With the city of Grand Junction set to receive $11.7 million through the American Rescue Plan Act, a City Council member is proposing community input to help prioritize where that money is spent.
Council Member Rick Taggart said at Wednesdayâs City Council meeting that he would like the city to form a committee that includes community members and people that represent interest groups from economic development to parks and recreation.
âIâd like to deviate significantly from our normal approach,â Taggart said. âI would very much like to see us put a committee together of folks from the economic development side, folks from the homeless side, nonprofits, public safety.â
The Grand Junction City Council discussed an implementation matrix to help it prioritize projects identified in the One Grand Junction Comprehensive Plan at its Monday workshop.
The comprehensive plan calls for the city to develop the matrix to prioritize short- to long-term projects and strategies for implementing the plan.
Council Member Phyllis Norris, whose term on the council will soon end, said she felt the incoming council should have a say in the matrix.
Norris noted that the council, which will be elected on April 6, will also be developing the cityâs strategic plan for the next two years, which may draw on the implementation matrix. Council Member Chuck McDaniel said he agreed with Norris and said the strategic planning process is a good way for new Council members to learn about the issues facing the city.
Just off Patterson Road there is a collection of undeveloped fields and a few informal trails that, if developed, would be the largest city park in Grand Junction.
Matchett Park, which had been the proposed site for a community center, sports fields, bike trails and a community pavilion before being voted down in 2019, has sat undeveloped since the city purchased it in 1996. Since then, the city has developed two large parks â Canyon View and Long Family Memorial Park â but, in the time since, demand for sports fields and outdoor shelters has more than doubled.
While a community center was identified as the top priority for Grand Junction residents in the recent Parks, Recreation and Open Space (PROS) Master Plan, there was interest in developing Matchett Park specifically. That interest extended to amenities a developed park would provide, such as multipurpose fields and trails.
The Grand Junction City Council discussed recommendations at its Monday work session from the Planning Commission on how to regulate marijuana businesses in the city.
Voters will decide if they will allow marijuana businesses to operate in the city in the April election.
However, City Manager Greg Caton said the city was trying to provide voters with a potential framework for how those businesses would be regulated if they are allowed.
âIâm sure council can appreciate weâre creating a framework or an outline of what our community members might anticipate where we could potentially head with this if it is approved by the voters, but yet how much detail do we do before the voters see it,â Caton said. âSo thatâs the balance weâre trying to strike.â
The Grand Junction City Council discussed recommendations at its Monday work session from the Planning Commission on how to regulate marijuana businesses in the city.
Voters will decide if they will allow marijuana businesses to operate in the city in the April election.
However, City Manager Greg Caton said the city was trying to provide voters with a potential framework for how those businesses would be regulated if they are allowed.
âIâm sure council can appreciate weâre creating a framework or an outline of what our community members might anticipate where we could potentially head with this if it is approved by the voters, but yet how much detail do we do before the voters see it,â Caton said. âSo thatâs the balance weâre trying to strike.â