Business

The town of Bow Mar again is working with the owners of Southwest Plaza on a possible deal to annex the mall.

General Growth Properties, owner of Southwest Plaza, and Bow Mar first approached the county commissioners in June about a possible “flagpole” annexation that would have taken place late last year. But General Growth Properties decided to delay the annexation to give the town more time to analyze the ramifications.

A request for an interview was not returned by General Growth Properties by press time.

Jefferson County is thriving in terms of its economic vitality, said Doug Bene, executive vice president of the Jeffco Economic Development Corp.

In 2014, 2,213 jobs were retained and created in Jeffco, and new capital investments totaled $488 million, he said during a recent presentation to the Jeffco Open Space Advisory Committee. Other good news is that the unemployment rate in Jeffco has dropped to 4.4 percent.

Jefferson County has given initial approval to $16.7 million in tax rebates for Lockheed Martin Space Systems for its plan to add hundreds of high-paying jobs at its Waterton Canyon facility.

Lockheed Martin, the largest private employer in the county, is planning a $336 million expansion at the South Jeffco plant. About 350 positions will transfer, or already have moved, to South Jeffco from other Lockheed Martin facilities, and another 500 new jobs will be created. The Waterton Canyon facility currently has about 4,100 employees.

By Cat Elsby, For the Courier

Since opening in 1875, Murray’s Shoes has walked the talk: Treat customers like family and take care of their feet. And with fourth- and fifth-generation Murrays running the Littleton store, the soul of the Murray legacy continues.

Murray’s Shoes originally opened in Illinois and bounced around between cities and family members. Then, in 1983, Jim Murray brought the store to Colorado.