Three reports out of Longmont reveal optimism about the local economy, as well as shorter commutes to work by those in Longmont. The Boulder Regional Business Partnership’s (BRBP) bi-annual Labor Migration Report tracks where area residents live and work. The Longmont Area Economic Council’s (LAEC&#s) second quarter economic update for 2006 reports on the creation of jobs in the area, as well as company prospects and commercial real estate vacancy. The LAEC 2006 Existing Industry Update surveys Longmont’s industrial base of primary employers. Longmont companies report that the community is conducive to company growth and with that the economy is moving forward with a potential for creating 1,061 new jobs, with many of those jobs being filled by the local workforce over the next three years.

The Boulder Regional Business Partnership’s Labor Migration Report
Longmont remains on the top of the list for communities in Boulder and Broomfield counties whose jobs are held by local residents, according to the 2006 Bi-annual Labor Migration Report, prepared by the BRBP. The report, which tracks where local employees live and reflects how commuting patterns change over time, shows that Longmont has a resident employee concentration of 44.0 percent, 39 percent higher than Boulder (31.6 percent), its closest competitor among the statistically significant communities. Longmont has the highest resident employee concentration in the Metro Denver area according to DRCOG.

LAEC&#s Q2 Economic Update
According to LAEC’S second quarter economic update for Longmont in 2006, the city saw a net gain of 295 primary jobs during the quarter. The report notes that existing employers created 255 net jobs through the second quarter. Six new companies in the Longmont area resulted in 40 new positions. While these numbers do not reflect numbers from Maxtor, they do indicate significant progress toward offsetting those eventual job losses. LAEC worked with 10 new prospects during the quarter, an increase of 20% from the same quarter last year. Net absorption was 56,000 sq. ft. through the 2nd quarter. With an increased number of prospects, LAEC is hopeful that net absorption will continue to grow throughout 2006 and into 2007.

2006 Existing Industry Update
LAEC has also released its Existing Industry Update, a survey of Longmont’s industrial base of 247 primary employers that provide over 14,000 jobs. The results of that survey indicate the potential for 1,061 new jobs (an increase over the 2005 estimate of 981), $79.2 million in capital investment, and use of an additional 430,533 square feet of space over the next three years. Overall, the existing employer base projects employee growth and increased sales and market shares, moving the Longmont area toward its optimal 10-year average of creating 450 primary jobs per year. The Longmont Area experienced a net increase of 631 primary jobs in 2005.

For more information, including the labor migration report, the existing industry report and the Q2 economic update, visit www.longmont.org.

About the Boulder Regional Business Partnership
The Boulder Regional Business Partnership is a consortium of chamber and economic development organizations in Boulder and Broomfield counties. Members include Boulder, Erie, Lafayette, Louisville and Superior Chambers of Commerce, Broomfield Economic Development Corporation and the Longmont Area Economic Council. The group meets bi-monthly, and has done a Labor Migration Report since 1994, including annual reports for 1994 until 1998, and bi-annual reports since then.

About the Longmont Area Economic Council
The Longmont Area Economic Council exists for the sole purpose of keeping the Longmont area economy strong. This is accomplished specifically by actively supporting the creation and preservation of quality primary jobs. Primary employers are those who sell the majority of their goods and services outside the region. LAEC is a public/private partnership, governed by a Board of Directors made up of representatives from primary employers, the City of Longmont, and the business community at large. For more information, call (303) 651-0128, email or visit www.longmont.org.