Remarkable.

AuthorRundles, Jeff
PositionRUNDLES [wrap-up] - Viewpoint essay

Over the years many newspaper articles have touted the "net migration" of people into Colorado, and they always include comment from economic development types that this proves "how attractive Colorado can be to recruit new workers." This is always hogwash, but I guess it makes for a good story.

The latest came out in January, using statistics from Allied Van Lines that purported that Colorado was second only to Texas as a relocation destination. The moving company said 2,190 new households arrived in Colorado in 2010, while 1,786 departed, leaving a net gain of 404 families. What a shocker. King Soopers should build another supermarket. The Broncos and the Rockies better expand their stadiums. Gov. Hickenlooper should hire a new pollster. Is Welcome Wagon hiring?

That this is a non-story is axiomatic. It also shows the sorry state of journalism -get a press release, trot out unemployment statistics, get quotes from the requisite chamber types; half-hour tops, depending on phone availability. It begs for more information.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

First, it's just Allied, so presumably there was more migration in and out involving other van lines, U-Haul, and just people who packed up and moved without professional assistance. Second, it says nothing about why people came here other than Colorado's attractiveness. The more interesting number is not the net gain, but the fact that nearly 4,000 families were on the move.

I remember a similar story nearly 20 years ago when the statistics were more stunning. In the early 1990s, an in-migration article said some 100,000 people came to Colorado, while about 90,000 left, leaving a net of 10,000 or so new Coloradans. I wrote about that back then because I also felt that the overall movement - 190,000 people - was more interesting than the net gain.

What's on my mind now are the reasons and what we can do to foster a better Colorado. A ton of families left the state. Why? Where did they go? What jobs did they leave and why? What jobs are they going to and why? A ton of people came here. For what, specifically? Those who left were attracted to somewhere else and repelled by Colorado. Why? What could we do to lessen the departures and increase the arrivals?

Now that would be a good story. Economic...

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