Charles Schwab Corp. is adding 500 jobs to its Colorado operations, an expansion that will be aided by as much as $1 million in cash incentives from the state.
After months of bleak figures showing job losses and faltering state revenues, a jubilant Gov. Bill Ritter and a bipartisan group of lawmakers gathered in the state Capitol on Thursday to make the announcement with Schwab officials.
“Days like this make up for a lot of days that are not so pleasant,” said Don Elliman, executive director of the Colorado Office of Economic Development.
Schwab officials said the jobs come with average salaries of $75,000. The information-technology jobs will be at a new facility the company is leasing in Douglas County.
The financial-services company currently employs about 1,300 people in Colorado.
Schwab is subleasing the new space from Aurora Loan Services, a local subsidiary of Lehman Brothers, which filed for bankruptcy in September.
Sam DePizzol, senior vice president at CB Richard Ellis, who represented Aurora Loan Services, said it was a tricky deal to get done.
He said Schwab executives told him they were wary of the outcome of Amendment 47, the “right to work” ballot measure that was rejected by voters in November, and four pro-union measures that some businesses viewed as harmful. A last-minute deal between labor and business led to the four pro-union measures being pulled from state ballots before the election.
“That just goes to show you the impact those amendments would have had,” DePizzol said.
Sherri Kroonenberg, senior vice president of Schwab Investor Services, said the news was especially gratifying because she is a native Coloradan.
“It’s particularly exciting when you see the growth and expansion in your own state,” Kroonenberg said.
The Denver Post reported in March that the San Francisco-based financial-services company was searching for additional office space to house 500 workers in the southeast suburban market.
The state will award the company up to $1 million from the Performance Incentives Fund, which rewards companies for retaining jobs or expanding in Colorado. Elliman said the award will be based on the salary level of the jobs.
“The exact amount (of the award) is not known yet,” he said. “It could hit seven figures.”
The incentives fund is financed with gambling revenues, he said.
Tim Hoover: 303-954-1626 or thoover@denverpost.com
