RESOLUTION No. 65-00

 

A Resolution Designating a Certain Trail on the

Grand Mesa as "Mark's Trail"

 

Recitals

 

Each community has its unique blessings. Grand Junction is blessed with the beauty and production of the Grand Valley, the timeless Colorado River, our scenic Monument, Bookcliffs and the Grand Mesa. Increasingly, our incredible vistas, intriguing weather, hardy and resourceful people with a strong individualistic bent draw others to enjoy this piece of "God's country."

 

Less obvious than our scenery is the well-run central City, its energies and accomplishments enabled by the City's manager and "his" now over 500 employees. This City and its citizens have been blessed with the intellect, charisma, drive and financial acumen of our long-time City Manager, Mark Achen. Mark came in 1984 when the Valley was at a depressed low and leaves as one of his legacies the City's innovative and highly successful financial planning and budgeting. We are privileged to have had him as our City Manager. We will be well-served for years to come with the financial innovations he has helped to instill, which will be instrumental in keeping this City on the road to prosperity.

 

While part of Mark has been enmeshed in policies, numbers and problem solving, he has gained much of his energy from his mornings of speed walking. Once one has seen this focused man with this focused style of morning exercise, it is easy to also imagine him tackling with ease the mountains and canyons of the West and Colorado's "Fourteeners:" Mark has climbed many of Colorado's tallest mountains with the same relentless focus and joy he has brought to the City.

 

Mark was intimately involved in the City's 1989 and 1990 acquisition of the Sommerville Ranch, with its own unique vistas and challenging trails off the west end of the Grand Mesa. We choose to commemorate, celebrate and remember this fine public servant by naming for him one of the routes from this mountain, leading towards our City.

 

Thank you, Mark Achen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GRAND JUNCTION, COLORADO:

 

Effective July 8, 2000, that trail described below, and shown graphically on the attached map, shall hereafter be affectionately known as Mark's Trail, in appreciation for the many wonderful years of service of Mark Kennedy Achen, City Manager of the City of Grand Junction from May 14, 1984 to July 7, 2000.

 

 

Adopted this 5th day of July, 2000.

 

 

 

           /s/ Gene Kinsey      

           Mayor Gene Kinsey

 

Attest:

 

 

/s/ Stephanie Nye      

City Clerk Stephanie Nye

Description of Mark's Trail

Part of City Council Resolution No. 65-00

 

 

The high end of the trail begins on the City's Somerville Ranch at the KJCT television tower site, on the western rim of the Grand Mesa.

The trail heads north about 1/2 mile, along the rim of the Grand Mesa, to the log fence trailhead at Palisade Point, then descending westerly off the rim to the Kruzen Springs area.

The next leg is southerly for about one mile on the "bench" portion of the City's Somerville Ranch on an old "jeep" trail to the boundary of the Grand Mesa National Forest boundary near Whiskers Pond.

Traveling approximately 3/4 of a mile within the National Forest, the trail intersects with the existing Whitewater Creek Basin trail, at Whitewater Creek.

Mark's Trail continues along Whitewater Creek on what is also known as the USFS Whitewater Creek Basin Trail 1.5 miles to the fence and gate at another boundary of the Grand Mesa National Forest boundary.

The trail continues on BLM land for approximately two miles near the normally dry bed of Whitewater Creek, this stretch ends at the City's Somerville Ranch "home place," in Section 14. Then it proceeds westerly 2.5 miles along Whitewater Creek to the intersection of Whitewater Creek and Whitewater Creek Road.

Mark's Trail is approximately 9.5 miles long.