FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (June 15, 2017 | Grand Junction, CO) – Education in Colorado’s Grand Valley should be a priority for the community according to the final results from a poll the Grand Junction Economic Partnership (GJEP) launched at the Western Colorado Economic Summit last week. Reforming K-12 Education received the most votes at 32% and the Grand Junction Chamber’s “CMU 20,000” initiative came in second with 26% of the votes.

Nearly 400 community members voted on 10 topics that included growing the outdoor recreation and tech industries; developing an arts & culture district; building a community recreation center in Grand Junction, adding more direct flights at the airport; revitalizing North Avenue and Horizon Drive; and improving public safety overall.

The 10 topics were presented and discussed at an afternoon workshop during the Economic Summit on June 6, after which an initial live vote took place. Voting remained open through Sunday, June 11.

GJEP and community partners will use the poll results to develop a “2030 VISION”, or a Grand Valley economic development plan for the coming decade. The goal is to prioritize community initiatives so that the objectives of each can be achieved by year 2030. Specific objectives are being finalized with the committees behind these initiatives and will be presented as a cohesive visioning document to the community in the coming weeks.

“The 2030 vision is a community-driven initiative. Instead of elected officials, state government and other top-level organizations telling us what our community needs, we asked our community members what they want for the Grand Valley,” said Kristi Pollard, GJEP executive director. “Armed with this information, GJEP and our community partners can prioritize the issues we should champion over the next few years. It’s not a matter of this initiative over that initiative, it is a matter of which one do we tackle first.”

For more information on the 2030 VISION, poll results and workshop presentations, visit www.westcoeconomicsummit.com. Receive updates on social media with #GV2030Vision.

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