Most of Parachute's grocery money was already going to Rifle and Grand Junction before Clark's Market locked its doors in September. Clark's said as much on the way out. Samantha Johnston, the chain's director of marketing and community affairs, described the store's position to Aspen Public Radio this way: "I'm going to buy most of my groceries somewhere else, but I really depend on Clark's to grab items throughout the week that I'm missing." The Battlement Mesa store depended entirely on local customers. Most of the chain's other stores are in tourist towns like Aspen, Snowmass, Telluride and Sedona.
That makes the midweek stop the real loss: the forgotten carton of eggs, the refill due Wednesday, the formula run. Those used to take a few minutes behind the golf course. Refills and fresh food now mean a trip to Rifle, and the pieces that stayed in town keep limited hours of their own. The errand now has to fit a pharmacy schedule in Rifle, a weekday bus, and a few pantry days a week.
What the closure took with it
Clark's had been in Battlement Mesa for 17 years. Aspen Public Radio gives the last day as Sept. 11, 2026. The Post Independent gives Sept. 12. Either way, Aspen Public Radio counts roughly 7,000 people in Parachute and Battlement Mesa who now drive 15 to 20 miles east on I-70 to reach a grocery store. That's at least 25 minutes by car, and longer by bus.
The same report lists three things Clark's handled that nothing else in town does:
- Prescriptions. Clark's had the only pharmacy counter in the area.
- WIC purchases. It was the only local store where families could buy infant formula through WIC.
- Fresh produce. Nowhere else in Parachute-Battlement Mesa sells it.
Christine Singleton Dolan, a nutrition program manager with Garfield County Public Health, told the Post Independent what that means on an ordinary day: "If you do your grocery shopping and you forget something, what are you gonna do?" A longtime Parachute resident pointed to the drive itself in the Aspen Public Radio story: "It's on I-70, and people are going 80 miles an hour. Some folks are just not going to be comfortable hopping on the highway like that."
The station also reported that many residents work elsewhere in the region, and some already shopped at Walmart or City Market on the way home. For them, the routine mostly holds. The gap falls hardest on anyone without a daily commute through Rifle.
Each replacement runs on its own schedule
Here's what covers the pieces Clark's used to handle, and when each one is open.
| Need | Where it goes now | Hours and terms |
|---|---|---|
| Prescriptions | City Market Pharmacy, 1320 Railroad Ave., Rifle, (970) 625-9420 | Mon to Fri 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sat 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sun 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed daily 1 to 1:30 p.m. |
| Basics in town | Family Dollar, 98 Cardinal Way, Parachute, (970) 981-3544 | Daily 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. |
| Points-based pantry shopping | LIFT-UP, inside the Garfield 16 Family Resource Center, 215 N. Parachute Ave. | Tue and Thu, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., per an April 2026 notice |
| Food, clothing, household items | Pantry of Hope at the Family Resource Center | Five days a week |
| A ride to Rifle | PATS fixed route | Weekdays only; $4 one way |
Each row comes with a limit. Clark's Market Pharmacy started moving prescriptions to the Rifle City Market before the store closed. That counter closes for half an hour midday and has shorter weekend hours, so a refill is now something to plan around. City Market advertises prescription delivery with grocery orders through partners including Instacart and ScriptDrop. Controlled and refrigerated medications are excluded, fees may apply, and eligibility depends on the prescription and the delivery address. Anyone in 81635 should check their own address with the pharmacy before counting on it.
Family Dollar's store page lists milk, eggs and bread and offers same-day delivery through DoorDash, Uber Eats and Instacart. Singleton Dolan told the Post Independent that its frozen, dairy and packaged items don't match what a full-service grocery store carries.
The pantries pushed back the hardest. LIFT-UP Executive Director Samantha Freese told the Post Independent the organization added volunteers and stocked more food in Parachute after the closure. Its pantry works like a small grocery store, with points based on household size, and carries produce, meat and dairy. A senior box program also delivers food to the homes of local seniors. According to Aspen Public Radio, staff at the Family Resource Center suggest using both pantries on LIFT-UP days. Congregants from Grand Valley Methodist Church planted a garden beside the center and donate what it grows. The LIFT-UP hours above are from a spring notice, so call before planning a visit around them.
