Can someone help me understand Louisville? (Denver, Fort Collins: schools, college, income)
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My wife and I are seriously considering moving our family and recently took a trip to a few of the cities that are at the top of our list. I really wanted to love Louisville and see it as our future home, but after 2 days driving around with a realtor I am having a very hard time figuring out what makes it the best place in America to raise a family. Can anyone help me? What I saw was a town that has a lot of developments where everyone has essentially the same house, and shopping centers with all the same chain-store tenants (Panera Bread Co. anyone?). To me it was very similar to many other suburbs around the US and I just don't see the allure.
Which is exactly the kind of place that ends up in those "Best Cities" lists. It's pleasant, fairly quiet, accessible, safe, friendly to families, has a lot of comfortable, familiar amenities, and may even aspire to have some kind of culture...but inevitably has very little character. Certain kinds of people aren't interested in the "character" or "culture" of their town...more interested in how the lifestyle of the suburb fits their day to day experience.
You never see Denver, Pasadena, Fort Wayne, Minneapolis or Portland on those lists...because they just aren't those kind of cities.
To it's credit, I think Louisville at least makes a bit more of an effort to be a "community" than most of the other cities that show up on those ridiculous lists. It effectively has a proper "main street."
Which is exactly the kind of place that ends up in those "Best Cities" lists. It's pleasant, fairly quiet, accessible, safe, friendly to families, has a lot of comfortable, familiar amenities, and may even aspire to have some kind of culture...but inevitably has very little character. Certain kinds of people aren't interested in the "character" or "culture" of their town...more interested in how the lifestyle of the suburb fits their day to day experience.
You never see Denver, Pasadena, Fort Wayne, Minneapolis or Portland on those lists...because they just aren't those kind of cities.
To it's credit, I think Louisville at least makes a bit more of an effort to be a "community" than most of the other cities that show up on those ridiculous lists. It effectively has a proper "main street."
Very little "character"? Please define and elaborate. The last list that ranked Louisville #1 was for smaller cities. "Certain kinds of people" attend plays at the Louisville Center for the Arts. The plays there frequently sell out.
I've seen Denver, Mpls and Portland on many lists. Ft. Wayne? I don't think so. Pasedena is nice but awfully expensive, and has its share of chain stores, etc.
Louisville is one of Denver/Boulder's nicer suburbs.
But based on what you said, OP, you might actually be happier in Fort Collins. Or Boulder, for that matter. My reasoning is that it sounds like you're looking for more of a college town atmosphere rather than a suburban one (although Boulder / Fort Collins definitely both offer suburban environments as well).
It sounds like you may have been off-put by Boulder's outspoken politics. You wouldn't be the first, but I should tell you that there's a pretty large libertarian contingent in Boulder, many of whom revel in going against the progressive grain there, though baiting your neighbors for sport is not usually a good idea. Boulder is NOT a liberal monoculture, despite what you hear around Metro Denver. There's a lot more people with right of center politics that just choose to be too outspoken about their politics socially, which actually is usually a good idea no matter where you live. It probably WOULD help if you had some interest in outdoor sports, fitness, and natural/organics, since those are three of Boulderites' great passions moreso really than politics.
Fort Collins politics is quite a bit more mainstream than Boulder's. I won't say conservative, at least not by statewide standards, but pretty balanced. The town's hipster quotient is somewhat less than Boulder's but it's not zero either. The southern half of town is pure suburban style (though it's out of commute range to the metro area), while the northern half is more college town. Given what you said, you might enjoy Fort Collins very much.
The main caution I normally have with Fort Collins is that the job opportunities can be scare there. There are several quality companies there but salaries can be a bit on the low side compared to Boulder or Denver, and competition for those jobs can be fierce. For entry level jobs particularly, CSU mints new graduates every year that seem willing to take any starvation wage in order to stay in the Fort. In contrast, CU-Boulder grads seem to dissipate into the Denver job market every year without backlogging the Boulder County job market.
However, OP, since you said you're working remotely that may not be an issue for you.
As a former resident of Fort Collins, it is IMHO one of the nicest towns on the front range, though Boulder is pretty high up there too in my opinion. If the jobs economy problem doesn't trip you up, then look into that.
Speaking of Asian food I will say that if you're looking for truly authentic Asian eateries you really need to look in West Denver (South Federal / West Alameda) or Central/South Aurora, the two Metro hotspots for Asian restaurants and grocery stores (Check out H-Mart in Aurora, for instance). Asian students from CU to CSU generally make occasional treks down to the Asian supermarkets and restaurants to get their fill because there's really nothing in Boulder or Fort Collins that compares. (Although recently a couple of the Asian markets have opened up new locations in Broomfield, which is fairly close to Boulder / Louisville)
One of the largest Asian grocery stores in Denver is in Broomfield--the Pacific Ocean Marketplace off 120th. It's surrounded also by excellent Pho places and a Dim Sum restaurant. The POM is AWESOME! There are actually a ton of great asian restaurants right around that area, there's a great one in my neighborhood--Zen Asian Bistro in Bradburn Village in Westminster (15 minute drive from Louisville 120th ave between Sherian and Federal--5 minutes from POM).
