PICKLEBALL FUN NEVER STOPS!

No matter the weather, pickleball players in the Grand Valley can play indoors seven days a week! Beginning November 18 and running through mid-March, the lights will be on and courts full at the Lincoln Park Barn. Located at 12th Street and North Avenue, the Lincoln Park Barn has three pickleball courts with times for play in the mornings and evenings, including weekends.

There are two options to pay for play. A 10-punch pass may be purchased at the Grand Junction Parks and Recreation Office for $45, or drop in rates are available for $6.00 per person. Times are scheduled in three hour blocks, but are subject to change based on availability. For the most current schedule, visit bit.ly/gjprpickleball.

Many players describe Pickleball as addicting and love the camaraderie and exercise the sport provides. “Pickleball has experienced exponential growth in the last five years,” says Recreation Coordinator, Lorie Gregor. “We have added clinics, tournaments, and indoor play to our schedule.”

The City also has outdoor Pickleball courts at Pineridge in the Ridges and at Lincoln Park. All courts are free and open to the public. The best way to stay informed about all things Pickleball is to sign up for the Grand Junction Parks and Recreation Pickleball Newsletter by visiting bit.ly/gjprpickleballnews.

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For more information, please contact:
Primary: Lorie Gregor, Recreation Coordinator   970-254-3876 or lorieg@gjcity.org
Secondary: Callie Berkson, Marketing   505-217-6435 or callieb@gjcity.org

The City of Grand Junction Parks and Recreation Cemetery staff and community volunteers are planning for a busy Veterans weekend as they begin to prepare to honor local Veterans on November 11.

The Cemetery staff, volunteers and community members will be showing appreciation for Veterans in multiple ways throughout the weekend. Flags, donated by volunteers and City Cemeteries, will be placed on every Memorial Stone in the Veterans Section of Orchard Mesa Cemetery on Saturday, November 9, beginning at 9:00 a.m. The flags will remain in place until Tuesday, November 12. This effort is being organized by Ron Schaefer and SJ Christ, both of whom have previously served in the United States Armed Forces.

Along with the flags, two new benches will also be placed in the Veterans sections of the Cemetery on Friday, November 9. These are being donated by Mike and Cindy Shults, Mountain Air Roasters, and Snyder Grand Valley Memorials.

In addition to City and community volunteer efforts, the Grand Junction Area Realtors Association will be creating a “Boulevard of Honor” for Veterans interred in all sections of the cemetery. Flags will be placed on the split rail fencing boarding roadways throughout the cemetery and will remain up throughout the weekend.

“It is truly humbling to see over 1,500 flags adorning the Veterans Stones after the volunteers are finished,” said Mike Vendenga, City Cemetery Supervisor. “The passion these people have to honor our Veterans is remarkable.”

The City of Grand Junction Parks and Recreation Department is proud to be part of these efforts and want to extend our sincerest thanks to all those who have served our great nation.

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For more information, contact:
Primary: Mike Vendenga, Cemetery Supervisor   970-254-1550 or mikeven@gjcity.org
Secondary: Callie Berkson, Marketing   970-254-3867 or callieb@gjcity.org

The City of Grand Junction is holding a public meeting on November 12 from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the Broadway Elementary School cafeteria, 2248 Broadway. This meeting will discuss artistic concepts for the Redlands Parkway Roundabout.

It was determined by the National Transportation and Safety Board that the intersection of Hwy340 and Redlands Parkway was a dangerous intersection. Colorado Department of Transportation was given funding by the NTSB to build a roundabout at that location. The funding was for the construction of the roundabout only. The City of Grand Junction is interested in beautifying this roundabout and is looking to the public for input.

The purpose of this meeting is to gather feedback from the community about which direction the majority is interested in pursuing for public art. The City of Grand Junction Commission on Arts and Culture has vetted nine categories of art that will be up for discussion. These categories include: Kinetic Sculptures, Historical Representations, Abstract Art, Local Animals, Community, Local Landscape, Outdoor Recreation, Local Flora, and Other. If the community has other ideas they’d like to put forth, they will be welcomed at this meeting.