Freese also said plainly what the pantries are not: "Both of us are not a replacement for a grocery store."
The bus to Rifle runs on commuter hours
PATS, the Parachute Area Transit System, is what makes Rifle reachable without a car. Its posted eastbound schedule is built around commuters. A bus leaving Rainbow Trail at 6:39 a.m. stops at Rifle Park & Ride at 7:30, GRHD Hospital at 7:39 and Walmart at 7:42. The next full run gets to Walmart at 9:36 a.m. The single late-morning trip starts at Cottonwood Apartments at 11:07 and ends at Rifle Park & Ride. The other Walmart arrivals on the posted schedule are in the evening.
PATS on-demand service fills the middle of the day, but only inside each town. It runs 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in Parachute and 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. in Rifle, and it doesn't carry riders between the two zones. A midday trip from Battlement Mesa to the Rifle pharmacy has to use the fixed route. The posted route also still lists a stop at Clark's Market. To confirm current stops or buy a pass, call 970-414-5410 or stop by Parachute Town Hall at 222 Grand Valley Way.
Town Manager Travis Elliott called the service a real asset in the Post Independent's coverage of the closure, with a caveat that anyone who has ridden it with shopping bags will recognize: "You can imagine schlepping in grocery bags and a bunch of stuff on the bus is just difficult."
Those hours may also change. The Post Independent reported on Oct. 12 that Rifle was considering more PATS funding for 2027. Elliott said the options being discussed for Parachute's afternoon on-demand window were 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. or 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., in place of the current 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Rifle's vote was expected at its first council meeting in December. Until then, those options are proposals, not a new schedule.
Why a new store is a hard sell, and what the town is doing
The reason Clark's gave for closing is the same thing any future grocer would have to overcome. Johnston told Aspen Public Radio that big chains can "price a product for a customer below what we could even purchase the product for." Mickey Davis, who manages Colorado's Community Food Access Program, told the station that a 2 to 3% profit is common in the grocery business. She also said distributors are often reluctant to make the trip to small, hard-to-reach towns. The Post Independent added the other side of the math. For some residents, once the cost of getting to Rifle was counted, Clark's was the cheapest option or the only one they had.
The town is still working on it. Elliott told the Post Independent that a grocer "has been at the top of our list of priority businesses to attract here," and said in early September that there was "positive momentum" toward bringing in a new pharmacy. LIFT-UP, the Garfield 16 School-Based Family Resource Center, town managers and developers have formed a group to work on short- and long-term food access. Residents told Aspen Public Radio that the town's discussions include finding the right location and setting up tax incentives for investors. As of late October, no grocer or pharmacy has been named for Parachute.
These dates are worth keeping on the fridge through the end of the year:
- Nov. 9: Letters of interest are due for the town-owned building at 147 W. 1st Street, an 855-square-foot space where any tenant build-out would be paid for by the tenant. The solicitation doesn't name a grocer or pharmacy as the intended use.
- Thanksgiving week: The holiday falls on Thursday, Nov. 26. The City Market Pharmacy schedule in the table above is its regular weekly schedule, so check holiday hours with the store before planning a refill around the holiday.
- Early December: Rifle's first council meeting of the month is when the PATS funding decision, and with it Parachute's on-demand hours for 2027, is expected.
- Dec. 12: Holidays in Grand Valley begins at 2:30 p.m. at Parachute Rest Area Park and the I-70 Visitor Center. The light parade is at 5:15 p.m. and the tree lighting at 5:45, followed by fireworks.
The Monday Market at the Rest Area Park, 400 2nd St., ran Monday evenings from July 6 through Aug. 24 this year, and that season is over.
Distance to a pharmacy, a grocery store or a bus stop affects day-to-day life on any property out here, from a house in Battlement Mesa to acreage outside town. Sorrel Properties works with Western Colorado buyers and owners on exactly those practical questions. If you'd like to talk through how errands and access work on a property you own or are considering, let's connect.
