The entire northern Front Range, especially metro Denver, was a hot spot coming out of the Great Recession, drawing in young workers from all over the country. But that important driver of economic growth last decade looks like it has stalled and in some areas reversed.
Colorado may have both welcomed and feared the disproportionate flow of new residents last decade. But this decade it will need to find a way to attract its share from a shrinking pool of new workers, and early on it looks like it is falling behind.
“Large urban areas with very large labor markets had power and people were willing to pay up to live there. They have lost that edge a little bit. They are competing more with the suburbs and the exurbs. We expect Denver to be hit hard,” said Adam Ozimek, chief economist with the Economic Innovation Group, which conducted a study of population winners and losers among U.S. counties during the pandemic.
