What do you think about Pueblo Colorado? (Denver, Colorado Springs: renting, house)

[oceankidz]

For those that are from the Pueblo area, how does Florence hold up as an alternative place to live if you are commuting to Pueblo and Colorado SPrings? I love the style of houses and wondered what others thought or know of Florence.

[jazzlover]

Florence has had its ups and downs. The location of the Federal Supermax prison just south of town has added some jobs to the area. The Main street has kind of become an "antiquing" center for the area, with a lot of shops catering to that. Most other retail needs require going to Canon City, Pueblo, or Colorado Springs. I agree that some of the older architecture is wonderful. Like many other older Colorado towns, neighborhoods in Florence can have a mix of nice, renovated homes right next to some pretty seedy houses in desperate need of maintenance, renovation, or demolition.

I will preach (once again), though, about the dubious wisdom of setting oneself up for a lengthy commute. My personal opinion is that we are at the beginning of a long-term very expensive run-up in fuel prices and increasingly unreliable fuel supply situation that are going stun the American public and lay waste to a lot of our suburban/exurban commuting lifestyle.

[oceankidz]

Thanks for sharing your vast knowledge of Colorado. If one was not commuting on a daily basis - but wanted to live in a small affordable town with a rural setting, where would you see Florence heading to in the future. We still have kids at home, but homeschool. HOrses and rock climbing take up their time, do not need malls! We have spent a day in Florence, so have a basic idea of the neighbourhoods, but not the community.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by oceankidz

Thanks for sharing your vast knowledge of Colorado. If one was not commuting on a daily basis - but wanted to live in a small affordable town with a rural setting, where would you see Florence heading to in the future. We still have kids at home, but homeschool. HOrses and rock climbing take up their time, do not need malls! We have spent a day in Florence, so have a basic idea of the neighbourhoods, but not the community.

I like Florence. I don't live there, but it is a town I would have on a "short list" of likable small towns in Colorado. My main complaint about that area is a personal one--I'm not a fan of hot summers. That part of the Arkansas valley can have those. For those who like to garden, etc., though, the area is pretty nice. Some of the most beautiful rose gardens, etc. that I have ever seen in Colorado were in Florence. That area also has about as mild a winter as you can find in Colorado. Someone who lives there can give you a much better idea of the community itself, but from what I've seen, it's a pretty typical non-suburban, non-tourist-infested Colorado town. Come to think of it, those two favorable attributes make it pretty "un-typical" for Colorado, I guess.

[Haley R]

I don't know if you are still looking to move, or have moved, but I give a huge vote for Pueblo, especially Pueblo West! I have lived here for 12 years and love it! I bought my house right on the edge of the entrance to Lake Pueblo and there are bike paths all around here. Great place for kids, schools are wonderful (I volunteer and substitute) and a vast change from SOCAL (was just there visiting my daughter). Houses are reasonable (@$150k for a newer house w/1 acre of land) and about the only complaint I have is the wind... we have a boat and spend all of the weekends on the lake, fishing and having fun. [ mod cut ]

[livecontent]

When I first heard of Pueblo,

I was about 8 years old--it was in the 1950s in New York. I went to an Italian Wedding--I am from a Sicilian Family. It was a large wedding with many extended family member, some friends of a friend --many of them I had never met before or since.

I was sitting at the table, playing with my food as young children do--pretending not to be listening to the adult talk around me.

I heard a much older man, I say at that time he was in in 40s, talking about how he had to get out of town because he got into trouble, and he was going to stay with some family members in "Pu-Blow" somewhere out in the West in "Ka-ra-da" When, I heard mention of the west, of course I thought of Cowboys and Indians, and I paid more attention and remembered it.

Latter. I went to college in Binghampton, NY on the southern tier. It was pointed out to me the house up in the Appalachian foothills that was noted for the famous Federal raid on a big mafia meeting, sometime in the 1950s. This was when they discovered some unknown family groups of the mafia, with a family representative from------Pueblo.

When I came to Colorado, I had to see "Pu-Blow". I heard it was a stinky dirty steel town. What I saw was nothing to compare to the steel towns of the east--I laughed, if they are thinking this is a steel town--then they should see the huge meandering steel mills in New York and Pennsylvania that go on for miles and miles.

Today, having been there a few times, I think Pueblo is a nice town with a bad reputation that it does not deserve; I could live there; I would live there--maybe there are some distant relatives that will put me up. or down.

Livecontent (I hope after I posted this)

[livecontent]

Originally Posted by livecontent

When I first heard of Pueblo,

I was about 8 years old--it was in the 1950s in New York. I went to an Italian Wedding--I am from a Sicilian Family. It was a large wedding with many extended family member, some friends of a friend --many of them I had never met before or since.

I was sitting at the table, playing with my food as young children do--pretending not to be listening to the adult talk around me.

I heard a much older man, I say at that time he was in in 40s, talking about how he had to get out of town because he got into trouble, and he was going to stay with some family members in "Pu-Blow" somewhere out in the West in "Ka-ra-da" When, I heard mention of the west, of course I thought of Cowboys and Indians, and I paid more attention and remembered it.

Latter. I went to college in Binghampton, NY on the southern tier. It was pointed out to me the house up in the Appalachian foothills that was noted for the famous Federal raid on a big mafia meeting, sometime in the 1950s. This was when they discovered some unknown family groups of the mafia, with a family representative from------Pueblo.

When I came to Colorado, I had to see "Pu-Blow". I heard it was a stinky dirty steel town. What I saw was nothing to compare to the steel towns of the east--I laughed, if they are thinking this is a steel town--then they should see the huge meandering steel mills in New York and Pennsylvania that go on for miles and miles.