Once a category has been chosen, concepts will be explored by the Art Commission. Funding options for this project have not yet been determined, and may include but are not limited to a fundraising endeavor.

The City of Grand Junction and the Grand Junction Commission on Arts and Culture are dedicated to maintaining and improving public art in our community. “We are looking forward to the public process to help us define what the community would like to see in this highly visible location,” said Lorie Gregor, Staff Liaison to the Art Commission.

We encourage the community to come out, make your voices heard, and participate in the initial phase of this project.

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For more information, please contact:
Primary: Lorie Gregor, Staff Liaison/Art Commission   970-254-3876 or lorieg@gjcity.org
Secondary: Callie Berkson, Marketing   970-254-3867 or callieb@gjcity.org

A weekend of Halloween havoc is scheduled for Canyon View Park this upcoming Saturday and Sunday, October 26 and 27.

As winter quickly approaches, Grand Junction Parks and Recreation’s Adult Softball League is winding down. And each year, the department teams up with Boston’s Restaurant and Sports Bar to close out the season with our Annual Boston’s Halloween Softball Tournament.

After more than a decade of holding the tournament, over 40 teams and their Halloween garb are expected to take the diamond this weekend. Teams will compete in a two game format and prizes will be awarded to the winners of each bracket. And while players always come out with their game faces on, this tournament boasts more than just friendly competition.

“The Boston’s Halloween Tournament happens at the end of every softball season, so it’s a great way for teams to wrap up, but with a whole lot of added fun,” said Recreation Coordinator, Shon Birch. “And what better way to finish up the season? Teams get to dress up like they did as kids, and come out on the diamond to experience a sport they have been playing since their youth, in an entirely different and fun environment.”

The Adult Softball League is Grand Junction Parks and Recreation’s biggest adult sports league. Each year the playing field grows, and the Fall season of 2019 brought 56 teams and over 600 players to bat at the diamond.

The Men’s and Women’s divisions will play on Saturday, October 26 and the Coed division will take place Sunday, October 27. Community participation, support and enthusiasm is always welcome at these sporting events. The department is looking forward to a howling good time as we close out this year’s season!

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For more information, contact:
Primary: Shon Birch, Recreation Coordinator   970-254-3864  or  shonb@gjcity.org
Secondary: Callie Berkson, Marketing   970-254-3867  or  callieb@gjcity.org

The City of Grand Junction Cemetery’s Veterans Section was the proud host of a Memorial Stone Cleaning Project on Saturday, October 12.

It is common for the White Marble Veterans Memorial Stones to become stained, dirty, and difficult to read over time.

“The project came to life when Mike Shults, the Colorado State Coordinator of the Missing in America Project approached the Cemetery Operations staff with the thought of cleaning the head stones in the Veterans section,” said Cemetery Supervisor, Mike Vendegna. “Shults has stated that many of the stones are for WW1 and WW11 Veterans and are in a significantly declining condition. Cleaning the stones would help revitalize the Marble and provide honor and respect to those who have served this country. It would also mean a great deal to the families and loved ones of those who have passed.”

Cleaning of the memorial stones took place in the East Veterans section of the cemetery this past weekend. The cleaning process included applying a widely used environmentally safe cleaner, developed specifically for cleaning memorial stones. Each stone was coated with cleaner using spray bottles and was then hand scrubbed, rinsed, and another coating of cleaner was applied.

The project was sponsored by the Missing in America Project organization and headed by Mike Shults, the Colorado State Coordinator. With partners from Snyder-Grand Valley Memorials, the City of Grand Junction Cemetery Staff, and over 30 community members, volunteers and staff worked diligently with cleaning efforts until the entire east section was completed. The results of their efforts was 452 total memorial stones cleaned.

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For more information, please contact:
Primary: Mike Vendegna   970-254-1550   mikeven@gjcity.org
Secondary: Callie Berkson, Marketing   970-254-3867   callieb@gjcity.org

Grand Junction Parks and Recreation is gearing up for another busy Fall Youth Basketball season, which is set to begin October 19th. This Recreation Basketball league focuses on basic fundamentals, sportsmanship, and teamwork.

