Reporter
If Dustin Peyser had one regret about creating Timnath’s first-ever chamber of commerce, it might be that he sort of put himself out of business.
It didn’t hurt too much. After selling homes in California for years before he moved to Colorado in 2021, the 47-year-old said he was already questioning the time and effort it was taking to build a new real estate practice in Larimer County.
And after launching the chamber in 2024, he realized he didn’t want to commingle a real estate business with his chamber duties or create any conflict or perception that he was promoting himself: “I made a personal decision not to use my chamber position as a way to compete with other members who are Realtors or generate real estate business for myself,” he said.
While he still holds a real estate license in California and Colorado, he makes a living through Appxecutive, his technology and software-development business.
Peyser’s new job running Timnath’s business-support organization has suited him perfectly. Timnath’s chamber has been so successful that the town next door, Severance, has hired him to help with their chamber.
Now, Peyser is president of the Timnath and Severance chambers of commerce.
And he’s doing it out of his belief in local business. He isn’t making a penny to run either.
As he settles into his new role at the Severance chamber, he believes the lessons he’s learned creating Timnath’s will lead Severance to greater success.
What’s a chamber of commerce?
Chambers of commerce may seem like relics of the past, as dusty as your grandpa’s Elks Club or Rotary membership.
But Terri Hayes, president and CEO of the Tri Lakes Chamber of Commerce in Monument and chair of the Colorado Chamber Alliance, says if you believe that, you’re misled.
Chambers are collectives that support local businesses and nonprofit organizations according to their communities’ needs, she said.
Colorado has around 140 chambers, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. They represent tiny towns, like Del Norte, in southern Colorado, and large cities, like Thornton. Some are county chambers, like the one in West Yuma County. And Hayes said “in our world, when you’ve met one chamber, you’ve met one chamber, because each one molds itself around its community differently.”
Some communities might need economic development, others visitor services. All need networking, education and events that both bring people together and help fund a chamber’s mission.
When Peyser landed in Timnath in 2022, he noticed some big needs — and opportunities.
The bedroom community of Fort Collins had close to 6,000 people — half of what it has now — and fewer businesses, he said.
They ranged from “Costco to Walmart to people baking bread from their garage and shipping it out,” Peyser said, “and the majority didn’t have brick-and-mortar (locations) because at the time there really wasn’t enough space for brick and mortar.”
But he correctly predicted Timnath’s trajectory: It’s now one of the fastest-growing towns in the state, with its population surging from roughly 625 residents in 2010 to around 12,000 at latest count, according to the U.S. census.
That growth has led to a housing boom, huge subdivisions and the creation of large retail and business centers.
“Launching a chamber seemed like a good way to create a connection between people and businesses that might not otherwise be seen beyond the Costcos and Walmarts,” Peyser said.
Creating a chamber from scratch
Building a chamber from scratch was no easy task.
In the beginning Peyser did “all of the things I assumed a chamber had to do,” like attempting to build a governing board and get community buy-in before the chamber was created.
But because Timnath had never had one before, and most people didn’t know Peyser, the initial plan had to be reworked.
Peyser knew he needed to gain people’s trust, so he held six community meetings over the last six months of 2024. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and a month prior to his planned opening date of Jan. 1, 2025, he launched the Timnath chamber from his home office.
In the two years since, membership has grown from 50 founding members to 100, who’ve collaborated with Peyser and community partners to create events, promotional campaigns and educational offerings that are rooted in local businesses rather than requiring the chamber to own a building.
Peyser has kept overhead low, so membership dues can support the businesses. He has built most of the infrastructure — a modern website, membership systems, event infrastructure, business resources and automation intended to give a small chamber capabilities that historically would have required a much larger staff.
And he’s done it from home, seeing no reason to waste money on rent, utilities and other fixed costs simply so he can point to an office. “At this stage I’d rather put those dollars into programming, technology and member value,” he said.