Today, having been there a few times, I think Pueblo is a nice town with a bad reputation that it does not deserve; I could live there; I would live there--maybe there are some distant relatives that will put me up. or down.

Livecontent (I hope after I posted this)

It appears some people said I made up this story--well, the truth of the Appalachin (name of town) Meeting is found at:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apalachin_Meeting

If you scroll down to the end you will find the people that were "detained and indicted", and one was:

"James "Black Jim" Colletti - Colorado Colletti Family Boss (Pueblo, Colorado)"

Also please note: that none of the people "detained and indicted" were convicted of any crime--all were released.

Livecontent

[traveler42]

we are a young married couple with an eleven month old baby boy; currently living in Southern California and thinking of moving to Pueblo Colorado. We would highly appreciate your input. Looking for excellent schools and a nice neightborhood. Our price range is 200 - 300. Overall we want a better quality of life for our family. Can you recommend other areas???


To above: I only lived here 6 wks to work at a local hospital. My impression of Pueblo, nothing to do. People keep to them selves, not friendly , for the most part. Most people I talked to ( females) asked why did I move here, my reply , Im only contract and then Im gone. Most others, state ,and the fact there is Nothing to do.
The community is poor , sorry to state that, but economically, there are no big business's for the economic base.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by traveler42

we are a young married couple with an eleven month old baby boy; currently living in Southern California and thinking of moving to Pueblo Colorado. We would highly appreciate your input. Looking for excellent schools and a nice neightborhood. Our price range is 200 - 300. Overall we want a better quality of life for our family. Can you recommend other areas???


To above: I only lived here 6 wks to work at a local hospital. My impression of Pueblo, nothing to do. People keep to them selves, not friendly , for the most part. Most people I talked to ( females) asked why did I move here, my reply , Im only contract and then Im gone. Most others, state ,and the fact there is Nothing to do.
The community is poor , sorry to state that, but economically, there are no big business's for the economic base.

I would be the first to admit that Pueblo does have some issues. The main reason I would not live in Pueblo is that it is just too darned hot in the summer there for my tastes. Maybe I have a different perception than some, but several of my very best friends either live in Pueblo or grew up there. If they are any indication, Pueblo people are pretty friendly. I have never been treated discourteously in any way when I have visited or done business in Pueblo.

As to "nothing to do," if one is expecting the culture of a big city, you won't find it in Pueblo, any more than you would find it in 90% of the communities in Colorado. There is some great relatively unspoiled, uncrowded, and un-"yuppified" mountain country within a 1 1/2 to 4 hour drive from Pueblo--so, even though Pueblo is farther from the mountain backdrop of the Front Range than some other cities, it still has mountain recreation nearby.

Like any bigger town (and many smaller ones, too), Pueblo does have some pretty seedy neighborhoods. It is also still a predominantly "blue-collar" community--nothing wrong with that. Pueblo is working at a steady pace to revitalize its downtown. There is a lot of lovely older architecture in Pueblo. The town has a very colorful history going back to Colorado's earliest days of settlement. Pueblo had "diversity" long before it was considered "chic." For example, you can find some of the best and most authentic ethnic food in Pueblo that there is in Colorado--and it's generally pretty reasonably priced.

Pueblo will probably never be quite like its northern city neighbors along the Front Range and it shouldn't try to be. Economically, Pueblo has weathered some pretty rough times in the last 20-25 years. They have held up to that a lot better, I think, than most other Front Range cities will when their turn comes "in the barrel," which I suspect is on the way pretty soon.

[McGowdog]

Yup, I'd agree with JL on that one too.

On paper, Pueblo don't look so good. The economy is depressed compared to the rest of the world and that of the Springs and Denver. But for Pueblo, it's getting by ok. I've been in or near this area since 77. Prior to that, I lived in Chatsworth for about 10 years.

I'd take this ghetto over that ghetto any day. The schools in Pueblo have a bit of a bad rap on the national level. The few county schools- Pueblo County, Pueblo West, and Rye- are in better shape all the way around. That's not my opinion, there are stats to back that up; Colorado schools - CO elementary, middle and high school information .

I guess Pueblo has a charter school or two which are even better for academics. Of the public high schools in the area, Rye is best with a Great Schools rating of 7 and an Academics Performance Rating of High, which is much better than your 4A Pueblo city schools. That's not to say that one couldn't go to one of these schools and excel. I went to Rye, so I'm kinda biased there. It's a 30 minute commute to Pueblo and very worth it.








The last one is of the Reservoir out in Pueblo West (P-Dub). The former are in the Greenhorn Valley.

I think Nothing To Do is a state of mind myself.

There are a few mentally challenged people in Pueblo, so I take most of what they say with a grain of salt.

Oh, by the way; why do they put bars up on the windows at the State Hospital?




You give up? To keep the squirrels away from the nuts.

In response to Steveco; ...a thousand years ago into the future, oops! Just had an Aqua Teen Hunger Force flashback.

Isolated in every direction? It's far enough away from the Denver South-er-Colorado Springs area to make us happy (about 35 miles?), far enough away from Canon City to make them happy, about 26 miles to Colorado City, another 8 to Rye and another 5 or so to San Isabel, then another few miles to the infamous Bishop's Castle, then another few miles to Ophir Creek road, then back around to Beulah and/or Westcliffe, etc. Then if you head east, you've got Fowler, Manzanola, Rocky Ford, Swink, La Junta, Las Animas, Bent's Fort on your left, Hasty (turn right here and you're at John Martin Reservoir which is about a billion times the size of Chatfield, Stanley Lake, Cherry Creek Reservoir, and Aurora Rez put together), Lamar, then Kansas.

So it's all in the eye of the beholder, I guess. And my beholder's about to tweak... AHHH! Another Bloodhound Gang flashback!