- An Alliance For Community Action
- (970) 256-7650
- info@WesternColoradoAlliance.org
When Mesa County’s Alliance fought for the GJ riverfront
Western Colorado Alliance of Mesa County spent over a decade working to ensure Grand Junction’s Colorado Riverfront be quiet, clean, and unpolluted.
When entities could not provide monies to secure property on the riverfront that was for sale, an industrial company that had the available funding bought it. The property was nearly all surrounded by parkland. Eagle Rim Park is across the river to the south, with Las Colonias Park and other park land adjacent.
Former Alliance Board Vice President Penny Heuscher joined with members of Western Colorado Alliance of Mesa County, including Janet Magoon, a school teacher and resident of Orchard Mesa with a clear view from her home of the Las Colonias site. Augmented by resources provided by Western Organization of Resource Councils, they built a formidable community group aimed at keeping industrial zoning off the riverfront.
Their road was uphill and winding and included many challenges — but ultimately, they were able to obtain mixed use zoning (retail and multi family) which ensured a more desirable way to develop this wonderful riverfront property. In 2019, the Grand Junction City Council granted a request by a new owner to affirm the zoning for mixed use.
Many, many people contributed to this effort, but Heuscher, Magoon, Harry Griff, Bennett Boeschenstein, and Candi Clark displayed special fortitude and perseverance to secure sensible land use policies and zoning for the Colorado Riverfront in Grand Junction. Many Alliance members (including Enno Heuscher and Claudette Konola) collected signatures enthusiastically, and the effort was buoyed by help and good wishes from people outside of Grand Junction.
The Riverfront Commission also deserves credit for their vision of a riverfront trail and greenway along our rivers.
Arn's career includes more than 35 years of experience in broadcast media, online advertising and branding in both Western Colorado and New York City. He is a four-time Colorado Broadcast Award winner and has also won multiple Colorado Press Association Awards. Arn also teaches Film Expression at the college level. He lives with a dramatic pit bull and a grandiose cat and enjoys painting, animating, and exploring cinema in his spare time.