Youth basketball is offered every fall for girls 2nd – 6th grade, which runs simultaneously alongside our 1st grade co-ed league. With a few weeks of registration left, the program numbers are continuing to rise, and 370 players are currently expected to take the courts November 2nd.

For over a decade, Grand Junction Parks and Recreation has partnered with Fruita Parks and Recreation offering an interleague program designed to provide recreational and participatory basketball activities that promote a healthy desire for competition without the need to travel too far outside the valley.

“Collaborating with the Fruita program increases the number of teams at each grade level, thus offering players more exposure to a variety of on the court experiences, which ultimately helps develop the player as a whole,” says Recreation Coordinator, Tina Ross.

According to a poll from the National Alliance for Youth Sports, around 70 percent of children in the United States are leaving sports by their 13th birthday. The biggest reason given: “it’s just not fun anymore.”

“We strive to create an environment that players look forward to being a part of,” said Ross. “Players join knowing that they will be with friends, they will have fun, that it will be safe to make mistakes and learn from them, and most of all, they will learn to respect themselves, others, and benefits that come from continued participation in team sports.”

There is often a cost to competition and not every child is willing to pay it. Our program is designed for players of all skill levels with each participant being given equal playing time regardless of ability. Both Grand Junction and Fruita Parks and Recreation strive to provide a program for boys and girls in the appropriate grades to learn, play, and improve their skills both on and off the courts.

For more information, please contact:

Primary: Tina Ross, Recreation Coordinator   970-254-3805   tinar@gjcity.org
Secondary: Callie Berkson, Marketing   970-254-3867   callieb@gjcity.org

Amid the fall weather, Canyon View Park is seeing numerous sporting events, private events, and foot traffic, especially during the weekends.

It was estimated that roughly over 1,600 athletes and 4,200 spectators participated in events at the park this last weekend. Those events included Baseball Leagues, High School Soccer, High School Softball, High School Tennis, Youth Football and Youth Soccer, as well as activity at the playground, shelters, and the dog park.  Similar numbers are expected this weekend.

 “The constant use from sun up to sun down at the park is great to see, and highly encouraged. It can be a challenge to keep up with it all, but we have a hard-working team and a lot of community support,” said Parks Supervisor, Marc Mancuso.

Canyon View Park is a regionally known park destination and sees the largest amount of traffic of all local parks in the Grand Valley due to optimal weather this time of year and provided park amenities.

“The park is extremely well utilized throughout the entire year, but the fall presents a little higher foot traffic than other seasons,” says Mancuso. “The department is encouraged when we see a lot of people and families out in our community’s parks.”

With that said, the extremely high rate of utilization can lead to some congestion. With hundreds of thousands of visits per year, and several more weekends that will see increased foot traffic this fall, the Parks and Recreation staff are offering tips to people with plans to visit Canyon View Park:

• Know the parking lot fills early in the day, so plan ahead and be willing to park a little farther away. Hunting for the closest spot will likely lead to frustration. Please drive 10 mph or less in the parking lot.
• Please carpool or bike when possible.
• In the fall, visitation is higher on the weekends than weekdays due to sporting events. Please exercise patience when arriving and leaving.
• Use extra caution when driving around or near the playground and dog park.
• Expect traffic delays along G Road and 24 Road. Coming in on the parks east entrance off of 24 1/2 Road is a way to reduce these delays.

With close to 40 parks and over 420 acres of park land, there is a lot of opportunity for outdoor recreation within the city limits for residents and visitors alike. Parks and Recreation staff continues to encourage the community to get out and enjoy the wonderful parks system here in the valley.

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For more information, please contact:
Marc Mancuso, Parks Supervisor   970-254-3850, marcm@gjcity.org
Ken Sherbenou, Parks and Recreation Director   720-272-4564, kensh@gjcity.org

Secondary Contact: 
Callie Berkson, Marketing   970-254-3867, callieb@gjcity.org

It happens only once a year! The City of Grand Junction Commission on Arts and Culture, Palisade Art Vision, and Western Colorado Center for the Arts is proud to announce the 2nd Annual Grand Valley Open Studios Tour, October 11-13 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Twenty-five Grand Valley artists are opening the doors of their private art studios for public viewing for three special days this autumn. From the large purpose-built studio, to the small adaptive work space, each artist studio is a unique world where they spend hours, months, and years working to create art that only takes seconds to view.

