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Douglas County presenter urges focus on jobs, broadband and workforce to match housing growth
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Summary
A Douglas County staff member told county officials that the county’s economic development effort aims to bring jobs to match rising household growth by leveraging the EDC, broadband partnerships and local workforce strengths; no formal actions or votes were recorded.
A staff member speaking on behalf of Douglas County presented the county’s economic-development pitch, saying officials should focus on bringing jobs to match recent residential growth.
“We have plenty of rooftops,” the staff member said. “What we don't have are the jobs to match those rooftops. That's the goal with the EDC.”
The presenter framed the pitch around several pillars: coordinating regional economic development groups, expanding broadband access through federal and state partnerships, speeding permitting and construction processes for businesses, and highlighting the county’s skilled workforce.
The presenter cited a recent Denver Business Journal article, Money on the Move, saying it identified Douglas County as one of the metro-area winners for attracting high-income residents. “We were benefiting because people were leaving other areas in the metro and choosing to live in Douglas County,” the staff member said, adding that employers and their employees often choose to live near jobs.
On broadband, the speaker said the county has “great partnership coming out of the federal government” and “great partnership coming out of state government,” without specifying programs or funding amounts.
The presentation highlighted workforce education statistics as a selling point for recruiters: “Over 63% of our workforce obtains a bachelor's degree or higher,” the staff member said, and “over 25% of our population has a master's degree or higher.” The presenter said those metrics appeal to industries such as advanced manufacturing, aerospace and health care.
The staff member also described youth-focused innovation activity in the county: “The Ignite Lab is essentially an incubator where some of our brightest young minds, our high school interns, come. They develop new ideas, new technologies,” the presenter said, adding that local students “get to explore things that are gonna be the future of aerospace and the future of exploration.”
The speaker characterized the county’s regulatory stance as business-friendly and pro–right to work. “Here in Douglas County, we're open for business. ... This is a place where the right to work is a given,” the staff member said. On unions the presenter said, “Union. Union. They're not needed here.” The remarks linked the county’s approach to a broader theme of “conservative governance” that keeps government small and prioritizes ease of doing business.
The presenter repeatedly framed the Economic Development Council (EDC) as the primary vehicle to attract employers and said county leaders should coordinate chambers and business development professionals across the region. The speaker did not propose or move any formal motions during the presentation, and the meeting record contained no votes or formal actions tied to the presentation.
The presentation closed by noting local partnerships and the county’s health rankings as assets for long-term economic strategy. The staff member said Douglas County aims to be a “partner for life” to businesses and community partners.
No formal decisions, motions, funding commitments or timelines were recorded in the transcript for this presentation.
