State of the City of Grand Junction

Topic: Greg Caton and the Mayor Taggart will be providing an update on the current state of affairs at the City of Grand Junction and will be providing highlights of a number of projects or initiatives coming up this year.

Bio: Mayor J. Merrick “Rick” Taggart moved to Grand Junction in the early 80’s to lead and manage Marmot Mountain Works, a young dynamic outdoor company, as its CEO, Chairman and Co-Owner. After selling the business in the late 80’s, Rick went on to lead divisions of The Timberland Company as their Senior Vice President and then on to be the CEO of Swiss Army Brands until 2010. In recent years Rick has worked at Colorado Mesa University as a senior manager and a teacher of business strategy, management and marketing.  As an avid outdoorsman Rick fell in love with this area and while his corporate career took him away from the Valley at times, he and his wife Deanna have made Grand Junction their home for over 30 years. Deanna and Rick have four children, three of them residing in the Grand Valley.  Rick received a B.S. in Management Science at Syracuse University and an MBA from the University of Phoenix.

Bio: Greg joined the City of Grand Junction in June 2016. He came to Grand Junction from Oro Valley, Arizona, a community outside Tucson, where he had been serving as the town manager. Prior to joining the Town of Oro Valley, Mr. Caton served eight years as assistant city manager for the City of Durango, Colorado. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado, and a master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Colorado at Denver. Mr. Caton has received the Credentialed Manager designation from ICMA (International City/County Management Association), which is the premier municipal government leadership and management organization.