Before and After: Two-Ton Clean Up of Illegal Mesa County Camps

There has been a remarkable transformation down by the Colorado River in Mesa County.

Homeless Camps Emerge Next To the River

A few weeks ago we passed along some photos of illegal camps near the Colorado River between 32 ½ Road and C ½ Road. The pictures looked like a homeless camp, though we don't know how many people were camped there.

Illegal Campers Given the Chance To Remove Possessions

Deputies had visited the site numerous times requesting the resident to remove their belongings from the illegal camps. The area is covered in thick brush, overgrown trees, and many large illegal camps. Among the items at the camps were tents, numerous propane bottles, large amounts of trash, human waste, and hazardous materials. It's pretty nasty.

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Two Tons of Trash Removed

Clean-up efforts were initiated with Mesa County Sheriff's Office and Mesa County Code Enforcement taking a professional clean-up crew to the site. Crews removed two containers full of drug needles, returned stolen property to residents, and removed approximately two tons of garbage and abandoned items from the riverbed. County crews also replaced the stolen no-trespass sign at the top of the hill.

In my previous post, I was able to share a few photos of the illegal camps. Now, we have several new photos to share with you that demonstrate the magnitude of the problem of homelessness in Grand Junction and the great work involved in cleanup.