The organization North Avenue Owners Association (NAOA) have petitioned the city of Grand Junction for a plan to improve conditions along North Avenue.
NAOA is a collection of business owners whose storefronts are located along the nearly four-mile long road.
With portions of North Avenue missing sidewalk, in addition to the old “Far East” building having closed its doors years ago, residents and business owners along the road have been complaining about the need for improvement for quite some time now.
NAOA has been requesting a procedure called an “Urban Renewal Plan.” The idea for this particular plan is to take the pool of tax money collected in the area, and allocate it to a particular entity such as North Avenue, or more specifically the “Far East” building, since that building has been a large complaint of NAOA.
A 2015 article by the Daily Sentinel highlighted that the old “Far East” building, named because the restaurant that once occupied it was called Far East Restaurant, attracted the homeless and was described by local business owner Lisa Searle as “an eyesore.”
The Urban Renewal Plan would seek to use tax dollars in order to purchase the property, and then bring on a business or development that can properly use it, thereby increasing sales tax revenue for the city.
As the Sentinel pointed out, sales tax revenue within Grand Junction has seen a significant drop, largely due to a number of businesses closing over the last few years. While businesses continue to shut their doors, both national chains and local shops, the revenue the stores would be making in sales tax, dries up.
NAOA hopes that if a building gets put in the Far East building’s place that it will help revitalize a key street in Grand Junction.
North Avenue is not only the street where Colorado Mesa University sits, but is also the home to Suplizio Field, Stocker Stadium, Lincoln Park Golf Course, the Veteran’s Administration Hospital and several businesses that would seek to benefit from NAOA’s proposed plan.
NAOA has obtained signatures on their petition for an Urban Renewal Plan. However, there has been no word yet on any progress that has been made in getting it to reach the Grand Junction City Council, and whether or not the council will go forward with such a plan.
