley also gained recognition this year, being named a Bronze Level Bicycle Friendly Community. Click here to check out the www.GreeleyBikes.com website, and if you are feeling adventurous you can plan a summer bike ride from Greeley to Fort Collins via the Poudre River Trail.

Colorado earns top marks for small business support
According to the recently released Thumbtack.com and Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation Small Business Friendliness Survey, Colorado small business owners gave the state an overall ‘A’ grade for supporting small businesses. The state was recognized by small business owner for providing quality training and networking programs. In addition, Colorado ranked in the Top 10 for its online business resources. Click on the following link to read the full press release from the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade: http://www.advancecolorado.com/news/colorado-earns-%E2%80%98a%E2%80%99-grade-small-business

Johnstown adopts sophisticated communication strategy
The town of Johnstown has adopted a cutting edge community-wide communication tool. Residents can now sign-up to receive community alerts and information about major events via text message, phone or email. Click on the following link to access the Notification Signup form: http://www.townofjohnstown.com/index.aspx?NID=238&ART=1309&ADMIN=1. Want the lowdown on the rest of what’s happening in Johnstown? Editions of the town’s newsletter are published throughout the year and can be downloaded from the town website at: http://www.townofjohnstown.com/index.aspx?NID=221.

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Larimer County 'Excellence in Financial Reporting'
The Larimer County Finance Division recently received a 'Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting' from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) of the United States and Canada. This is the 29th consecutive year Larimer County has received this recognition for their high reporting standards and full disclosure. Only 16% of counties in the United States qualified for this award. No doubt the well-run and fully transparent Finance Division contributed to the Fort Collins-Loveland Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) coming in at #12 on the Milken Institute's list of 2012 Best-Performing Cities released in the beginning of this year.

First Quarter 2013: Home Prices and Closed Sales Up
The Information and Real Estate Services (IRES) Q-1 2013 Marketwatch report reflects positive numbers for Weld and Larimer County. In Weld County, the Median Sales Price came in at $199,850 reflecting an 11% increase from the previous year. Closed Sales for Weld County increased by 20.8% to reach 766. In Larimer County, the Median Sales Price for Q1-2013 was $248,000 or 5.5% higher than Q-1 2012. The number of Closed Sales reached 1,008 for Larimer County, representing a significant 27.1% increase from the previous year. All-in-all, the Marketwatch report verified what industry leaders have been feeling since the beginning of the year; home prices are on the mend and sales are up for the Northern Colorado region.

Source: Information and Real Estate Services, “Marketwatch Report Q1 2013."

Ground-breaking plans in Severance, Erie
Brinkman Partners recently announced it will be starting on construction of a 9,600 sq ft special events center in Severance CO. The center has been designed for weddings, business-related events and other special occasions. Looking to the southwest, in Erie CO the first phase of a 2,880-home residential development called DayBreak was just recently approved by the town. The vision and planning for DayBreak has been in the works for almost 10 years. Last but not least, in Loveland reconstruction of the former Centerra Metroplex Ferrero Chrysler is underway, making room for Mercedes-Benz of Loveland. Bottom line, as summer approaches 'caution, construction underway' is a common theme across Northern Colorado.

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Local Housing Market Heats Up, Colorado Incomes Up
Important numbers are moving in the right direction for Northern Colorado, and the state of Colorado as a whole. The number of foreclosures in Weld County dropped by 27.5% year-over-year in February, while Larimer County saw a 50% decrease during the same time period. Homes are selling more quickly in Greeley, Loveland and Fort Collins. As of February 2013, the YTD ADOM (Year-to-Date Average Days on Market) was down in Greeley by 8.6%, Loveland by 23.1%, and Fort Collins by 17.4%. For Loveland and Fort Collins, this meant homes sold almost a month faster than they were a year prior. In February, all three cities also experienced an increase in the median sales price for residential detached homes. These strong housing numbers are rounded out with the good news that personal income in Colorado rose by 2.46% from 2011 to 2012.

Source: IRES-Information & Real Estate Services, data pulled 4/1/2013.

Noble, Norfolk expanding in Weld County
In March, Noble Energy Inc. released plans to construct a liquefied-natural gas plant in a rural part of northern Weld County. The facility will be able to produce 100,000 gallons of liquefied natural gas per day. The primary use of the natural gas will be to fuel their equipment used in their Denver-Julesburg Basin operations. Norfolk Iron & Metal of Greeley is about to complete an expansion of their own. They are doubling the size of their facility in response to demands from the oil and gas industry. To learn more about the latest news surrounding the oil and gas play in Weld County, you can visit the Greeley Tribune website at http://www.greeleytribune.com/news/feature2. They also have a dedicated RSS feed "Follow Oil and Gas" to stay on top of the latest news.

Northern Colorado projects on the rise
The Loveland Planning Commission recently approved Brinkman Partners' plan for a five-story upscale apartment building in downtown Loveland. The building would consist of 70 units at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Sixth Street. If Brinkman Partners closes on the property early this month as intended, then ground-breaking could start as early as May. In nearby Fort Collins, the city profile at Prospect and College has changed drastically. The Summit on College, a 665-bed student housing complex, is taking shape and is on target to open doors this fall. Several nearby re-developments have now been spurred on by the complex, and just around the corner Prospect has been shut down as work on the Mason Corridor MAX Bus Rapid Transit system continues. Last, but not least, work begins this month on the expansion of US 287 north of Fort Collins, near Livermore.

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