City Awards Scholarships to Colorado Mesa University Tech Students for Innovative Accessory Dwelling

The City of Grand Junction has awarded scholarships totaling $4,750 to eight Colorado Mesa University (CMU) Tech students for the Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Design Challenge.

Through collaboration between the City and CMU Tech, students had the opportunity to participate in the ADU Challenge, showcasing their talents in planning, design, communication, and innovation. The competition awarded $2,500 to the first-place team, $1,250 to the second-place team, and $500 to the two third-place teams. Additionally, the Colorado Mesa University Foundation matched these awards with contributions to student scholarships, bringing the total scholarship amount awarded through the ADU Challenge to $9,500.

Students participating in the ADU Challenge were required to submit comprehensive proposals that included a planning clearance form, project narrative, presentation, and summary. Prior to submission, students attended an introductory session to learn about city planning processes and ADU planning requirements. Proposals were reviewed by a committee comprising city staff and local building experts. Students presented their designs to the City's Planning Commission, where projects were evaluated and scored based on criteria such as Universal Design & Aging in Place, Affordability & Cost Effectiveness, Sustainability & Resilience, and Innovation & Creativity.

The competition aimed to promote innovation, foster sustainable and affordable designs, and provide meaningful learning opportunities for students.

The winning ADU designs will be further developed into plans available on the City of Grand Junction's website for use by local homeowners and developers wanting to construct an ADU. This initiative is part of the City's broader Housing Strategy, which supports ADU construction as a means of increasing affordable housing options and diversifying the city's housing supply.

As part of these efforts, the City has also developed an ADU Workshop and an ADU Production Program to help homeowners and developers learn about ADU construction requirements and provide financial incentives to encourage the development of ADUs within city limits.

For more information about the City's Housing Strategies or upcoming ADU workshops or the ADU Production Program, visit gjcity.org or contact [email protected].