John Bristol, executive director of the Routt County Economic Development Partnership, gave a midyear update during public comment on July 1, telling the commissioners the partnershiphas supported local entrepreneurship and business retention in the first half of the year.

Bristol said the countybusiness incubator assisted 20 new startups so far this year, behind last yearnumbers (he said the partnership had 90 startups last year). He described an ongoing two-month High Country accelerator that meets weekly; the accelerator holds a public demo day next Tuesday at 4 p.m. at the library hall, Bristol said.

On business retention and expansion, Bristol said planners conducted 42 in-depth visits with established primary employers that together represent about 260 jobs, focusing on tax credits and business-support opportunities. He also noted a partnership with 4-H on youth entrepreneurship and participation by outdoor gear and food-and-beverage manufacturers at a recent Steamboat Granville event in Hayden.

Bristol thanked county officials for the ongoing partnership and invited commissioners and the public to demo day and to check the events page on the partnershipwebsite for more details. No formal county action resulted from his update; the remarks were recorded during the public-comment portion of the meeting.