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DIA growth potential soars despite challenging economic conditions
With an annual economic impact of $22 billion, Denver International Airport is Metro Denver's largest economic engine--and will continue to grow despite the current economic climate--said DIA Aviation Manager Kim Day at last week's State of DIA event hosted by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation.
Originally built for 50 million passengers annually, DIA had a record 51 million passengers last year, making it the fifth-busiest U.S. airport and the 10th-busiest in the world. The airport has experienced phenomenal growth with low-cost carriers Frontier and Southwest, and is United Airline's second-largest hub.
Despite temporary traffic declines,
DIA anticipates passenger traffic to increase by 21 percent over the next 10 years--causing the airport to update its development Master Plan. DIA has unveiled initial plans for a seventh runway and the addition of at least 20 new gates.
"We have a significant competitive advantage that other airports can only dream of, that being 53-square miles on which we can expand our operations in an extremely cost-effective way," explained Day.
Day also recently announced renewed plans for a 500-room Westin hotel to be built south of the terminal. Officials plan to break ground in February 2010 on DIA's 15th anniversary. The hotel location will be adjacent to the planned $1.3 billion commuter train from DIA to downtown Denver's Union Station. Part of the overall
$6.9 billion FasTracks mass transit expansion, the DIA train will open in 2015.
Learn more on metrodenver.org:
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Air Transportation
» Aviation industry
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Region's energy boom continues with factory openings for Abound Solar and GE Energy
Last month, Vestas Wind Systems broke ground on two blade and nacelle factories in Brighton totaling $290 million and employing 1,350, and Ascent Solar opened its new world headquarters and manufacturing facility at 145,000 square feet in Thornton, creating up to 200 new jobs.
This month, the energy boom continues with two significant factory openings that further enhance Colorado's position as a leader in the New Energy Economy.
Abound Solar (formerly AVA Solar) opened a new manufacturing facility in Longmont on April 14. The company produces next-generation, thin-film photovoltaic modules and has 200 employees, with plans to hire 200-300 more.
"Abound Solar is a true Colorado story," said Colorado Governor Bill Ritter. "This solar company developed much of its technology at Colorado State University, secured early stage funding from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Department of Energy, and is now locally manufacturing the energy technologies to power our future."
That same day,
GE Energy's Control Solutions division, a provider of products and services for turbines, generators, compressors, and controllers for hydroelectric and nuclear power plants, celebrated the grand opening of a new facility with 180 employees, also in Longmont.
"Today's grand openings and the jobs they represent are a testament to Colorado's New Energy Economy," said Gov. Ritter. "Thank you to Abound Solar and GE Energy Control Solutions for helping to lead Colorado forward."
Learn more:
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Colorado's New Energy Economy Video
On metrodenver.org:
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Energy Industry
(includes downloadable industry cluster reports)
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News and Deals
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Returning Nobel Laureate Tom Cech to be catalyst for bioscience industry
 Colorado's
bioscience industry received yet another boost recently with news that Nobel Laureate Tom Cech
will return to the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU-Boulder) this month after 10 years as president of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
Cech, who shared the 1989 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for the discovery that RNA in living cells can function as a catalyst, will spend his time teaching, doing lab work, and directing the university's
Colorado Initiative in Molecular Biotechnology (CIMB). The Initiative will break ground on a $115 million center soon in CU's Research Park.
"Tom's return is certainly big news for Colorado," explained Tom Clark, executive vice president of the Metro Denver EDC. "In bioscience, he's a 'rock star' who is at the top of his game. We can only estimate at the possibility of patents, rapid commercialization, and company spinoffs that will come to fruition under his direction."
CIMB will receive $1 million for the next five years from a $26.5 million fund created by Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter in 2008. The five-year Bioscience and Life Science Fund provides grants to Colorado start-up companies and research institutions seeking to commercialize new biotechnology drugs, biofuels, medical devices, and nanotechnology.
Learn more on metrodenver.org:
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Bioscience industry
(includes downloadable industry cluster reports)
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