Colorado
Has Colorado lost its shine when it comes to attracting residents from other states?
Colorado has long relied on people relocating to the state to fuel its economy, and while natives may complain about more crowded roads and the lack of housing, those transplants both fill and generate jobs, making them the state’s most important import.
Since the pandemic, there has been a sharp drop in people moving to Colorado from other states minus those leaving, known as net domestic migration, and a sharp rise in international migration, or people coming to Colorado from another country, according to numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau’s “vintage estimates,” which fill the gap between the big counts that happen every 10 years.
International flows, which rose rapidly during the Biden administration, are likely to fall fast under the second Trump administration, and the rate of natural increase, or births minus deaths, is expected to head lower in the years ahead before going negative around 2050. That leaves domestic migration as key to the state’s economic fortunes, but two Census counts conflict with each other on what is happening there.
Using the latest numbers from the U.S. Census American Community Survey (ACS), StorageCafe, a storage facility search engine owned by Yardi Systems, reported that nearly 31,000 more people moved to Colorado than moved to other states in 2023, enough to rank eighth for domestic migration. Texas, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Arizona and Indiana were the states ahead of Colorado on that measure.
“Colorado is reclaiming its popularity after a three-year slump that led to negative migration in 2022. In 2023, state-to-state migration brought a net gain of 31,000 residents, signaling a return to pre-pandemic trends– though still slightly below peak years,” StorageCafe said in its report.
The analysis found that Colorado did especially well in its popularity contest with Texas, California, Florida and Arizona. And despite having higher home prices, it did well in drawing young workers, who employers will follow, bringing with them the additional jobs that draw additional people.
“Colorado remains one of the most expensive housing markets in the U.S., ranking sixth for highest home prices. Notably, it’s the only state among the top 10 for net migration where newcomers from the primary originating state end up paying more for housing than they did before,” said Bianca Barsan, a communications specialist with StorageCafe.
Colorado ranked sixth when it came to attracting Gen Z, or the age group now graduating college and entering the workforce, and fourth among millennials, who still dominate the ranks of those coming to the state as they did last decade. Surprisingly, Colorado even ranked eighth among the Silent Generation, those born before the end of World War II, although there were far fewer of them moving.
Media outlets and other groups covered the report as support that Colorado remains an attractive destination for those on the move, especially among young adults, and a population rebound is underway after a temporary slump seen during the pandemic.
But state demographer Kate Watkins sounds a note of caution, based on the most recent vintage estimates, which paint a less robust picture than the ACS.
“The ACS data are drawn from a survey of the population. Further, the ACS is generally not designed to produce count estimates, but instead to provide characteristics of populations,” Watkins said.
Put another way, the ACS can provide details on the age ranges of people relocating here, how educated they are, and whether they rented or bought a home after arriving. But when it comes to giving a headcount, it isn’t as precise as vintage estimates, which use other government sources like IRS, Medicare and Social Security records.
The latest vintage numbers, released in December and through July 1, put Colorado’s net domestic migration at 5,422 and international migration at 33,227. Using the 2023 count, domestic migration was 6,341 and international migration was 27,177.
Net domestic migration in Colorado has remained fairly flat this decade per vintage estimates, moving from a high of 7,365 in 2020 to a low of 5,422 in 2024. Domestic migration has become a smaller, not higher, share of overall migration, and is now making the smallest contribution to Colorado’s overall population growth since 2010, when people hunkered down because of the Great Recession, according to a report from the Common Sense Institute, a business-funded think tank.
Colorado ranked 17th last year for domestic migration using the vintage estimates, which shouldn’t be taken for granted given that nearly half of all states, led by California and New York, lost more residents to other states than they gained. Since April 1, 2020, Colorado has gained a net 31,172 people from other states per Census vintage estimates, below what it would attract during single years last decade. That softening is being driven by an increase in residents leaving the state.
“In line with the national trend, international migration fueled Colorado’s population growth in 2024. Colorado gained over 33,000 people this year through net international migration alone, accounting for more than half of its population growth,” Zoey Zhang, a research analyst with the Common Sense Institute, in her analysis of the 2024 Census numbers.
Colorado’s net international migration was at 240 in 2020, reflecting pandemic restrictions as well as stricter policies under the first Trump administration. Under the Biden administration, Colorado’s net international migration went from 3,911 in 2021, to 18,507 in 2022, 27,177 in 2023 and 33,227 in 2024, per the vintage estimates.
Those are likely undercounts given the challenges the Census Bureau faces in tracking what the Pew Research Center describes as “unauthorized” immigrants. That category is broader than “illegal” and includes people awaiting a decision on their asylum requests, those who have entered as “parolees” from countries like Ukraine, Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti and Venezuela, victims of human trafficking and those with temporary protected status.
