City of GJ, Candidate Breakdown

By Nick Allan

In this piece, I aim to provide political analysis on the upcoming Grand Junction City Council election, scheduled for April 8. I do not anticipate any significant shift in direction as a result of this election. It’s disappointing there has been little substantive discussion about concrete actions candidates will take once they are elected.

This piece will cover the candidate forum hosted by Western Colorado Alliance for Community Action on March 8—the first major public forum of the election season. Additionally, I will incorporate insights from interviews I conducted on the Better Together Facebook page. I had the opportunity to speak with Alexis Hertzoth, Randall Reitz, Ken Scissor, and Cody Kennedy. Unfortunately, Ben Van Dyke was unable to participate due to illness, and we were unable to reschedule. Robert Ballard declined to be interviewed due to time constraints.

My hope was to provide voters with a clear understanding of the choices before them. However, with minimal policy distinctions between candidates, factors like background and general impressions will likely play a larger role in shaping voter decisions. This leaves to a very, “vibes” based election. 

Candidates

At-Large – Ken Scissors

Ken Scissors is a retired physician who served the Grand Valley area for over 20 years, working in all the major hospitals as well as the Grand Junction Veterans Affairs Hospital. Aside from the current council members running, he demonstrates the strongest grasp of city issues. His experience on the Planning Commission—one of the city’s more influential committees with real decision-making authority over development—adds to his credibility.

In conversation, Ken shows a clear awareness of the challenges facing Grand Junction. However, he offers few concrete solutions beyond emphasizing the need for increased community engagement and government transparency.

Western Colorado Alliance Forum Responses

• What Will You Do to Establish a Long Term City Affordable Housing Fund? Believes stakeholders need to come together to develop a comprehensive plan.
  
  
• With the Homeless Resource Center on Ute Schedule to close on April 15th, and no replacement found, what should the city do? Supports utilizing the month-to-month option until a better location is found.
  
  
• How will you Accelerate the Housing Process? Wants to see more state funds invested in Grand Junction through Proposition 123*. To do this the city needs to  include requirements to speed up affordable housing projects and express additional support for expediting the process.
  
  Prop 123 is state funding for affordable housing, state funds are under concern as Colorado reckons with a billion dollar deficit*
  
• What is the City Council’s Role in Addressing Homelessness? Has considered declaring a state of emergency, suggesting it as a topic for discussion. Emphasizes that everyone deserves shelter.

At-Large – Ben Van Dyke 

Ben Van Dyke owns Van’s Carwash, a family business previously run by his father. His political journey began with opposition to the Homeward Bound Resource Center, which now stands across the street from his parents’ former business. Concerned about its impact, Ben began attending City Council meetings to voice his frustrations. As other business owners echoed his concerns, he decided to enter the race.

Ben has centered much of his campaign messaging on supporting the business community. He advocates for deregulation to improve business access and reduce government barriers.

Western Colorado Alliance Forum Responses

• What Will You Do to Establish a Long Term City Affordable Housing Fund? Hopeful that Proposition 123 funds can help.
  
  
• With the Homeless Resource Center on Ute Schedule to close on April 15th, and no replacement found, what should the city do? Believes services are being duplicated—did not provide a clear stance but implies potential closure.
  
  
• How will you Accelerate the Housing Process?  Proposes reducing zoning and code restrictions, assigning staff to directly assist developers, and creating an online portal to streamline processes.
  
  
• What is the City Council’s Role in Addressing Homelessness?Questions whether the city is duplicating existing services and suggests evaluating current efforts before expanding support.

District E – Randall Rietz 

Randall Reitz has the longest tenure on the City Council among the candidates, as he seeks a second four-year term. He currently serves as Mayor Pro Tem (essentially the backup mayor) and is believed to be positioning himself for the mayoral role. Grand Junction operates under a “weak mayor” system, meaning the city manager holds more executive power, while the mayor primarily sets the agenda and facilitates council meetings.

Randall presents himself as a consensus-builder, though some critics view him as a fence-sitter—pointing to his vote on the 29 Road ballot measure, where he initially showed strong support before shifting to a neutral stance.

A mental health provider by profession, Randall played a key role in securing $500,000 in scholarships for CMU social work students through City Council funding. Randall has also worked to bring more mental health services to Orchard Mesa. 

Western Colorado Alliance Forum Responses

• What Will You Do to Establish a Long Term City Affordable Housing Fund? Supports using state funds but offered no local funding ideas.
  
  
• With the Homeless Resource Center on Ute Schedule to close on April 15th, and no replacement found, what should the city do? Would not support keeping the center open past April 15.
  
  
• How will you Accelerate the Housing Process? Advocates for increasing efficiency but provided limited details.
  
  
• What is the City Council’s Role in Addressing Homelessness? Emphasizes collaboration with nonprofits, citing Mother Teresa House as an example.

District E – Robert Ballard

Robert Ballard is one of the two working-class candidates. He works for Alpine Bank and lives in Orchard Mesa—potentially giving the area direct representation on the council for the first time in years. .