This idea became a reality last year with 20 artists and one weekend. After an extremely successful and engaging first year, the event committee expanded the tour to three days and 25 artists. Not only was it a beneficial experience for the public, but the event proved to be a unique opportunity for local artists to meet each other and learn about what the tour had to offer. Prior to the public tour, artists visited each other’s studios for a meet and greet, enabling them to familiarize with other local artists on the tour and the type of artwork that would be represented.

“We are extraordinarily fortunate in the Grand Valley to have such an active and vibrant arts community,” said Lee Borden, Executive Director for The Art Center. “The Open Studios tour is a rare chance, maybe a once in a lifetime chance, to be invited into the private studio of some of our favorite artists. For many artists, the studio, the space where she or he creates their art, is almost sacrosanct. For an artist to invite us into their studio is an opportunity too exciting to miss!”

The public is encouraged to come discover the hidden nooks and amazing views of the Grand Valley through the lens of this year’s twenty-five artists that live, work, and play in Western Colorado.

“The Art Commission is focused on helping to establish the Grand Valley as an arts destination,” states Lorie Gregor, staff liaison to the Art Commission. “The Grand Valley Open Studios Tour is precisely the type of event that creates a unique art buying destination weekend. We invite the public to come expand their knowledge and appreciation of our valley’s amazingly talented and generous art community.”

A sneak peak of these artists’ work will be held at the CARnival of Art, Saturday, September 28 from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Grand Junction Subaru and Volkswagen dealership. This pop-up gallery is a chance for the public to meet our local artists and purchase a piece prior to the Open Studios Tour.

For more information on this event, visit www.gjartcenter.org/wp/openstudiostour

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Contact: Lorie Gregor, Staff Liaison to the Art Commission
970-254-3876    lorieg@gjcity.org

Be where the creative community comes together at the 5th Annual Take Part in Art Expo and explore the Grand Valley’s diverse arts and cultural scene.

The expo is free to the public and takes place this Saturday, June 22, from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., at the Lincoln Park Barn. The event is perfect for kids of all ages to play and interact with various types of art, music, theatre, and dance.

Discover your creative side and learn how to get involved with our community’s broad range of arts and cultural organizations. At the event, grab your “Passport to Fun” and have a chance to win arts-related prizes. There will be performances, demonstrations, information, and hands-on activities.

The performance schedule is as follows:
9:00 a.m. – Grand Junction Senior Theatre
9:30 a.m. – Shining Stars Music Academy
10:00 a.m. – The Theatre Project
10:30 a.m. – Operation Revamp/Veterans Art Center
11:00 a.m. – Creative Avenues & Revolution Dance
11:30 a.m. – Grand Junction Centennial Band

The Grand Junction Commission on Arts and Culture hosts this event. The commission is a 10-member advisory board appointed by City Council and is housed under the city’s Parks and Recreation department.

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Contact: Lorie Gregor, Recreation Coordinator     970-254-3876 or lorieg@gjcity.org

The protective surfacing repairs to Canyon View Park Playground that were scheduled to start this Sunday, June 16 have been postponed, due to unforeseen circumstances beyond our control. The new construction dates have been set for Monday, June 24 through Thursday, June 27. 

The repairs being made to the Canyon View Playground will require the playground to be shut down while crews remove damaged sections and the installation of new surfacing. The new protective surfacing will require no activity on the repaired sections for 72 hours once installed. The playground will reopen the morning of June 27 once all the fencing has been removed.

We are still encouraging families to utilize other playgrounds throughout the Parks Department during the closure to allow proper curing time for the repaired sections of the playground. If you would like to see what other parks in our parks system offers playgrounds, please visit http://www.gjparksandrec.org or click here.

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Contact: Marc Mancuso, Parks Supervisor     970-254-3850 or marcm@gjcity.org