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Residents press Grand Junction council on homelessness services, cleanup efforts and pest control
Summary
Multiple public commenters urged the council to expand homelessness services, highlighted success of a PLE advisory board and local cleanup efforts, and raised concerns about housing conditions, pesticide coordination for Japanese beetle eradication, and wildlife safety at a canal bridge.
A broad set of public commenters addressed the Grand Junction City Council on May 6, focusing particularly on homelessness services, local cleanup efforts, housing complaints, invasive pests and wildlife safety.
Speakers with lived experience and service providers urged the council to listen to the People with Lived Experience (PLE) advisory board and act on their recommendations. Kristen Bridal, program and outreach coordinator for Mutual Aid Partners and vice chair of the Grand Valley Coalition for the Homeless, thanked council for meeting with the PLE advisory group and said the board's efforts led to six strategically placed dumpsters for a river cleanup that removed 6,700 pounds of trash. "By providing access to basic needs like waste management, we are empowering our community members to take accountability," she said, and she invited council to the PLE meeting on May 21.
Stephanie Avascones, co-facilitator of the PLE advisory board, and Kia Young, an intern who relayed participants' comments, described service gaps including access to showers and laundry outside the morning day center, the impacts of the North Avenue shelter closure, and the need for more consistent pathways from outreach to shelter beds.
Crystal Frost, who said she has lived unhoused, urged the city to prioritize funding beds and to use vacant buildings to create opportunities for people ready to engage with services. "A bed is $30 a day, while a jail cell is $100 or more," she said, adding that a bed can be the first step toward stability.
Other public commenters raised varied concerns: a tenant described indoor air quality and alleged meth-related activity in an apartment building and questioned asbestos-charge estimates; Ryan Serraddam from the Mesa County Noxious Weed and Pest Department called for stronger cohesion between county and city programs on Japanese beetle eradication and recommended leveraging the city's turf-conversion program to reduce beetle habitat; Joan Bradley requested city action to raise a low bridge over the Grand Valley Canal to prevent duckling deaths.
Council thanked the speakers and staff indicated follow-up opportunities, including an invitation to attend the PLE meeting and a suggestion that the city consider a workshop or memo on Japanese beetle coordination.
The council also heard other public comments on environmental-justice outreach and upcoming events.