The country had about 2 million more people than expected in 2023 and the majority are likely unauthorized immigrants, according to Pew.
International migration counts are expected to decrease sharply as Trump carries through on campaign promises to close the southern border, deport those in the country illegally and limit asylum applications, which people apprehended at the border frequently sought in recent years.
Legal immigration isn’t being curtailed yet, but some programs like the H-1B visa used to recruit tech and professional workers are coming under increased scrutiny. A decrease in legal immigration could pose problems for the state’s labor markets, said Richard Wobbekind, an associate dean and senior economist at the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder.
“The demographic changes of slower net domestic in-migration and baby boomer retirements will tighten the labor market. I am not sure where the labor supply offset will come from,” Wobbekind said in an email.
Get more Colorado news by signing up for our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter.
Colorado
Colorado neighbors lament likely closure of Roxborough library; $22 million regional library breaks ground nearby
For 22 years, the Roxborough library in Roxborough Village has served the entire Roxborough Park community. But that chapter might be coming to a close, as Douglas County Libraries prepares to break ground on a near-$22 million library in a growing master-planned Colorado community nearby.
A new regional library will be built near the intersection of West Titan Road and Taylor River Circle across from the incoming Douglas County School District elementary school in Sterling Ranch. It will also serve communities such as Louviers, Chatfield, Solstice and the greater Roxborough Park community.
“It’s an opportunity for this whole development to centralize a little bit,” said Alex Taylor, president for Sterling Ranch Community Board District No. 2
Taylor was among the first 100 residents to live in Sterling Ranch, and he can’t wait to take his two sons to the library when it opens near their home.
“Having an additional space for the kids to go and find the new set of books,” Taylor said. “Creating a centralized space for everybody in all of the various communities in this region to be able to congregate.”
The 18,000-square-foot library will break ground in Sterling Ranch this summer. But this developing situation does not satisfy everyone in the community.
“Don’t take ours to give them theirs,” community member Denise Martinez said.
Seven minutes away at the Roxborough library, some neighbors don’t want to say goodbye to their longstanding community hub. But the library board has set the lease to terminate next year.
“It would be devastating to this community on so many different levels,” Martinez said.
Martinez says the smaller Roxborough library is one of the only shared amenities in the community and is walkable for many.
“I truly believe that this is the hub of the community,” Martinez said. “This is the gathering spot.”
“Our community has been here for over 40 years, and people have paid into the library system for that amount of time,” said Ephram Glass, president of Roxborough Village Metropolitan District. They’ve been paying their property taxes. The library has been accumulating all this funding, so that they could build a new facility for Roxborough, and now for that money to then go to a brand new community that hasn’t been paying in for decades, I think a lot of people will be very pissed off.”
Glass and Martinez both enjoy taking their children to the library. They say it’s a close walk or bike ride from Roxborough Primary and Intermediate School and worry about children losing accessibility to the library.
“It would take an hour and 16 minutes walking to the new facility from this one, or a 25-minute bike ride. There’s really no shoulder,” Martinez said. “This doesn’t give our kids access at all. I mean, they will ultimately not be able to go to the library unless they have a ride.”
“I imagine some kids will take the e-bikes over. Many will just not go,” Glass said.
Glass is a member of the Roxborough Village HOA, which he says offered to donate a parcel of land near the existing Roxborough library with no strings attached.
“The board chose the Sterling Ranch site as the best site,” said Bob Pasicznyuk, executive director at Douglas County Libraries.
Pasicznyuk says there have long been plans to open a larger library in the area. He says DCL chose the other site, which was donated by the Sterling Ranch developer, partially because it was centrally located in northwest Douglas County.
“Ultimately around 35,000 people will live just in Sterling Ranch alone. The audience base would then go up to say (50,000) or 60,000. Right now it’s about half that many,” Pasicznyuk said.
Pasicznyuk says the all-in cost of the library in Sterling Ranch will be $21.6 million. That includes $250,000 for an outdoor porch, $200,000 for an outdoor children’s play area and $450,000 for other outdoor improvements, including a seating area, trellis and event and trail space.
Martinez is upset those outdoor amenities will come at the cost of the library and not the Sterling Ranch developer.
“I just think that it’s ridiculous to build a park and a veranda and even insist upon those things,” Martinez said. “I just do not understand what that really has to do with literacy or books or the library. I was kind of shocked by that actually.”
Despite terminating the lease, Pasicznyuk says the library board has not voted to close the Roxborough library just yet, but admits they have always consolidated smaller libraries when larger ones open.
“We’ve been 22 years in the second-floor strip mall rental, and while we’ve been glad for the opportunity, it’s going to be an amazing opportunity to move into a freestanding library with all the amenities that we have,” Pasicznyuk said.
“It isn’t good for this community. If you’re here to serve the community, why would you shut this down?” Martinez said.
