Nicholas Williams began to panic when his construction equipment malfunctioned. He was 65 feet off the ground, and less than two months into the new job, when he became stuck in a lift basket. When another lift basket rose up to rescue him, Williams had no choice but to jump into the other functioning piece […]
construction
Posted inBusiness, Equity, News
Women’s Bean Project celebrates rebuilding lives — and a huge new facility in Denver
Sabina Dyer was in a treatment center when she applied for a slot at the Women’s Bean Project in Denver. She needed a job and had heard good things about the nonprofit that uses employment to help train women for the workforce from a previous graduate of the organization. The organization hires women struggling to […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, Housing, News, Wildfire
Supply and labor shortages double the time it’ll take to rebuild homes lost in the Marshall fire
Casey Cazier protected his eyes with sunglasses as he sawed a piece of lumber in half to repair a wood fence that was blown off the hinges by 100 mph winds during the Marshall fire. Over the past two decades, Cazier’s general contracting business has focused on replacing roofs and other parts of homes that […]
Posted inBusiness, Climate, Environment, Housing, News, Politics and Government, Wildfire
Colorado doesn’t have a statewide building code. Would enacting one help protect homes against wildfire?
A handful of Democratic state lawmakers are interested in pursuing legislation next year that would enact a statewide minimum building code in Colorado as part of broader long-term efforts to prepare for wildfires driven by a warming climate. The new code could help unlock millions of dollars in federal grant funding to protect communities against […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, Growth, Housing, News
Housing demand is greater than ever but Colorado is building fewer homes than expected. Here’s why.
In a past life, Susan Ohlhaber helped people as a mental health counselor. Actually, it wasn’t that long ago. It was just last year. Then the COVID-19 pandemic began and she was laid off. Ohlhaber, who lives in Morrison, is now learning the difference between a jig saw, a circular saw and a reciprocating saw. […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, News
What’s Working: How much federal COVID relief went to unemployed Coloradans?
The day is finally here and some will weep but others will likely be cheering. It’s the last day Colorado will pay pandemic unemployment benefits, if you’re reading this on Sept. 4. According to Department of Labor and Employment officials, about 107,000 Coloradans will no longer be eligible while another 30,000 people will no longer […]
Posted inEconomy, Housing, News
In rural towns like Kit Carson, a housing and development conundrum born of rising costs, disrepair — and lots of asbestos
KIT CARSON — The hope for rural sustainability in this small, spare town lives in a light-brown, 1,800-square-foot, two-story frame house with four bedrooms and three baths. Her name is LouRae Rady, a single mom and a second-grade teacher at the sparkling new school just a couple blocks away. The hope lies in Rady, whose […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, Housing, News
Record lumber prices are adding $35,000 to the sale price of a new home, further crunching Colorado’s housing market
With housing demand pushing lumber prices to more than double what 2x4s cost a year ago, workers at the Allweather Wood manufacturing plant in Loveland are treating lumber as fast as possible. But they’ve run into issues aggravated by the coronavirus pandemic. Not all employees returned to work after a brief closure last year. Staffing […]
Posted inBusiness, Coloradans, News
With nowhere to go, Coloradans are spending big on home improvements
Trapped at home with her husband and two kids because of COVID-19, Jessica Ennis began to feel as if the walls were closing in around her. So she painted them. Just a couple of rooms at first. “But that turned into the interior of the whole house,” said Ennis, who lives in Denver’s Central Park […]
Posted inCOVID, News
Coronavirus has struck construction sites across Colorado, including a school and off-campus housing project
Coronavirus outbreaks have hit staff working in the close quarters of Colorado nursing homes, prisons and jails, food-manufacturing plants and restaurants. Add construction workers to that list, as the number of job sites with outbreaks continues to rise. A construction crew building a school in Kit Carson fell ill with the virus, sickening 26 workers […]