Resources
City of Cortez Community and Economic Development
The City of Cortez has its own Economic Development Director who is here to assist you with your business needs. Contact us at (970) 564 - 4046. We understand the important role existing businesses play in our community and we understand that growing, relocating, and new businesses sometimes need assistance. Our goal is to help you make the right choice for your business. Below are links to landing pages dedicated to various business topics, as well as local, state, and national resources.
Cortez Retail Enhancement: https://shopcortez.com/
Assists business with a City of Cortez Sales Tax License, or that build sales tax revenue in the City of Cortez.
Southwest Colorado Small Business Development Center: https://sbdc.colorado.gov/southwest
Assists business in the State of Colorado through workshops, one-on-one advising sessions, and online resources.
Region 9 Economic Development District: https://www.region9edd.org/
Colorado non-profit community economic development corporation that promotes and coordinates economic development efforts throughout Southwest Colorado. They offer a Revolving loan program or "gap" financing to assist small business retention, expansion and job creation and a Micro-enterprise loan program for loans up to $100,000 for qualifying small businesses with five or fewer employees. In addition to loan programs, Region 9 EDD administers the Colorado Enterprise Zone Tax Credit program, has community data dashboards, and helps to administer different State and Federal programs.
Region 9 Property Viewer: https://www.region9edd.org/commercial-real-estate
This real estate search tool can help you find commercial properties for sale or lease.
Southwest Colorado Accelerator Program for Entrepreneurs: https://www.goscape.org/
Organization helping businesses to scale high growth and create jobs in southwest Colorado. SCAPE provides resources, mentoring and access to funding.
Mesa Verde Country: https://mesaverdecountry.com/
Destination Management Organization for Montezuma & Dolores Counties. Assists tourism related businesses and markets the area to potential visitors.
Montezuma County Planning & Zoning: https://montezumacounty.org/planning-zoning/
Incentives include waiving or reducing high impact driveway permits or fees. Montezuma County does not assess a sales tax at this time. Areas of priority include manufacturing, warehousing, or value-added agriculture.
Project Rural Upskill Network (RUN): https://projectrunco.work/
A workforce collaboration providing classes and other trainings to upskill the regional workforce.
Cortez Chamber of Commerce: https://www.cortezchamber.com/
Membership organization to assist business development and networking.
US Small Business Administration: https://www.sba.gov/
Federal agency dedicated to small business and provides counseling, capital, and contracting expertise. Partners with lending agencies to provide lower-interested loans for businesses.
Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade (OEDIt): https://choosecolorado.com/
State of Colorado Office dedicated to serving businesses statewide. Divisions within OEDIT include:
- Colorado Creative Industries
- Outdoor Recreation Industry Office
- Office of Film, Television and Media
- Colorado Tourism Office
- Rural Opportunity Office
- Minority Business Office
- Cannabis Business Office
- SBDC Network
- Colorado Employee Ownership Office
- Business Funding & Incentives which include the Colorado Startup Loan Fund and Enterprise Zone Program
Colorado Agritourism Association: https://www.coloradoagritourismassociation.org/
Membership based association dedicated to supporting Colorado growers & producers interested in learning about and engaging with the agritourism market.
Manufacturer's Edge: https://manufacturersedge.com/
Official Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Center for Colorado dedicated to assisting manufacturers with various business operations, funding, and technical assistance.