April 24, 2014 Jefferson County, Colorado | Volume 9, Issue 47 A publication of
arvadapress.com
More jobs forecasted EDC eyes workforce in county By Amy Woodward
awoodward@ coloradocommunitymedia.com Jefferson County Economic Development Corporation is pushing ahead with its Forward Jeffco program, with 558 new jobs anticipated so far during the next five years for the county, the EDC reports. A first quarter report, revealed to the board of county commissioners during staff briefings last week, measured the EDC’s Forward Jeffco initiative for the first time — a program that intends to add 7,500 jobs to the county in five years. The 558 job prospects are due in part to the attractions of a few out of state engineering companies and expansions of bioscience companies like Sorin Group USA and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin. Lockheed’s national consolidation of operations is expected to bring 300 plus jobs that includes job relocations for current employees who may be moving to the area from places like Pennsylvania and Arizona. Hamon Deltak, a mechanical engineering firm from Minnesota who opened a second office in Jeffco, will attract 120 jobs to the county over the next five years. “This is the most relocation activity we’ve had out of our office in a very long time,” said Michelle Claymore, vice president of EDC. “We’ve had a really, really good first quarter.” An economic report drafted by the EDC showed a tight industrial real estate market with a 1.90 percent vacancy rate for industrial warehouses. This offers a competitive market for companies moving out of Denver and into the burbs as pot growers and merchants begin to encroach on existing spaces, Claymore said. “For industrial, everyone wants to be here,” she said. “We just have a really slow office market.” Claymore reported that a lot of companies are heading to downtown Denver and taking the younger work force with them, known as the millennial generation. The report read that millennials are looking for public transit, walkability, sporting events and inclusive environments. Citing Brookings Institution in their report, an independent research organization, Denver has become the No. 1 spot for millennials to work and live. Claymore stated the migration to Denver is part of a cyclical trend that will see businesses and millennials moving back to the burbs. “I think that’s something we really need to look at,” said Commissioner Casey Tighe. “Arvada’s light rail station is probably the most ready-made location of all light rail’s we’ve had so it will be really interesting to see when Arvada’s opens if a lot of millennials attract to an urban setting that’s outside of downtown.” According to the EDC, Jeffco’s age distribution is 43 percent over the age of 45. “We are the oldest county from an age standpoint and it seems like a lot of what’s happening is we cater to the older population, more and more urban renewals that have senior apartment complexes but we keep talking about wanting to be young,” said Ralph Schell, county administrator. While the county will continue to work toward capturing a younger workforce, Claymore suggested that redeveloping old office spaces while making room for new ones is one way to attract more companies and people as less modern spaces contribute to the downtown migration.
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the sacrifice he Made
Honoring past services in the present Arvada man honored with POW medal By Crystal Anderson
canderson@ coloradocommunitymedia.com
Frank Dechant wipes away tears as his wife, Mary Edith, talks about his life after his experience in the war.
Above, a photograph of a young Dechant hangs next to a display case of his numerous military medals and honorable distinctions. At right, World War II veteran, Frank Dechant, thanks those who gathered, honoring him with his POW medal, Monday, April 14. Photos by Crystal Anderson
After five days in the midst of a devastating battle, Frank Dechant, among other members of his unit, were captured by Nazi soldiers, and faced with seemingly indefinite imprisonment. Seventy years later, family and friends gathered to recognize Dechant, now 91, and honor him with the United States Prisoner of War Medal, for the time spent interred as a German prisoner following the Battle of the Bulge in 1944. “It feels like it did yesterday, no different, just that I see a lot of my old friends and people and relatives,” said Dechant following the award ceremony. “It’s just hard to believe that this all happened.” Dechant was drafted into the Army in 1943 as a member of the Army Ground Forces Replacement Depot No. 2, a unit which provided assistance and reinforcements to units on the battlefield. Deployed in Oct. 1944, Dechant was serving in Belgium at the start of the battle, where he among his fellow troops were separated from the U.S. lines, captured and transported to Stalag VIII-A, a German prisoner of war camp. “This means a lot,” said Robert Robles, a friend of Dechant’s. “All these service men should be recognized for their actions. What he went through — it’s unbelievable he survived.” One of 1,800 American prisoners from the Battle of the Bulge, Dechant was held prisoner until the week of April 20, 1945, when American soldiers liberated the camp and those imprisoned. “Not to have experienced it myself, it’s hard to understand the hardships and conflicts that they went through as soldiers in our country,” said Richard Dechant, one of Frank’s four sons. “For them (the World War II soldiers) it was a natural thing to do, but he still goes through that and has been carrying it [the experiences] over the last 70 years.” Following his internment, Dechant was airlifted to the United States where he finished his service and obtained a job at Golden Motors Ford in 1946. He worked there as a mechanic, salesman, and manager until the company was sold in 1996. Since the war Frank married Mary Edith Dechant, raised four sons, each with families of their own, and has created a legacy extending to family and friends in Colorado and across state borders. “Sometimes we don’t recognize veterans enough, for their service and what they’ve done for us, and when you hear the stories — and he doesn’t tell them very often, but when he does — you realize the real sacrifice they went through,” said Julie Dechant, Frank’s daughter-in-law. With his family gathered around, waiting for him, Frank, who was dressed in his burgundy ex-prisoner of war hat and vest, was rolled in his wheelchair into Congressman Ed Perlmutter’s conference room, Monday, April 14. As tears streamed down Frank’s face, Congressman Perlmutter and Frank’s nephew, Lt. Col. Jerry Sticklein, pinned the American Prisoner of War Medal onto his vest, honoring him for the sacrifice he made.