My first interaction with Robert was through his leadership role in the Mesa County Libertarian Party. In 2022, he ran as a Libertarian candidate for County Clerk and Recorder in a three-way race, ultimately receiving 6% of the vote. Robert entered the race in the last few days before the deadline, citing encouragement from friends and neighbors who wanted to ensure voters had a choice.

His policy focus is relatively narrow, centering on opposition to the 4th and 5th Street project and deregulation of building codes. 

Western Colorado Alliance Forum Responses

• What Will You Do to Establish a Long Term City Affordable Housing Fund?: Supports incentives for affordable housing but provided no specifics.
  
  
• With the Homeless Resource Center on Ute Schedule to close on April 15th, and no replacement found, what should the city do?  Did not offer a direct stance, suggesting nonprofits should take the lead.
  
  
• How will you Accelerate the Housing Process?  Advocates for reducing regulations and red tape, aligning city policies more closely with the county’s.
  
  
• What is the City Council’s Role in Addressing Homelessness? Sees the city’s role as facilitating services and ensuring public safety. Supports incentivizing nonprofits and empowering police to crack down on drug dealers.

District D –  Laurel Cole

Laurel Cole is running unopposed for City Council. She currently serves as the Executive Director of Mesa County Habitat for Humanity and has described herself as a strong advocate for affordable housing.

I have not yet had the opportunity to interview Laurel, as her unopposed status made it less of a priority. However, she is scheduled for an interview/town hall on April 1 which I look forward to.

While housing is her top issue, the only position she has mentioned is streamlining home construction, which is mandated by the state of Colorado in order to receive Proposition 123 Funding . The city is currently investigating barriers that slow down housing development, making it unclear how her approach would differ from existing efforts.

Western Colorado Alliance Forum Responses

• What Will You Do to Establish a Long Term City Affordable Housing Fund?Wants to gather community input; open to considering a tax.
  
  
• With the Homeless Resource Center on Ute Schedule to close on April 15th, and no replacement found, what should the city do?  Did not provide a direct stance but emphasized the need to consult nearby businesses.
  
  
• How will you Accelerate the Housing Process? Suggested having builders help train new city planners.
  
  
• What is the City Council’s Role in Addressing Homelessness? Work with the community. 

District A – Alexis Hitzeroth 

Alexis Hertzoth is the other working-class candidates in this race. She works at Taco Party and runs a tree business. Previously, she served in the military, including a tour in the Middle East. Alexis has emphasized that her military service was largely a means to pursue higher education and other career aspirations.

She moved to Grand Junction to work on environmental issues but is a political newcomer when it comes to City Council. Her candidacy involved some last-minute maneuvering to secure a spot on the ballot, which is evident in her approach—she openly admits she is “still learning” and figuring things out as she goes. 

Western Colorado Alliance Forum Responses

• What Will You Do to Establish a Long Term City Affordable Housing Fund? Still learning; wants to gather community input before forming a stance.
  
  
• With the Homeless Resource Center on Ute Schedule to close on April 15th, and no replacement found, what should the city do? : Supports asking the community and repurposing the existing tent.
  
  
• How will you Accelerate the Housing Process? : Believes in making the process easier for developers by assigning an advocate from the building department to directly walk them through the system.
  
  
• What is the City Council’s Role in Addressing Homelessness? Believes housing is a necessity and that the city should focus on supporting nonprofits.

District A – Cody Kennedy 

Cody Kennedy is undoubtedly one of the most ambitious City Council members Grand Junction has seen in recent years. When he takes on an issue, he pursues it with full force. This dedication is evident in his advocacy for keeping the Orchard Mesa Community Center Pool open and his opposition to the 4th and 5th Street conversion project.

One of the more controversial aspects of Cody’s tenure is his ownership of rental properties, which has raised questions about how his personal investments influence his housing policy decisions. In response, Cody argues that his experience as a landlord gives him firsthand knowledge of the housing market and his advocacy in the reduction of impact fees.

Politically, Cody aligns himself with the business community and actively advocates for their concerns. Unlike some candidates, he is clear and direct about his policy positions, backing them up with concrete proposals. Whether one agrees with him or not, he is always willing to state where he stands.

Western Colorado Alliance Forum Responses

• What Will You Do to Establish a Long Term City Affordable Housing Fund? Open to exploring a tobacco tax or a rental vehicle tax as potential funding sources.
  
  
• With the Homeless Resource Center on Ute Schedule to close on April 15th, and no replacement found, what should the city do?  Believes a policy discussion is needed before deciding whether to keep the tent in place.
  
  
• How will you Accelerate the Housing Process?  Proposes creating a concierge service for builders to help navigate regulations.
  
  
• What is the City Council’s Role in Addressing Homelessness? Supports sanctioned camping and transitional housing as part of the solution

Conclusion 

A goal at the start of this election season was to try and better differentiate the candidates. It can be difficult to draw out candidates’ policies in local elections. Candidates often hesitate to put forward particular objectives during campaigns. This could come from fear around upsetting voters, or giving themselves a standard to be held to. This practice leaves the voters disempowered to make their most educated choice. Grand Junction needs real changes to solve the issues of homelessness, transportation, lessening of public recreation and low-wages. Hopefully the candidates will prove us wrong and bring real substance to their terms.