Moving to Boulder (Denver, Aurora, Broomfield: appointed, low crime, home)

[mydancingangel]

My family and I are planning to move to Boulder this summer from Texas but after reading some posts on here I am wondering if it is a good decision. We have spent some time in Boulder and love the small town feel, the beauty(of course) and all of the amenities. We are definitely not far left liberals, but are open-minded and accepting of others. We have two small children and were thinking that Boulder would be a great place to raise a family. Are the people really that bad and is it a a crazy far left liberal place? We know that it is not the most affordable town, but are prepared for that aspect. Any advice about Boulder would be great.

[Katiana]

I have lived in Boulder County for 25 yrs. I would not say people in Boulder are left-wing crazy; I would say rather there is an intolerance of any other point of view. The joke in Boulder is that diversity means people of all races who all think alike. The so-called liberalism is mainly environmental. Human service definitely takes a back seat there. Outsiders, especially Texans and Californians, are disliked because some of the old timers feel they are entitled to live in Boulder and no one else should be let in. Newcomers are "raping the landscape", etc. One on one, people tend to be much nicer. You are likely to hear "you're OK, for a Texan".

I personally would not like to raise a family in Boulder. I like the smaller communities in the county with their community spirit. Boulderites are very recreation oriented, but there is not a bowling alley in the city except at CU. Home lots tend to be small.

Politics in Boulder is very strange. The Old Guard environmentalists control city council and also the county commissioners. All council members are elected at-large, instead of by district. Most council members live in the CU professor area, and two once lived together! (They were of the opposite sex.)

My advice would be to live in one of the communities near Boulder instead of in the city.

[sunsprit]

I'd agree with pittnurse except that I'd characterize the area as "left wing crazy".

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by pittnurse70

I have lived in Boulder County for 25 yrs. I would not say people in Boulder are left-wing crazy; I would say rather there is an intolerance of any other point of view. The joke in Boulder is that diversity means people of all races who all think alike.

Actually, I think you got it backwards. Boulder (as well as the demographics of CU) is not racially diverse at all-- it is over 90% white. Other than a few token Tibetan Buddhists (most of whom are really white boys playing along, not the real thing), there's not much cultural diversity. Boulder's "liberalism" is more of a feel-good, "boutique" liberalism than anything else.

If you want to see real ethnic diversity, not the phoney kind, check out Aurora, of all places. Huge populations of Koreans, middle-easterners, Russians, and Indians/SE Asia-- in addition to your standard African American and hispanic minorities. Of course, Boulder blows away Aurora in terms of being a "picturesque" city-- and having jobs.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

Actually, I think you got it backwards. Boulder (as well as the demographics of CU) is not racially diverse at all-- it is over 90% white. Other than a few token Tibetan Buddhists (most of whom are really white boys playing along, not the real thing), there's not much cultural diversity. Boulder's "liberalism" is more of a feel-good, "boutique" liberalism than anything else.

If you want to see real ethnic diversity, not the phoney kind, check out Aurora, of all places. Huge populations of Koreans, middle-easterners, Russians, and Indians/SE Asia-- in addition to your standard African American and hispanic minorities. Of course, Boulder blows away Aurora in terms of being a "picturesque" city-- and having jobs.

Well, I agree. I said it was a joke. The Boulder Valley School District is 85% white. They preach a lot about diversity, though, in the schools and elsewhere. My kids learned about diversity in college in Indaiana and Denver. I grew up in the Pittsburgh area, learned about it in my everyday living.

[TinajaCo]

Well, it isn't the "People's Republic of Boulder" for nothing....

I think what everybody has said has been right on. Boulder is a beautiful place and I love to visit-- it's very walkable, with stunning scenery-- but I personally would never live there. I have not found it to be a particularly friendly place, nor is it very diverse. And I would say it's beyond liberal-- Denver is liberal, Boulder is just out there, in every sense of the phrase. These are of course my personal perceptions, and I do know people that live in Boulder and absolutely love it. But in my opinion I think there are some other good options for you to consider that meet your criteria (Golden, Castle Rock, and areas of Denver come to mind).

