Brandon Leuallen, The Business Times

Colorado Mesa University used a Sept. 15 Grand Junction City Council workshop to have a conversation about replacing the aging Lincoln Park Barn at Stocker Stadium, which serves as the CMU football team’s locker room on game days.

For years, CMU football has used Lincoln Park Barn as a locker room, while visiting teams are placed in the north-side locker rooms. The split is intentional, CMU President John Marshall said, to keep teams separated and avoid conflicts. But the barn is outdated and was never designed as a football facility, which is one of the main reasons CMU wants to build a new building at the stadium.

Marshall said the presentation was an opening discussion, not a finished proposal. He said the project would follow the model of past Lincoln Park partnerships, such as the golf facility, and would be funded by CMU and alumni donors rather than city taxpayers.

“This would be a CMU-funded project,” Marshall said. “We’ve set aside cash, and with this being the 100th anniversary of Maverick football, we see a chance to fundraise from alumni and supporters to make this a reality.”

The plan envisions a two-story facility at the stadium’s south end zone with locker rooms, training and meeting spaces, and coaches offices. The building would give CMU football a permanent home.

Other RMAC schools raise the bar

Marshall noted CMU has invested recently in many other sports facilities, but football has lagged. He pointed to rivals in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference that have made significant upgrades.

Marshall showed slides of Western Colorado’s renovated stadium, Colorado Mines’ facility updates, and CSU–Pueblo’s stadium, which he called the envy of the conference.

“Across the conference, you can walk into those stadiums and immediately know you’re at that school,” Marshall said.

He said the gap affects recruiting and the student-athlete experience.

“It’s less cool for our student athletes to play at what feels like a high school stadium,” Marshall said. “We want them to feel like they are playing in a true college environment.”

Utilization and access

Grand Junction City Manager Mike Bennett said most Lincoln Park Barn programming is already planned to move to the new Grand Junction Community Recreation Center, with exceptions like the annual Turkey Trot packet pickup, some police training and occasional rentals of the building. Those, he said, can be relocated or scheduled around.

Council member Scott Beilfuss questioned whether the building might sit empty most of the year. Marshall replied the college will use it daily, unlike Lincoln Park Barn, which he described as underutilized.

“We think we would occupy this 365,” Marshall said.

He added CMU would allow city use of meeting spaces outside football season, including for town halls, public meetings and possibly high school booster fundraisers.

Council member Anna Stout asked how the proposal would affect other stadium users, especially local high schools. Marshall said locker room access for schools would not change and that the new layout would improve game-day logistics.

Stout also asked whether CMU had considered purchasing the building instead of leasing it.

“That would be different than what we’ve thought about,” Marshall said. “Doesn’t mean it’s not a possibility. I would just say we feel like we really need to get moving on this facility. We feel like a long-term lease is trodden ground.”

He left the door open for bigger discussions, saying, “If there’s a bigger, more long-term conversation that the city would like to have, let’s have that.”

Beilfuss suggested exploring a land swap that could give CMU control of more of Lincoln Park than just the barn, while the city acquired CMU property on 29 Road.

“Lincoln Park is an amazing property,” Beilfuss said. “We should at least think about what a swap might look like.”

Stout later clarified she was referring only to the barn, not the park.

“I just want to make sure that my questions were directed at this one building, not the park, not the stadium in general.”

She added, “I am supportive of the concept as it is presented tonight.”

Lease versus sale

City Attorney John Shaver explained that CMU could pursue a renewable 25-year lease under the city charter, a familiar path modeled on previous Lincoln Park agreements. An outright sale would require voter approval. 

Timeline and next steps

Marshall said CMU hopes to finalize a memorandum of understanding with the city within four to six weeks, in time to announce the project at October homecoming celebrations.

The university is aiming for a spring 2027 completion to align with commencements and the Junior College World Series.

Council did not take a vote but signaled consensus for staff to continue negotiations.