This section summarizes existing physical conditions in the
24 Road Corridor study area, including land use, circulation, open
space, utilities and environmental conditions. Existing zoning and
patterns of property ownership are also discussed. This section includes
a general summary of development constraints and opportunities.
The 24 Road Corridor study area is located in western Grand
Junction, between I-70 on the north and U.S. 6/50 on the south. As
defined for this study, the corridor includes approximately 1,000
acres on the east and west sides of 24 Road between 23 Road and 24
1/2 Road.
Commercial development along Road 24 1/2
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(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
The predominant character and use of land within the study area
is agricultural. Much of this area remains in 40-acre parcels, typical
of development patterns in rural communities. Commercial land uses
are clustered near Mesa Mall and industrial uses are primarily located
adjacent to or near U.S. Highway 6/50.
The study area and adjacent environs were annexed into the City
in 1995 – one of the largest area annexations. The annexation
of this area provided the City with control of the development of
the western-most edge of the City as well as the area north of Mesa
Mall. The study area and environs are shown on Figure 1. Existing
land use is summarized in Table 10 and is illustrated in Figure 2.
Figure 2: Existing Land Use
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Table 10: 24 Road Corridor Existing Land Use
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Category
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Area (acres)
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Residential
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52.8
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Commercial
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9.57
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Industrial
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71.4
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Agricultural
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43.86
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Institutional
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26.7
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Undeveloped
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47.6
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Undeveloped/Agricultural
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651.27
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Public
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114.7
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Total
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1,018
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Source: BRW, Inc., and the City of Grand Junction Community
Development Department.
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Existing commercial development near Patterson Road
and 24 Road
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Leach Creek and undeveloped land east of 24 Road
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(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
(a) The 24 Road Corridor is bordered on the north and south by major
traffic routes in the Grand Junction area. Average daily trip volume
along Interstate 70, where motorists are passing through Grand Junction,
is approximately 7,000 ADT. Of the approximately 28,000 vehicles per
day using U.S. Highway 6/50, most of these trips are predominately
local in origin and generate the demand that has resulted in the commercial
uses that line the roadway. There are approximately 4,000 vehicles
per day using 24 Road between I-70 and Patterson Road. Patterson Road
connects Mesa Mall with downtown and the eastern quadrant of Grand
Junction and carries approximately 7,000 vehicles per day.
(b) The Colorado River and the Burlington Northern Railroad tracks run
parallel to and south of U.S. Highway 6/50. One of the two bridges
connecting Grand Junction with the residential development south of
the river aligns with 24 Road.
(c) The area displays a hierarchy of existing streets to serve transportation
regionally and within the area. The descending hierarchy of roads
within the study area, based upon traffic volumes, is:
(1) U.S. Highway 6/50 is the major east/west corridor carrying inner-city
and regional traffic.
(2) Patterson Road carries the majority of traffic from the Mall into
the City.
(3) I-70 serves mostly pass-through traffic.
(4) G Road provides east/west access within the City.
(5) 24 Road provides north/south access between Redlands, the Mall and
North Valley.
This data indicates that the highest traffic volumes are along
the east-west streets and highlights a dilemma faced by the City’s
transportation engineers. Travel patterns created by and reinforcing
the land use pattern place the greatest demand on the east-west street
network. However, there are few east-west streets that are continuous
across the City. F Road, which becomes Patterson Road east of 24 Road,
and G Road are both east-west streets and carry large volumes of traffic
through several residential neighborhoods. The impact upon the neighborhoods
limits the effective capacity of these roadways.
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(d) An important public policy consideration is whether incentives should
be created for motorists to use I-70 (which is significantly under-capacity)
to travel east-west and then use the arterial and collector street
network to travel north-south (e.g., 24 Road and other north-south
arterial streets). Such an incentive could justify the expansion of
24 Road. The problem is that neither regional nor local land use patterns
support that concept.
(e) The City is in the process of expanding 24 Road from two lanes to
three lanes, adding a center turn lane and median. The Steering Committee
and property owners would like to see 24 Road expanded to a five-lane
landscaped parkway. There are three constraints which restrict the
five-lane expansion:
(1) The City is receiving 80 percent of the funding for the three-lane
expansion from federal and State sources and funding is only available
to construct three lanes.
(2) The proximity of Leach Creek would require that all of the additional
rights-of-way for a five-lane roadway would be acquired from properties
on the west side of 24 Road. Several west side property owners have
already voiced their concern about such an approach. The relocation
of Leach Creek is a possibility, but estimates indicate that it may
be prohibitively expensive.
(3) Current and projected traffic volumes, based upon the proposed new
zoning designations implementing the Growth Plan, do not warrant five
lanes.
(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
The City of Grand Junction has constructed regional park improvements
in the 24 Road Corridor at the southeast corner of the I-70 interchange.
Canyon View Park, a 120-acre regional park that provides ball fields
and other recreational improvements, attracts users from throughout
Mesa County. Two branches of Leach Creek flow from the north toward
the Colorado River through the corridor. These include an open channel
tributary on the east side of 24 Road south of I-70 as well as the
main branch of Leach Creek which flows through the park to the west.
As a result, there are two outfalls on the north side of G Road. The
City is discussing the potential for using the Leach Creek drainage
alignment as a route for a trail to connect the regional park with
the extensive Colorado River trail system.
(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
The 24 Road Corridor is served by all major utilities, including
water, sanitary sewer, electric, natural gas, cable television, and
telephone. The City is currently involved in the process to upgrade
and replace water and sanitary sewer lines in the area.