[jed0909]

mydancingangel,

I wouldn't panic about moving to Boulder. It's true that it's very liberal, and one can start to see some hypocrisy here after awhile. My friend went to CU for college and used to joke about how all the rich kids would pretend to be poor, gripe about the environment, all the while driving around in the SUVs their parents bought for them. I'm very liberal myself, so maybe that's part of my tolerance for the place. I do think the folks who are intolerant of any other viewpoint are mainly the younger folks, not the families and middle-aged folks. But I have found people here to be quite friendly, and have just loved the clean air, good restaurants, the safe, healthy atmosphere, and I would argue that it is family-friendly. The town holds events all the time and you will find Pearl Street and farmers' markets scattered with happy kids running around everywhere.

If nothing else, property values here are so reliable, if you decide you don't like it after a year or two, you should have no problem selling your home.

[tfox]

I like Boulder. I lived there before and I would do it again. I also admire many of the things their "liberal" city founders can do. And while the rest of the state usually sees Boulder as this wacky, far-left hippie commune, I don't really see it that way -- after all, how "liberal" can a town full of rich white people really be?

So, provided you're not scared away by the high cost of living there, I think that Boulder is a great place to live and would recommend it. It has a stunning location, great schools, genuinely walkable, outstanding recreational ameneties, a very healthy job market, a dynamic downtown -- really the place has a lot to offer.

I think what grates some people (myself included) is that the preachy liberalism there "feels" fake. I've heard many Boulderites carp about how diverse Boulder is, when in fact the extremely high income level of the town (excluding the student population) essentially means that the town has virtually no diversity (it's a bunch of upper-income white people, period). There's also a bit of "preachiness" regarding organic foods and that sort of thing -- some of my friends kept referring to the Albertson's grocery store on 30th St as "the ghetto Albertson's" (largely because Boulder's miniscule Hispanic population actually could afford to shop there). Please. Oh yes, and how the city of Denver is a Bush-loving Republican citadel. Uhhh.... yeah sure. (People in Boulder don't usually visit Denver much, except for the CU crowd and then only after midnight on Fridays).

I'm probably making it sound pretty bad... but the positive side of things is that at least in Boulder there's a real sense of community -- even if the "community" can be downright annoying sometimes. Compare that with living in the 'burbs, where you'd have no idea what your neighbors thought about Bush or organic foods or anything else.

[Wisteria]

I love Boulder and lived there for 5 years a long time ago. It's still as beautiful as ever, although there is some growth now. It's got terrific weather, the Flatirons are spectacular, lots of healthy food stores, lots of outdoor activities.

Now, the flip-side. I actually was thinking of returning to Boulder with my then six-year-old daughter. Well, I was quite surprised that people seemed so unaccepting of children! I had lived there before as a single person, and now with a child, I noticed a lot of stares, a lot of people in stores seemed really annoyed to have a kid there, in restaurants it seemed frowned upon. I was truly disappointed and ultimately did not move back.

There are pros and cons to everyplace, and I think Boulder really has a lot going for it. Not much in the way of diversity. I actually remember an article (for real!) in the CU student newspaper that had a photo of people standing on top of the Flatirons pointing down into the city. The caption read: "First one to find a black in Boulder City limits wins!" I'll never forget that. My friend from New York City who also lived there at the same time, used to joke that she knew all five black people in Boulder! And then we'd take day trips to Denver to see "fat" people!

It's really a great city in most ways, and like all cities, it has problems, but it's a gorgeous place, very low crime, very clean, and some of the old hippies are having kids now. I also remember a newspaper article about this couple who …. gasp … had a child when the husband was …. 40 …. and they asked him how it was to be "an old father!" It's definitely a culture built on youth and fitness, however, I am sure it could still be a great place to live as a family. It's not like you'd be the only family there! I'm sure there are many others.

If it feels good to you, you like it, you find things you enjoy, then do it. If not, then find someplace else that seems better. Boulder will always be a gem of a place just because of the gorgeous location and great weather. I still miss it.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by tfox

I'm probably making it sound pretty bad... but the positive side of things is that at least in Boulder there's a real sense of community -- even if the "community" can be downright annoying sometimes. Compare that with living in the 'burbs, where you'd have no idea what your neighbors thought about Bush or organic foods or anything else.

Many of the 'burbs have a sense of community as well. I would say both Broomfield and Louisville do, for starts. I live in one and my kids did high school sports in the other. Sense of community seems to be what you make of it - if you get involved in community and school activities you will find it. If all you have time for is "eat, work, sleep", which happens sometimes, you will miss it.