TierPoint Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs's economy is heavily oriented around military and federal infrastructure: NORAD, Cheyenne Mountain, the Air Force Academy, US Space Command headquarters, and Schriever and Peterson Space Force Bases. Defense contractors (Lockheed, L3Harris, Boeing) round out the federal cluster, with smaller positions in cyber and aerospace startups. Data centers serve those federal and contractor tenants — two tracked facilities and roughly 280 NAICS 518 jobs (estimated).

The trades pool is small at 1,290 electricians ($59,210 median) and 950 HVAC technicians at $61,460 — HVAC ahead of electricians, an unusual reversal driven by the high-altitude HVAC complexity and the cold-weather heating load. The 2,210 security officer pool earns $42,670, well above national, reflecting the federal cleared-security premium pervasive in the metro. IT manager pay at $192,400 is extraordinary for a small metro and reflects defense contractor pay scales.

For a trades worker, Colorado Springs is the highest-leverage cleared-trades market on the list relative to its size. Best fit for HVAC technicians, security officers, and IT staff willing to pursue federal clearance. The military adjacency multiplies opportunities beyond the small pure data center footprint.