What can any of us do to fill the vacant store fronts?

Commercial business require government services, just like individuals. Why should individuals subsidize the cost of a business by providing it free services? Those costs should be built into the cost of the goods and services of the business, not subsidized by the individual taxpayer.

I wasn't suggesting any free services for commercial properties. I think it is the opposite and ask why should individuals that take the risk to provide services on commercial property subsidize the cost of other individuals private property taxes?
The way it is now a $250,000.00 dollar private property pays about three times less in property taxes than a similar valued commercial property. Is the services that the government must provide three times more for a business than a private property? Plus more businesses in the pool of property taxpayers provide additional revenue income for the government from the collection of sales tax and income taxes on it's employees, where as private property taxpayers provide no additional revenue.

We have all we need up here and all our "business demands" are being met.....Or else we'd have more businesses

So why the urge to grow? I don't want to live in Aurora and i'm so glad not much has changed here in the last 20 years...You sound like a bunch of busy bodies who somehow think helping business in honorable. Business takes care of itself just fine in America, try helping people

Something the Dog Said wrote: Commercial business require government services, just like individuals. Why should individuals subsidize the cost of a business by providing it free services? Those costs should be built into the cost of the goods and services of the business, not subsidized by the individual taxpayer.

Excellent StDS

You're really evolving

Freezeman wrote: IMO commercial property taxes verses residential property taxes are not in balance to create more people willing to risk what it takes to open and operate a business that requires commercial space. Just imagine how many new businesses and new jobs for local residents would open if an owner of a business didn't have the tax cost of being in business as one of their main operating expenses.
It looks to be back wards to me and seems to be accepted that we instead penalize all businesses for trying to provide services and jobs for residents. I have been self employed for 30 years and would like to open a business but the last thing I wont to do is to start a job of working to make tax payments that never get paid off and are always increased.

The issue is complex- most businesses rent space so the property taxes are built into the lease. If the county were to offer a "tax holiday" to businesses- both the existing and new start-ups, it could keep those in business from going under next year, and promote the number of new businesses that try to make a go of it.

The fact is that Aspen Park & Conifer are over built with commercial space for the current economic conditions of the area. Evergreen's area has the same issues- with empty spaces in the Bergen Park King soopers space, The entire Albertsons center sits empty, and many spaces downtown empty.

Just in the last 2 weeks we lost keys on the green and El Rancho- probably others too.

Rumors I have heard is that 2 businesses were trying to get into the Albertsons space and faced nothing but roadblock after roadblock with the Jeffco building Dept. Both proposals were withdrawn because of county restrictions and red tape.

If the Chamber of Commerce wants to do somthing to help- lobby for our building department to stop it's harassment of new business- anyone who has been through this process knows that there are dozens of things that our local government could do to make things less burdensome for a new business to get going. Everything from building codes to fire codes- to use restrictions. It's a bureaucracy that has grown for the last 25 years- and is now too big for it's own good. They still operate down there the same way they did in 2007, when we had a good economy, and the only thing that has changed is that they have added more restrictions and codes to be in compliance with since then.

I would like to start a business up here or buy out an existing business, one business that I looked at this last year seemed good up front- an existing business with existing customers for 30 years+. After I ran the numbers, I didn't think with all the expenses - that I could even meet payroll.

I was chatting with the owner of a well established chinese restaurant in Evergreen last night while I was waiting for my take-out order. We had an interesting chat about this issue - and I quote...

"Every body say business down. Everybody say so. By time we pay rent and buy food- money is gone. Day time is very slow- only 10 to 15 ticket, very bad. Night time a little better"

So you see unless we do somthing to lessen the burden that a business has to bear, not only will we see very few new business, the ones we have - even the well established ones will disappear.

Unless groups like the chamber of commerce start to put pressure on the county- things will not improve, and even the owners of these commercial spaces will go belly up as we have seen in Aspen Park safeway center.

Barring any changes- we are in for more of the same. Maybe we can start a topless strip club & bar for the girls graduating from high school, or get a bunch of Pot stores going- that's the only thing that makes enough profit to over come the overhead a business has to face up here these days.

A topless bar/breakfast burrito/pot store/truck stop. I know that will work!

So, in your opinion, since the property owners were sloppy with their market research and are charging greater lease rates than the market will bear, the taxpayer should bail them out? I don't think so.

Freezeman wrote: IMO commercial property taxes verses residential property taxes are not in balance to create more people willing to risk what it takes to open and operate a business that requires commercial space. Just imagine how many new businesses and new jobs for local residents would open if an owner of a business didn't have the tax cost of being in business as one of their main operating expenses.
It looks to be back wards to me and seems to be accepted that we instead penalize all businesses for trying to provide services and jobs for residents. I have been self employed for 30 years and would like to open a business but the last thing I wont to do is to start a job of working to make tax payments that never get paid off and are always increased.

Tyranny of the majority? More citizens vote than business owners and Colorado has chosen to have businesses subsidize private homeowners.

The Gallagher amendment back in 1982 set the formula for property taxes at 45/55 residential/commercial split, with commercial property valuation set at 29% with the residential allowed to flux to maintain that split. With increasing residential prices, the residential assessment went from 21% to 7.95%. This was done by constitutional amendment, so it may not be altered by the legislature. The only way to change this is by a vote of the voters in Colorado. Don't think too many will be excited to vote a tax increase on their personal residential property in order to lower it on commercial property.

So you can whine about it, but that won't change a thing.

Something the Dog Said wrote: So, in your opinion, since the property owners were sloppy with their market research and are charging greater lease rates than the market will bear, the taxpayer should bail them out? I don't think so.

These brain dead drones have no problem with Corporate Walfare....But don't you dare try to give a poor single mother some milk for her baby

Thats communism

Something the Dog Said wrote: So, in your opinion, since the property owners were sloppy with their market research and are charging greater lease rates than the market will bear, the taxpayer should bail them out? I don't think so.

I'm not asking for the taxpayer to bail out business- I'm asking for the local government to give them a tax holiday period- maybe a year or two. And to back off on all the requirements they pile on a new start up. This would mean that the government would have to get by on less, lord knows the residential taxpayer can not bear any more taxes than what are already coming their way, hell they can't even afford a bowl of chow mein for lunch these days.

The government can do this now- and help keep our exiting businesses and promote new ones- or they can wait a few more years and be forced to cut back due to lack of tax revenue. Now is the time to try before we lose more mom and pop businesses up here.

But maybe you think that's not a good idea- so tell me what you would do to help?
What's your bright idea?

I suppose you would just keep things as they are and watch the revenue disappear, one business at a time.

Then I'll be looking for investors on that strip club/breakfast burrito/pot store/truck stop, free lap dances for all my investors. We may need to include a bail bond/pawn shop in order to cover Obamacare though- I forgot to calculate that in the costs.