Question about Parachute Colorado (Denver, Grand Junction: for sale, apartments, renting)

[kdemanus]

I was offered a teaching position in Parachute. We are thinking of relocating there from Memphis, TN. I have heard bad things about the area. Can anyone give me an acurate picture of Parachute? Thanks!

[Idunn]

What little I know of Parachute, CO is that it is a small town located on the western slope of Colorado. It is not in the mountains but with ready access to them. By Colorado standards the weather should be fairly moderate, but somewhat hot in the summer and a bit cold come winter; quite different from Memphis and very dry in comparison, not at all humid. You would have ready access to I-70; the closest shopping of any consequence in either Glenwood Springs, CO, or Grand Junction, CO.

Parachute is near the epicenter of the oil shale extraction industry. First exploited in the 1980's (as I recall) this industry initially took off like a rocket but fairly quickly became almost moribund when global oil prices drifted back down for a time. This has since changed, and it appears Colorado politicians are eager to exploit this resource. Given current trends you could probably expect this industry to grow rapidly, with all resultant consequences.

Should you care, this will mean growth and surely better employment prospects in the region. On the downside, you will experience the truck traffic, oil rigs, and quite possibly environmental degradation that will ensue.

Other than that, you would be moving from a large community to a relatively very small one. A rather conservative place, with surely far less crime than Memphis.

If you have a picture postcard idea of Colorado some place such as Aspen, CO is far more likely to match it, and even if relatively close it might as well be on a different planet. But if you should happen to like the parameters that Parachute offers it might just what you like and a happy home. I suppose.

[sterlinggirl]

Parachute/Battlement Mesa is pretty close to Rifle. If you read through the Rifle threads, you'll get a pretty good idea of what to expect in Parachute.

[jazzlover]

There are really two Parachutes. There is the original town of Parachute--for many decades called Grand Valley--and there is the "town" of Battlement Mesa, built across I-70 from the original town of Parachute. Battlement Mesa was originally developed by Exxon for housing for oil shale workers. When "Black Sunday" occurred in 1982 (when Exxon pulled the plug on shale development), Battlement Mesa was turned into somewhat of a retirement community. Now, that area is booming again with gas development, and--if oil shale development gets off of the ground this time (I'm not holding my breath), my opinion is that Parachute/Battlement Mesa could turn into the really ugly kind of boomtown that even the people who have to live in it are not especially fond of.

Though there is some nice mountain country around Parachute, its particular location, in my opinion, is one of the least scenic in western Colorado. I wouldn't live there, and I'm an old Colorado native. I'm not sure how "low crime" it is, either. There are a lot of transient workers there and that can cause some problems. The one person I did personally know who lived in Battlement Mesa just moved out of there and was tickled to death to do so.

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

The problem right now with Parachute is finding a place to live. With the oil boom, the whole area from Silt to Grand Junction is flooded with workers, and they are all looking for places to live. I've talked to locals who have rented there many years, and they are being pushed out because their landlords can charge the oil workers twice what the locals have been paying. What hotels there are in those small towns are booked weeks in advance.

I suggest you ask the school district for some help in finding a place to live. You may be stuck commuting from Grand Junction.

[esya]

My husband took a job in oil shale in the early 80s and lost it in 1982, of course. He commuted from Denver where we had a house, and lived in a tiny company house in Parachute back then. If you go you should be realistic.

The whole region is cycling temp workers in and out but places like Rio Grande County (look it up) are just doing temp assignments of the workers (6 wks on, 6 wks back at home for example), not families. This reduces the impact on schools at least for a while.

It is an opportunity to get experience teaching in Colorado if that's where you want to be longterm. It is not in the mountains--it is more like the dusty buttes of Nevada or Utah, but a bit cooler and closer to nice places. Still it has an appeal and there are signs this spring that the snow drought has ended. Grand Junction seems a long way away but it will sustain a better economy over the long term if you get in a bind. Going east you will run into the luxury resort economy.

The boom will end. The only other industry besides energy in the area is retirement living and nursing homes and that will have a cycle too. Energy booms in the west have historically had an 8 or 9 year cycle. This one is one year to two years in already. The downside is that you must accept that some environmental compromises have been made--I myself have observed at least two pipeline fires in the last two years, just driving through. Native Coloradoans and longterm residents are fairly active on these issues, though, and some pressure is put on observing limits. The problem is that most of the boom cycle energy industry is run out of Texas and there is a different ethic on natural resources there. Colorado has no refinery within its borders, it all goes out and is returned.

Don't invest in a house. Even if the market is low you are better off renting and driving from somewhere else, or buying or renting a used mobile home or moduler, or a condo Put your money in the bank for several years and then decide if to buy.

You will meet some very nice people, most of them. The people that have survived out west through the lean times are helpful, compassionate, and ethical but they don't tolerate shallowness and they want to see evidence that you are a solid person. There are real reasons why they are conservative--and that is because there's not much to eat or drink out there once the boom leaves. You need to decide which is for you.

P.S. I am not a conservative and get along fine. Once thing you learn in small towns is to not shoot off your mouth on everything. Having an opinion is not necessarily a right you exercise all the time if you want to avoid friction in small towns. If you learn to choose your battles wisely you will be fine.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by esya

The whole region is cycling temp workers in and out but places like Rio Grande County (look it up) are just doing temp assignments of the workers (6 wks on, 6 wks back at home for example), not families. This reduces the impact on schools at least for a while.

I think you probably mean Rio Blanco County (Meeker) rather than Rio Grande. At any rate, Parachute itself is in Garfield County.

[esya]

You are absolutely right. It is Rio Blanco which is the Meeker area. I should know better but my neurons don't always do what I want them to anymore. They are clogged.

[Wyomiles]

I lived in Battlement mesa, which is just across the highway from Parachute, for two years in early 2000. I think it is a beautiful area. It sits along the Colorado river at the bottom of a long winding canyon. The landscape goes from river bottom into dry desert ,up to scrub oak hillsides and up into pine and spuce and aspen forests.
Parachute is very old , Battlement mesa has a nice civic center, a new high school and older elementary and middle school. Battlement has a golf course community with very nice, large homes, and an area with trailer houses and apartments, and everything in between. We enjoyed walking the trails in the community and the short drive to some very nice mountain camping areas. There is a local grocery store that is real nice but for larger purchases we would drive down to Grand Junction for the day. Sometimes we would make a weekend trip out of it and enjoy the many things that Grand junction has to offer. The area is in a boom as mentioned above but will calm down again at some point. When we lived there it was between booms and the area was in a downturn. Many homes for sale and the residents were mostly retired folks or poorer families who commuted to Glenwood Springs and Aspen to work. The school at that time had little money and was of poor quality but I would think that with the boom on they would be improving that. If you really love working with kids and making a difference in there lives you will have the opportunity to help many in this town.

[SheridanL]

I swear to gosh I'm not trying to be snotty but, I think you will love this area above Memphis!!Geez!!

Do not worry,....you will be fine!!YEP!!