The WCRC-Orchard Mesa site was established as a resaerch farm in 1963 and is located seven miles southeast of Grand Junction at an elevation of 4,750 feet. Within a total of 80 irrigated acres, research is conducted on about 6 acres of peaches, 3.5 acres of wine grapes, 1 acre of cherries, and 2 acres of apples. In addition, four acres are dedicated to rotation of vegetable production for research and hunger relief. Growing facilities include a greenhouse and hoophouse, as well as a service learning garden that is open to the public.

In 2019, CSU constructed Western Campus at the Orchard Mesa site, including a new classroom and office building that houses WCRC, Western Region Extension, and the Colorado State Forest Service. The Western Slope Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory is also located at Western Campus in its own new state-of-art building. The classroom and teaching kitchen facilities create a venue for educational opportunities for students of all ages.

WCRC’s Community Food Systems Program, headquartered at the Orchard Mesa site, provides agricultural literacy programs for children and spearheads the Farm to Food Bank program that has cumulatively donated over 500,000 pounds of produce from WCRC farms to hunger relief programs since 2017.