He and members also launched Timnath Connect, which brings local businesses, vendors, food trucks, live music and residents together and has repeatedly approached the capacity of the available vendor space.
They created a platform during the most recent town council election that gave candidates an opportunity to speak directly with the community about business, growth and Timnath’s future.
And he built a quarterly event, Towns Connecting Over Coffee, for the communities of Timnath, Severance, Eaton and Evans to strengthen relationships across northern Colorado. All of which made him a perfect candidate to take over Severance’s chamber of commerce.
Becoming Severance’s chamber president
Timnath chamber member Kerrin McMurdie, an independent travel advisor with the business Sprout and Goose Travel, said Peyser has created a chamber where everyone works together, feels included and is recognized for their contributions.
She also said Peyser fosters unity: “We’re not just feeding off the chamber for our own business’s benefit. We are working together to build a business community.”
Perhaps that’s why, In late July and unbeknownst to him, Peyser’s name surfaced when the Severance Chamber was on the hunt for a new president.
Severance is about 7 miles east of Timnath with a similar population.
Their chamber was formed in 2019 and has seen success.
But when the previous president, Elizabeth Atkins, was ready to move on, she recommended Peyser to the Severance chamber board. When she asked Peyser if he’d do it, he said, “A billion percent.”
While it was another job with no pay, Peyser saw it as a great opportunity for him and the towns of Severance and Timnath. They could share technology and backroom services while maintaining their independence and singular missions of promoting their towns.
“We’re building a model where two neighboring small-community chambers can maintain their own identities, memberships and local priorities while sharing some of the operating infrastructure, technology and resources behind them,” he said.
Section by Tracy Ross | Reporter
Sun economy stories you may have missed
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➔ Wild horse helicopter roundups in Colorado this summer are costing the federal government $900k. So far, more than 800 horses have been captured from herd management areas near Meeker and Rangely >> Read story
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➔ Renters in this western Colorado town were almost displaced. Here’s how a public-private partnership kept them home. When affordable housing restrictions at Eagle Villas expired, and the complex was put on the market, 120 families were at risk of losing their homes >> Read story
Other working bits
➔ Quantum company Infleqtion awarded another $20 million NASA contract. The Louisville quantum-technology company was picked by NASA to build “the world’s first space-based quantum gravity sensor,” the company said. It was already working on the sensor, known as the Quantum Gravity Gradiometer Pathfinder. This gets the team, which is working on a mission led by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, into the hardware phase of the project.
“Every milestone brings quantum sensing closer to enabling entirely new ways to observe our planet from orbit,” said Infleqtion CEO Matt Kinsella in a news release.
The $20 million project will help earthlings measure subtle changes to the Earth’s gravitational field below the surface, like the underground water and ice and how they shift over time. Infleqtion has become a local tech darling, having raised $550 million during its initial public offering in February.
➔ Arapahoe County needs 100 workers, including election judges. It’s that time of year again. Arapahoe County will have 34 voter service and polling centers for the upcoming November election and it needs help. Open positions require folks who will handle signature verification, election night ballot security and other roles.
Those interested can attend one of two hiring fairs, including one that is today, Aug. 29, from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Aurora Public Library Central Branch located at 15151 E. Alameda Parkway in Aurora. A second job fair is Sept. 15 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Bemis Public Library, 6014 S. Datura St. in Littleton. But if you can’t make it to a job fair, you can apply online. >> Apply
➔ Colorado adds 15 rural communities to special “lab.” The state economic-development office calls it the Rural Strategies Lab, and it added 15 new participants in communities all over the state. The purpose is to “help communities move from planning to action,” the state’s Rural Opportunity Office Director Meridith Marshall said in a news release.
There’s an effort to drive more responsible tourism to Clear Creek County through the Destination Blueprint Program, while others are focused on how communities can leverage existing resources to build talent in Pueblo and San Luis Valley. >> Details
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