EconomySunday, November 1
The Pikes Peak economy is holding up well, the UCCS Economic Forum report says
The Daily Colorado Springs team
If you've wondered how the local economy is doing, the 30th annual UCCS Economic Forum report has an answer. Bill Craighead, the forum's director, told The Gazette, "The Colorado Springs economy is holding up well." The report notes some recovery in jobs numbers and Colorado Springs sales tax collections, plus modest gains in housing.
- Unemployment peaked at 4.4% in the second half of 2024
- Since May 2025: below the national rate
- Concern: low workforce participation among parents of young children
- Concern: a federal deficit could limit defense spending
4.4%peak regional unemployment rate, second half of 2024
Since May 2025, unemployment rates for both Colorado and the Pikes Peak region have been below the national rate, according to seasonally adjusted Bureau of Labor Statistics data cited in the report.
Source: The Gazette
At the forum, Mayor Yemi Mobolade said Colorado Springs adds about six new residents a day, even as several major Colorado cities lost population. Johnna Reeder Kleymeyer, who leads the Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC, said Colorado is the sixth most regulated state in the country and that businesses with choices "don't have to be here."
The region's recent wins and growth forecast, by the numbers
- $475 million
- Swire Coca-Cola is investing in a plant south of the airport
- 1,200
- new apartment units Weidner is developing downtown
- $3.1 billion
- spent by Pikes Peak region visitors last year, a record
- 76,000
- people the region is expected to add in the next decade
Source: The Colorado Sun
Sources: The Colorado Sun, The Gazette