(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
There are limited environmental constraints to use or development
land within the 24 Road Corridor. The land is gently sloped to the
southwest, toward the Colorado River. Flows in Leach Creek are minimal,
yet are increasing over time as runoff from development is added to
the drainage basin. The Corps of Engineers has identified vegetation
indicative of wetlands along Leach Creek, which may pose a constraint
to filling and/or relocating this drainage.
(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
The land uses proposed in the Growth Plan within the 24 Road
Corridor subarea are divided between approximately equal portions
of commercial and residential uses. Residential densities would not
exceed eight units per acre. Commercial and industrial uses would
likely consist of a mix of strip retail, big-box discount retailers,
and warehousing and distribution.
The vision and policies contained within the Growth Plan applicable
to the area are:
(a) To “encourage the conversion of heavy commercial and industrial
uses along 24 Road, Patterson Road and U.S. Highway 6/50 near Mesa
Mall to a mixture of retail/service commercial and multifamily uses.”
(Policy 8.6)
(b) To “support integrated commercial development using shared
access points along 24 Road, Patterson Road and U.S. Highway 6/50
in areas designated for commercial use.” (Policy 8.7)
(c) To “ensure that capital improvement and land use decisions
are consistent with the development of 24 Road as an arterial parkway
and community gateway.” (Policy 8.8)
Future land use in the Grand Junction Growth Plan is illustrated
in Figure 3.
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Figure 3: Future Land Use Map (from Grand Junction Growth
Plan)
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(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
Existing zoning in the area is comprised of several zoning districts
including:
(b) Highway Oriented (HO), which is primarily commercial uses.
(c) Industrial (I-1), light industrial uses.
(d) Residential Single-Family (RSR-F), not to exceed one dwelling unit
per five acres.
(e) Residential Single-Family (RSF-2), not to exceed two dwelling units
per acre.
(f) Planned Recreational Vehicle Resort (PRVR).
(g) Planned Residential (PR).
(h) Public Zone (PZ) (Canyon View Park).
The breakdown of the existing allocation of land area for each
zoning designation in the subarea is shown below in Table 11. Existing
zoning (September 1999) is shown in Figure 4.
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Table 11: Existing Zoning
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Category
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Approximate Area (acres)
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Commercial (C-2)
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164
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Highway Oriented (HO)
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417
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Industrial (I-1)
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48
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Residential Single-Family (RSR-F)
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161
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Residential Single-Family (RSF-2)
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9
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Planned Recreational Vehicle Resort (PRVR)
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76
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Planned Residential (PR)
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29
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Public Zone (PZ)
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115
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Total
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+/-1,018
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Source: BRW, Inc., and the City of Grand Junction Community
Development Department.
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As this table indicates, the predominate zoning classification
is commercial zoning districts, C-2 and HO, which comprise more than
50 percent of the zoned land area. The City is facing some difficulty
due to the fact that some of the property owners, under the proposed
new zone designations derived from the Growth Plan process, would
not be allowed the commercial uses they have today.
Figure 4: Existing Zoning
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(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
Property ownership patterns in the area reflect the existing
agricultural land use pattern of large farms. Where (relatively) new
development has occurred, the subdivision of property has resulted
in a significantly smaller lot pattern. Although the largest parcel
is almost 200 acres, the average parcel size is eight acres. Three
private property owners control 41 percent or 420 acres of land within
the study area. Publicly owned property, primarily Canyon View Park,
comprises approximately 115 acres, making the City the third-largest
land owner in the area.
(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)
The following summarizes the general constraints and opportunities for the project area, relative to physical conditions and considering the import of market and demographic factors as discussed in Section
2. (See Figure 5.)
(a) Retail Synergism.
Mesa Mall, the regional retail center
for Mesa County, will continue to offer a synergistic relationship
for additional retail users who will want to locate near the Mall,
as well as adjacent to U.S. Highway 6/50.
(b) Land Use Supply and Demand.
Based upon the market analysis,
there is a greater supply of land in all categories than demand exists
for the foreseeable future. Development will occur in a cyclical manner,
e.g., a significant amount of development may occur over the next
two years, but then no additional development may occur for the next
eight years until the supply of space is absorbed.
(c) Development Cycles.
It is likely that a fairly typical
cycle of development will occur in Grand Junction: leading with employment,
followed by single-family residential, commercial, and multifamily
residential.
(d) Population Trends.
According to the Growth Plan, since
1980, the population aged over 65 increased by over 30 percent, while
at the same time the population aged 15 to 29 decreased by 30 percent.
What this means is Grand Junction is a “graying” community.
The increase in seniors can be attributed to climate, quality of life,
health care facilities, and affordable housing. Therefore, recent
population growth in Grand Junction has more to do with these factors
than as a result of employment growth.
(e) Employment Trends.
According to the Growth Plan, the
top 10 employers in Grand Valley are either public employers or in
the health care sector. City Market is the only employer on the list
of major employers that does not fit into one of these two categories.
This trend is likely to continue in the future.
(f) Transportation Circulation Patterns.
The planned expansion
of 24 Road from two lanes to three lanes (adding a center turn lane
and median) will improve safety and increase capacity along the road
corridor. The City’s plans for a secondary street system connecting
to 24 Road is essential to properly serve the anticipated development.
Existing conditions along 24 Road, including Leach Creek
on the right
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(g) Infrastructure Availability.
Adequate infrastructure
is available to serve development in the corridor. Utilities are in
place and are being upgraded.
Leach Creek drainage structure near Canyon View Park
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(h) Environmental Conditions.
There are few environmental
constraints in the project area, other than Leach Creek and associated
wetlands, which may impact development.
Figure 5: Opportunities and Constraints Map
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(Res. 109-00 § 4, 11-1-00)