Martinez started a Change.org petition to “Save Our Roxborough Library.” She now has more than 1,400 signatures.
“We need this. This is vital for our community,” Martinez said. “We just feel like we’re being absorbed.”
“It’s a prized amenity, so it makes sense that they want to keep it,” Pasicznyuk said. “I’ve never seen a reaction other than people love their library. So, even though you’re opening a new library, and I can describe 10 things about it that might be improvements over what we have today, people are going to, because they love their library, wish to keep what they have.”
Meanwhile, Taylor is excited for the library to open in Sterling Ranch next year.
“I’m absolutely empathetic to the fact that somebody might be disappointed that a library would move a few miles away from them versus where it’s historically been,” Taylor said. “The library will be something that everyone can enjoy. It’s going to be a library in Sterling Ranch, but not just for Sterling Ranch.”
Taylor says he’s been working with Sterling Ranch’s developers and the library on a partnership with the nearby Lamb Spring Archaeological Preserve. They are hoping to bring some artifacts or replicas into the library and use a mammoth hunter-gatherer theme for the children’s areas.
“It is a major archeological site in this region that there is evidence of mammoth activity and human activity going back possibly as far as 9,000 years ago,” Taylor said.
Roxborough-area residents say they plan to attend the next library board meeting on June 24 to make their voices heard.
(COLORADO SPRINGS) — Organizers for the Pikes Peak or Bust Parade announced on Friday, June 19, that due to a lack of resources, the parade has been canceled.
Originally scheduled for July 11 in Downtown Colorado Springs, parade organizers said they could not secure the resources needed to produce the event at the level the community deserves.
“We know many of you were looking forward to the parade, and we’re incredibly grateful to everyone who offered their time, support, sponsorship, and enthusiasm,” said organizers.
While the parade will no longer be taking place on July 11, organizers said the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo will return on July 14 through July 18, and tickets remain on sale.
Organizers hope to see the Colorado Springs community at the rodeo, and they remain hopeful that the beloved tradition can return in the future.
Denver Post writers have explored Colorado’s many corners and offer ways to find fun, relaxation or something new for summer. Take a look at how you can expand your possibilities this season if you’re keeping travel close to home this year.
In the mountains
Colorado’s 10 most popular hikes, according to AllTrails
Colorado waterfall hike: Copeland Falls best this time of year in early morning
This hiking trail near Red Rocks will help you get in shape for 14er season
Gorgeous Colorado hike reopens this summer with new rules for hiking, camping, human waste
An Estes Park getaway can be about more than just the outdoors
Camping
Gorgeous Colorado hike reopens this summer with new rules for hiking, camping, human waste
Forest service now charging $20 for dispersed camping in Homestake Valley
Within driving distance
These adult summer retreats can help Coloradans escape burnout
Big balloons will rise above Colorado’s heat this summer; watch ’em soar or take a ride
Looking for beach vibes? Here’s where to find them in landlocked Colorado
Movie-theater hotel adds vintage Airstreams, Quonset huts in San Luis Valley
Sleep in a treehouse, hike with llamas, stargaze and more summer whimsy
Pick your own flowers at these farms and garden centers in Colorado
Is city fishing safe? Yes, experts say, but there are updated guidelines to follow.
Big balloons will rise above Colorado’s heat this summer; watch ’em soar or take a ride
Here’s where to fish with kids near Denver
Summer fun
Biodegradable pickleballs, size-inclusive skorts made in Colorado and other sports gear we love
More women are playing padel than ever — and for good reason
Meet the Boulder dogs cast in this summer’s Colorado Shakespeare Festival
Gravel biking events are a hot commodity in Colorado this summer
Want to get off your phone? Learn blacksmithing or floral design at these Colorado classes and makerspaces.
Beyond Colorado
10 tree-house hotels in the U.S. for you to commune with nature in comfort
Subscribe to our weekly newsletter, In The Know, to get entertainment news sent straight to your inbox.
-
Virginia21 seconds ago15 things to know about the budget deal Virginia lawmakers just reached
-
Washington7 minutes agoSuspect arrested in deadly shooting of 15-year-old girl in Washington County
-
Wisconsin10 minutes agoMissing endangered 24-year-old in Wisconsin, search ongoing
-
West Virginia15 minutes agoNotebook: MCWS as good as advertised; West Virginia no overnight success story – WV MetroNews
-
Wyoming22 minutes agoWith high costs and access gaps, Wyoming’s elder care landscape is ‘in crisis’
-
Crypto25 minutes agoIran Moves to Close the Strait of Hormuz as Tensions Erupt Over Broken Ceasefire Deal
-
Finance30 minutes agoPersonal Finance: SpaceX IPO bends the rules | Chattanooga Times Free Press
-
Fitness37 minutes ago8News tries Pilates exercises for Fitness Friday
