THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL OF COLORADO ANNOUNCES 2023 EDIE AWARD RECIPIENTS
Top people, places and projects in economic development honored at annual awards dinner & ceremony
GRAND JUNCTION, COLORADO (Oct. 19, 2023) – The Economic Development Council of Colorado (EDCC) announced the 2023 EDIE award recipients, recognizing economic development excellence during its annual Drive|Lead|Succeed Conference at Grand Junction Convention Center in Grand Junction, Colorado Oct. 18 – 20, 2023.
The most recognized award in economic development in Colorado, the EDIE represents outstanding achievements by its members, organizations, communities, companies, individuals and legislators for their outstanding achievements in economic development in the State of Colorado. Since 1989, EDCC has celebrated the achievements of over 200 award winners. This year, 12 awardees were recognized.
Town of Windsor was selected as this year’s ‘Medium Community of the Year’ (community population between 20,000 – 59,999) for its achievements in the following activities:
- Since the Town’s creation of an economic development department in 2011, they have continued investing in the Economic Development department, infrastructure improvements, regional participation, and community strategic planning. They have increased its departments capacity by supporting three full-time positions who are serving over 25 square miles, 44,000 residents, and over 1,000 businesses. They had a record setting year, recording 175 total prospects and 10 company announcements.
- The Town of Windsor has also been proactive in building infrastructure for future development. The town announced investment into Capital improvements, investing over $91M in planned capital outlay and 67 separate projects including the Police Facility, Wastewater, Roads, Water, and more.
- Focus for the department remains to retain and attract primary employers, retail, and being a business ombudsman/advocate for the business community. Through existing prospect management, strategic partnerships, and process improvements the department has been able to attract and grow national and international companies like Woodward, Tolmar, Lineage Logistics, Intersand USA, and Gotham Greens.
“The historic Avalon Theatre in downtown Grand Junction was the perfect place to honor this diverse and talented cast of contributors to Colorado’s economic development community,” said Drew Kramer, EDCC Board Chair and Economic Development Program Manager for Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association. ”Each of the winners represents a key piece of the complex puzzle we must complete to ensure an economically viable future for Colorado – from large and small communities to national corporations and local businesses to elected officials and individual professionals and advocates.”
Kramer further noted the hard work that EDCC Executive Director Kim Woodworth, her staff and several volunteers put in to make the Drive|Lead|Succeed Conference such an effective gathering of the state’s economic development professionals, policymakers and business leaders. An estimated 300 attendees converged in Grand Junction for an agenda rich with content covering everything from housing and the impacts of the outdoor recreation industry to leadership development and demographic trends. Taking place, the second night of the conference, the EDIE Awards ceremony was held at the recently renovated Avalon Theatre in Grand Junction’s Main Street District.