Thanks Bradburn1 and tfox. We checked out the Asian Market last time we were there and it is adequate. We also thought the Vietnamese restaurant next door was very good so we have that checked off. Boulder sounds like Marin county. Very liberal with a strong libertarian contingency. I would love to just not discuss it when at parties, etc. but experience in the Bay Area tells me that others (who are very like-minded) will be the ones initiating. I am tired of just silently stewing so I would like to find a place where I have at least a few friends who think like me. Anyway, I am going to be making another trip there in a few weeks and am taking all of your comments to heart so thank you very much
Louisville has it's pros and cons. Downtown has a bit of charm but the shopping district (36 & McCaslin area) is very suburban and big box.
Ft. Collins is a great town. There are lots of nook and cranny neighborhoods that are great. The poudre school district is probably better than boulder valley. Downtown Ft. Collins is fairly liberal, but the surrounding area tend to be a little more conservative in comparison. this gives you a decent diversity of view points. Boulder, i have to admit can be a little in your face politically, where ft. collins is more laid back. Boulder (& Louisville by extension) is very mono-chromatic when it comes to skin color. Ft. Collins is a little better. But both are very accepting for different cultures, skin color, religious beliefs.
Louisville has it's pros and cons. Downtown has a bit of charm but the shopping district (36 & McCaslin area) is very suburban and big box.
Ft. Collins is a great town. There are lots of nook and cranny neighborhoods that are great. The poudre school district is probably better than boulder valley. Downtown Ft. Collins is fairly liberal, but the surrounding area tend to be a little more conservative in comparison. this gives you a decent diversity of view points. Boulder, i have to admit can be a little in your face politically, where ft. collins is more laid back. Boulder (& Louisville by extension) is very mono-chromatic when it comes to skin color. Ft. Collins is a little better. But both are very accepting for different cultures, skin color, religious beliefs.
I would disagree that Poudre Valley is somehow "better" than Boulder Valley school district.
Louisville is not an extension of Boulder. Many people live in Louisville b/c they don't want to live in Boulder. The Ft. Collins area is definitely more conservative than Boulder County. Colorado CD 2, which contains Boulder County almost always has a Democratic rep, while CD 4, Larimer Co. is generally Republican, though it is currently represented by a Dem who is fighting hard to keep her seat.
If you honestly don't see the appeal in Louisville proper, there are many other suburbs (of Boulder) and exurbs (of Denver) within the immediate area.
Counter-clockwise around Boulder proper:
Superior, Louisville and Broomfield are SSE of Boulder and all border each other.
Lafayette borders Louisville to the NE and Broomfield to the N.
Erie borders Broomfield to the N and Lafayette to the NE.
Dacono/Frederick/Firestone (from S to N - one right after the other) all border Erie to the NE.
Longmont borders Dacono/Frederick/Firestone to the NW, with Niwot and Gunbarrel SSW of Longmont.
Boulder rounds out the counter-clockwise (don't even ask me why I chose counter-clockwise) circle, nestling itself right in SW of Niwot and Gunbarrel.
Superior, Louisville, Lafayette and Broomfield will all give you more of the "suburban" feeling when looking at them from a car window. Of these, Louisville and Lafayette strike me as having more of a "downtown" area with more walkable shopping areas/dining options. Broomfield doesn't really have a dedicated downtown area and Superior's residents mostly frequent Flatiron Crossing for shopping and dining (it's really the only option outside of perhaps a few small pocket shops). Most of this area feels like suburbia because there are no large expanses of open land differentiating the city borders. Streets do that job.
If you are looking for more of a small-town vibe with amenities nearby, Erie, more northern sections of Lafayette and the Dacono/Frederick/Firestone area would probably fit the bill best. There are large areas of open farmland all around, lending to the feel of living in the "boonies" (sadly, although not without merit, those days will be long gone in the next 20 years). Lafayette and Erie both have many family-oriented activities taking place throughout the year, but this is especially true during the summer months. I know Katiana has spent much of her life in the Lafayette/Louisville area (I grew up in Westminster, but have lived in Erie now for 6 years - watching it explode with new residents daily) and both of us are quite content living in the area. I know she's already thrown her $.02 in. I don't know much about the school districts so I will let others handle that.
Judging by the traffic patterns I observe every morning, many of the residents in the area commute to Boulder for work (we're about 10 miles due east). Highway 7 (Baseline) and Arapahoe Road are jam packed from 7:00-8:30 heading west every morning, vice versa between 5:00 and 6:30 every evening. I, myself, commute to Denver. The nice part about this area of the Denver/Boulder metroplex is that both Denver and Boulder (and all of the activities and things to do in between) are easily accessible and both offer a wildly different experience politically and with regard to entertainment and access to mountain getaways. I have never been a huge fan of Boulder for personal reasons, but I love living in the area. It's a far different experience than my friends who live much closer to Denver.
As far as housing goes, comparable properties in Weld County (eastern half of Erie and Longmont, Dacono/Frederick/Firestone) will be less expensive than those in Boulder and Broomfield Counties (rest of the cities listed). I would expect home prices throughout the area to be in the $200-$400k range for most subdivisions with obvious exceptions. Boulder, Superior and Broomfield are likely to have the highest average prices; probably in that order.
I've written several posts about my love for the area and could go on and on. I hope this helps narrow down your search a little more. Please do not discount the Louisville area just because you don't understand how it made #1 on a list that doesn't really mean much anyway. There are numerous surrounding areas with different vibes, different activities and different views of the magnificent mountains.
I am coming back this week to check out the area and look at Evergreen as well. Not sure if I will make it to Ft. Collins but it sounds intriguing.
Thanks again!
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