Gov. Jared Polis used his annual meeting with Colorado business leaders on Wednesday to take stock of his time in office, highlighting the state’s pandemic response, ongoing challenges facing downtown economies, and what he described as continued efforts to balance a strong business climate with affordability concerns.

Polis was joined by leaders of some of the largest businesses in Colorado and the country, including Molson Coors and Verizon, as well as directors of state agencies like the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade nd the Division of Regulatory Affairs.

When asked about lessons he’d learned from the pandemic, Polis noted that the state had one of the shortest shutdowns and one of the lowest death rates in the nation, and the tourism industry remained relatively stable due to the number of outdoor activities available to visitors.

However, the business community has continued to take a hit in the aftermath of the pandemic, particularly in urban areas, as cities deal with rising commercial vacancy rates stemming from companies implementing work-from-home policies, which also affect downtown businesses like restaurants and convenience stores.

Polis also discussed his “Disagree Better” initiative with Utah’s Republican Gov. Spencer Cox. According to the National Governors Association the initiative was created to “look at the problems of polarization, elevate the solutions that groups around the country are already implementing, and feature Governors showing what disagreeing better looks like.”

Nobody agrees on everything, Polis said, and that’s a good thing.

“But there are constructive ways to disagree— it starts with listening to where the person’s coming from,” he said. “Too often in today’s politics, we see unhealthy ways to disagree — attacking or denigrating somebody who you might disagree with personally.”

Polis also spoke about a recent U.S. News & World Report ranking that placed Colorado’s business environment fourth in the nation.

Colorado tends to score high on many lists, Polis said, from property and income tax rates to the regulatory environment, but affordability has long been a weak point.

“Generally, states with better business environments do have higher costs because there’s more jobs because people want to live there,” he argued. “Lower-cost areas are generally less prosperous and less successful areas with higher unemployment rates.”

However, Polis said his administration has worked with the General Assembly throughout his tenure to make life in Colorado more affordable by reducing barriers to affordable housing and increasing opportunities for Coloradans to obtain higher-paying jobs.

“Now people can build accessory dwelling units, there’s multi-family zoning in many parts of our cities… so this effort continues to try to allow supply to keep up with demand and to make Colorado more affordable,” he said.

While the state currently has about 1.5 job openings for each unemployed person, there’s a “skill mismatch,” Polis said.

“People that are unemployed don’t necessarily have the skills of the jobs that are being posted today, so we have to upskill people of all ages,” he said.

Last year, Polis issued an Executive Order directing state agencies to analyze the state’s post-secondary talent system and develop recommendations for improvements.

A report based on that analysis was released last month and includes several recommendations, including streamlining higher education and workforce development services under a single state department to serve students, job seekers and employers.