Greeley Registers Positive Economic Numbers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

GREELEY REGISTERS POSITIVE ECONOMIC NUMBERS

Date: November 14, 2006

Contact: Larry Burkhardt

(970) 356-4565

Third quarter Cost of Living Index numbers released this week by ACCRA The Council for Community and Economic Research show Greeley's cost of living as below the national average, registering a composite index number of 95.3, with 100 being the benchmark average.

Specifically, Greeley's numbers were lower in the areas of groceries, housing, transportation and miscellaneous goods and services. Utility and health care costs were slightly above the national average.

This positive cost of living news comes on the heels of a report issued earlier this month by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, documenting strong employment and wage growth in Weld County. The report showed a first quarter employment increase of 4%, compared to 2.2% nationally. Weld County's wage growth also out-performed the nation's; rising 10.7% locally, compared to the national average of 8.1%.