Report on our Weekend in Boulder (Louisville, Superior: appointed, renting, home)

[jkcoop]

I'll give my two cents here. We live on the very s.w. edge of Longmont - my husband commuted to Boulder for years. We have lots of friends that live over there as we were heavily involved with Lake Eldora Race Team. It is all about perspective.

First off - you were underwhelmed by the beauty of Boulder since it was flat, dry and brown. Many don't realize that this area is an arid climate. If you were underwhelmed now, don't come in August. It's browner and drier. This area is beautiful in it's own way. For people who are used to lush, green areas, you will be in for a shock. The Front Range is a dry area, and water conservation here is a big deal.

Now what you see on Pearl Street - you have to take that with a grain of salt. As mentioned already, it's a tourist attraction. Especially this time of year. I get frustrated by those who base all of Boulder based on Pearl Street. We have many friends, who are normal, hardworking people, with wonderful, normal kids. They work regular jobs, their kids go to the public schools. And yes - most are extremely outdoor oriented.

I guess I've never gotten the feeling of Boulder being unkempt. Yes, there are parts of town, like any town will have, where some will keep better care of their homes/yards then others. And as others have mentioned - it is a college town.

I love the quirkiness of Boulder - the unusual people you'll see, etc. It's taught our son to be opened minded and not base everything off of how someone looks on the outside. Sorry - I guess your comment on "lots and lots of tattoos" and the skeevy element bothered me a bit.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by Neditate

Your perspective is... interesting.
I had written a long reply then hit the wrong key and it was deleted. Probably for the best.
It sounds like Boulder is not the place for you.

Yeah, that happens to me, too, frequently.

Back to Boulder: I have lived in Boulder County for 25 years. I alternately make fun of Boulder and defend it. It has its ridiculous elements, in the true sense of the word, ie, worth of ridicule. Channel 2 in Denver did a "Cover Story" once on their news: "Who's in charge in Boulder? The people or the prairie dogs?" Yes, there is a lot of hand wringing about prairie dogs there than could probably be channeled into more useful activities. And other things. OTOH, there are a lot of ordinary people who live there, albeit many of them have advanced degrees.

I'm not sure where you found the yards "scruffy". Grass doesn't grow like it does in Champaign, IL or Pittsburgh, two places I have lived where people don't have sprinkler systems b/c they don't need them. When we go to those places to visit, everything looks much greener and lush. Also, as several have pointed out ahead of me, it is a college town, with lots of undergraduate rentals. Unless the landlord takes a major interest in such a property, it can get scruffy and unkempt looking fast.

I would tend to agree that the architecture in Boulder is a bit uninteresting, and that many of the houses are small. I would also agree that $500K doesn't get you much there.

[SheridanL]

I would suggest looking in Evergreen. I am NOT being sarcastic, I just think that it may be More of what you are looking for. Seriously. It IS more "green" ....close to everything with a more mountainous feel and many bike trails, places to "get away" etc.
It is pricey ( like Boulder) but, more "homey".
It is often overlooked. IMHO.

[Katiana]

I agree. I think Evergreen has more of what you are looking for. Plus, it's about a half hour drive to Denver if you have to work.

[dictionary]

I totally agree with everything you are saying, but you should see WY it's worse zero care for their homes.. I mean it shocks me. My father is a realtor flew out and told the realtor here that people were living like "pigs" in 500K houses.. it's that bad.

And the having babies young thing is totally true, it's worse in Wyoming. I was shocked.

My theory is the same as yours that they are too busy riding their ATV's RVs' etc to do anything with their homes, but by god they have a plasma screen tv, a harley, and a 20K RV AND a boat..where I come from, we call that ghetto mentality.

Again, I think you'd prefer Westminster or Louisville.. also serioulsy look in to Castle Rock it's wherre I'd go if I had to live in Denver.. imagine a "cleaner boulder" less hippie, more kind of well, Pottery barnish I guess.

[Flatlander]

I, too, enjoyed reading your post; looks like we're on similar paths. We're from the north Chicago suburbs and have been traveling around looking for the "ideal" town for years. We visited Boulder last October (so I was not expecting green lawns). I love that you checked out the Waldorf school! I picked up a local publication and found many great alternative schooling options for young children that peaked my interest. We also biked along the creek path. That path alone could almost make me want to move there!

We stayed in a little victorian vacation renal just several blocks from Pearl Street, in the opposite direction of Chatauqua park. In that neighborhood the homes were well cared for, with nice lawns, though are priced over 1.3.... The Chatauqua area I thought looked a little run down, though charming.

I have to say, I did not see a lot of hippies, young or otherwise. I saw a lot of people that looked just like me and my husband. And that bothered me...I expected a little more diversity and didn't like the idea of living somewhere where everyone looked the same. I also did not notice a lot of young people with babies...in fact I didn't see a lot of babies or children at all.

A friend told me before going that Boulder has a lot of type "A" outdoorsy folks and that was exactly what I saw.... A lot of hard core athletes! Though I liked that everyone looked healthy and took care of themselves.

We're still considering Boulder though Asheville NC might be in the lead.

Good luck!

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by Flatlander

I have to say, I did not see a lot of hippies, young or otherwise. I saw a lot of people that looked just like me and my husband. And that bothered me...I expected a little more diversity and didn't like the idea of living somewhere where everyone looked the same. I also did not notice a lot of young people with babies...in fact I didn't see a lot of babies or children at all.

A friend told me before going that Boulder has a lot of type "A" outdoorsy folks and that was exactly what I saw.... A lot of hard core athletes! Though I liked that everyone looked healthy and took care of themselves.

We're still considering Boulder though Asheville NC might be in the lead.

Good luck!

One of the big complaints about Boulder is that it is NOT very diverse. The athletic stuff gets old, too, if you don't happen to be into climbing 14ers, etc.

[TrickiWoo]

I haven't lived in Boulder very long so I may be a bit off the mark here, but I have small children and notice that most of the other women I meet with babies are not moms at all, but the nannies! Could be why the OP saw so many 'young moms' because most of them tend to be about college age. I was also surprised at the number of girls at Gymboree who looked to be under 25 until I started talking to them and realized they were nannies.
As for the 'scruffy' population on Pearl St., most of those people are travelers who are there to panhandle from the tourists and students out on the bar scene. The dynamic there is completely different during the day. If you live here you get to know who the residents are and who is just passing through.
Before we moved here I had some of the same concerns as the OP, but I have to say that I have never been happier living anywhere. We rent, BTW

[Neditate]

TrickiWoo, that is a VERY good point. I hadn't considered that many of the younger people pushing strollers could be their nannies. STILL, I remain curious as to why it would bother anyone at all...? (I never did get a response to my question.)
Glad to hear that YOU are happy with your move!

[Flatlander]

I'll chime in here...I can't say why it would bother the OP but it would bother me because as a new-first-time-mom in her mid to late 30's...I'm looking for peers and a support network within the community.... Young twenty-somethings would not do the trick for me...I would not expect to make much of a connection with that demographic.

JMO.