Montrose - more popular than GJ?? (Denver, Colorado Springs: transplants, real estate, Home Depot)

[redwhiteblue]

Well I have read through the GJ threads and it doesn't seem to be a very popular place on the forum.

I have crossed GJ out just for the mere fact that I am trying to get away from the desert.

I am looking for specific info. for Montrose, preferably from people that live there currently.

1) Is is green? are there many trees?
(The reason I ask is because the pics I have seen online look nice but there are only a few and I would hate to get there and find out it's just as brown as where I am now.)

2) Is there a shopping mall in Montrose?

3) How similar is the weather to GJ?

4) How close is an airport for jets?

5) Are there any lakes nearby?

6) What do you like best about the area?

Thanks!!

[jazzlover]

Montrose is still in the desert--though a little bit cooler and wetter than Grand Junction. Montrose does have a nice airport, but the closest regional airport is Grand Junction. Expect to pay through the nose to fly out of either one. Most of the locals (that would be the ones that didn't move in with big pot of money) usually wind up driving to Denver, Colorado Springs, or Salt Lake City if they are flying someplace. There's some strip malls and big boxes, mostly fairly new, in Montrose. Rumors are flying that one or more of them are going to be shuttered thanks to the tanking economy. Blue Mesa Reservoir, the largest reservoir in Colorado--along with Crystal and Morrow Point Reservoirs, are about 40 miles from Montrose. One of the few natural lakes of any size in Colorado is Lake San Cristobal at Lake City, about 60 or so miles from Montrose. Ridgway Reservoir is about 25 miles south of Montrose. As noted, Blue Mesa, Crystal Morrow Point and Ridgway are RESERVOIRS, not lakes, and their levels can fluctuate wildly from season to season and year to year. While they offer nice recreational opportunities, that is not the primary thing they are managed for.

Montrose used to be one of the nicest communities in western Colorado. It is increasingly becoming an overpriced yuppieville, deluged with transplants from elsewhere, and is losing its character. The job situation is poor, with lousy local incomes compared to real estate and living costs. Bring money with you, the more the better--most of people who crow about how great it is did just that.

[DOUBLE H]

All comments here are correct. And those big retailers with problems are pretty much easy to see, as far as I'm concerned. I go through Montrose weekly, and I have never seen a lot of cars parked around Target and Office Depot. Home Depot used to be at least halfway busy a couple years ago, but when I stopped in there a few weeks ago to buy a few things there were more employees than customers in the store, a lot more, and this was in the early afternoon.

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by redwhiteblue

Well I have read through the GJ threads and it doesn't seem to be a very popular place on the forum.

Depends on what you mean by popular. A lot of people who live here like it. It's a peaceful, quiet town with hardly any crime.

I have crossed GJ out just for the mere fact that I am trying to get away from the desert.

then you'd better cross out Montrose also. Same climate. Both are in the desert on the western slope.

I am looking for specific info. for Montrose, preferably from people that live there currently.

Montrose is an hour from GJ. There's not a big difference between the two towns. I pass through Montrose all the time on my way to fishing in Gunnison.

1) Is is green? are there many trees?

No. it's the desert.

3) How similar is the weather to GJ?

Similar. Minor local variances.

4) How close is an airport for jets?

Montrose has a regional airport. Don't know if it handles jets. The airport in GJ handles jets, but most of hte flights you get out of there are on turbo prop.

5) Are there any lakes nearby?

Blue Mesa res. large lake about 30-40 min.
Ridgway state park. small lake about 45 min.
Crawford sate park. small lake about 45 min.
Paonia lake. small lake about 1 hour.


For more info: Fish Explorer Colorado Lakes and Reservoirs - Colorado Fishing Map

Personally I find GJ and Montrose interchangeable. It's not the place to be if you don't like living in the desert.

[redwhiteblue]

Thanks for the info.!

[Plain Jane 3953]

Montrose sounds pretty bleak to me.

[brightdoglover]

Montrose never struck me as bleak. I wish the downtown could revive more (I think that means the Big Boxes must decline). It's a nice town, the vibe seems neighborly (this from my elderly friend who lived there for a time, then lived in Ridgway and worked in Montrose all her life, and is now retired there).
The blank subdivisions are a shame. It looks like they'll just go away.