Whether you’re looking to raft down a river or cycle down a mountain, Grand Junction offers plenty of outdoor adventures. You can also get in touch with nature by visiting the Colorado National Monument and Grand Mesa National Forest. Getting around town is easy since Grand Junction has a centralized location. A typical commute takes less than 15 minutes, thanks to the low traffic.
Crime
Grand Junction is a hidden gem that is a great place to live for those looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of bigger cities. It is known for its sunnier and drier weather and its small-town feel. Crime rates vary by neighborhood, so it is important to research the areas you are interested in before moving to a new city. Grand Junction by and large is relatively low on the crime scale, but it is not -non-existant. It is important to note that crime rates can be inflated for areas frequented by people who do not live there. It can include parks, restaurants and other public spaces. If you encounter such crimes in the neighborhood, Grand Junction has a great choice of lawyers and practices. A Grand Junction lawyer from Killian Law Firm can help you go through with many ordeals you could face in Mesa Valley.
Cost of Living
Knowing the cost of living in your new area is important when moving. It allows you to determine if the standard of living will fit your salary and budget. Living expenses in Grand Junction are around 4% lower than the national average. These numbers include healthcare, transportation, housing, and groceries.
Attractions & Events
The city center has many independently owned shops like Enstrom Candies, where you can take your kids, restaurants, and galleries. It also hosts yearly festivals and music performances. Plus, it has more than a hundred works of outdoor sculpture. It makes it a great place to go shopping! The beautiful parks, lakes, forests, and plateaus make for excellent exploration starting points. You also live at the base of one of Colorado’s best kept secrets, the Grand Mesa, the largest flat top mountain in the world.
James M. Robb State Park offers a sizable network of hiking, biking, and boating paths where you can spend days reconnecting with nature. The landscape is a riot of color as various trees, shrubs, and flowers bloom.
The town offers a range of outdoor pursuits within a short drive, such as rock climbing and skiing.
Transportation
Grand Junction has access to world-class rock climbing, skiing, whitewater rafting, and at a lower elevation than Denver. As you tour the local sights, bring enough water with you. It is also important to consider commuting times when choosing a neighborhood. If you are looking for a place where you can know your neighbors and feel comfortable letting your kids walk to school, enjoy local markets and parades on the weekends and embrace nature, then this is the place for you! Almost everyone owns a car and even has access to an airplane. It’s a good thing West Star Aviation is present in the area. Grand Junction has all the amenities of a big city but maintains a small town, local community vibe. It is the perfect place to live!
Weather
The weather is pleasant during the spring and fall, and the area overall enjoys 300 days of sunshine a year on average. Living in Grand Junction means accessing a wide range of outdoor activities when it’s not cold or just plain too hot, both extremes exist in Mesa Valley seasonally. Winters can be intense due to the city’s high elevation. Overall, and despite some of the harsher months in the year, the climate also allows residents to cultivate a variety of vegetables and fruits. Local farmers’ markets offer fresh produce for sale. The valley is famous for apples and peaches. There’s nothing like a Palisade peach and it’s the weather in Grand Junction that makes those possible.
Education
Grand Junction is halfway between Denver and Salt Lake City, surrounded by 1.2 million acres of stunning parks, forests, canyons, lakes, and rivers. But you don’t have to go to either to get some of what you’d expect to only find in a large city or better populated area, such as education. On that, contrarily, there are many educational opportunities available in Grand Junction. The local schools are highly rated, with a strong focus on innovation and technological advancements, as well as rural development, farming, and agriculture. Colorado Mesa University also calls the city home, and bring with it a college town vibe in the immediate area around the university. There’s various other eductation opportunities with tech schools and community college, also available in or near Grand Junction.
Community
Grand Junction, Colorado, needs things like health care access and educational opportunities, among other things. These resources can be found through organizations like the Mesa County Work Force and other local sources. Located in Western Colorado and surrounded by 1.2 million acres of stunning public land, Grand Junction is the perfect place for people who want to experience big-city amenities with a small-town feel. Voted one of the safest cities in America, Grand Junction offers everything you could need, and more without sacrificing its friendly, local community feel. (editor’s note: that safety rating included the chance of natural disaster, which is near zero in Western Colorado. If you’re sick of hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, or floods, then Grand Junction becomes very desirable)
What else?
If you plan to move to Grand Junction, hydrate properly before and after hiking or other outdoor activities. It will help you to acclimate to the high elevation and prevent altitude sickness.
Grand Junction recently won 2nd place for a contest across the USA for cleanest drinking water. The municipality entered and was very highly rated, with most pollutants at non detectable levels.