Stapleton vs. Tallyn's Reach (Denver, Aurora: houses, neighborhoods, to buy)

[Kaizmama]

Hi!

My family and I (youngish married couple with an almost 4 year old) are considering moving to Denver in about a year and we would love some insight about both communities.

(Hubby works for a company that has offices in both Los Angeles- where we live now- and Lone Tree.)

I've been doing a lot of research online and so far these two communities are really sticking out to me. We will of course go check them out first but I would love to hear comparisons from people who know the areas. (anti suburbianites please don't comment- we want the suburbs )

We are really excited about living in a Master Planned community with pools and stores, and parks and trails and community events for the family (upscale but not snooty )

Both seem amazing with Stapleton being further from my hubby's work (Lone Tree) but closer to the city and things that we might want to frequent (vegetarian restaurants such as Watercourse and a Whole Foods).

1) would the commute from Stapleton to Lone Tree be horrible?
2) are there any vegetarian/whole foods options in the Tallyn's Reach area? (I haven't been able to find any- this is kind of important but not a deal breaker.)
3) Schools seem pretty great in both communities. From Elementary to Highschool- how do both these communities compare?

Our budget for a home is in the 500-700K range.

Thanks so much!

[2bindenver]

What about Ridge Gate or Castle Pines or Highlands Ranch?

[Mezter]

Can't give you much info...but go with Tallyns Reach!! I use to live there, and I attended Cherokee Trail High School and it was really nice (great learning expirence).
If you move to Tallyns Reach the schools your children will be attending are
Elementary: Coyote Hills
Middle: Fox Ridge
High: Cherokee Trail
This is a fairly new area, so it may be somewhat expensive, but Areas like Southlands mall and Aurora Reservoir are near by!

Stapleton is also a VERY nice neighbor hood. Can't really say much about the area though.

[Kaizmama]

Originally Posted by 2bindenver

What about Ridge Gate or Castle Pines or Highlands Ranch?

Thanks for those suggestions- Are Ridge Gate or Castle Pines newer than Tallyn's Reach?

I guess I should have specified that the BEST schools are priority (location 2nd).

I am really interested in Tallyn's Reach because of the Cherry Creek school district.

But again if there are better schools than Cherry Creek, within our 500-700K price, great master planned community, not too far from Lone Tree, that would be great as well!

[zenkonami]

I would think Stapleton would be the longer and potentially nastier commute to Lone Tree between the two choices. I would definitely recommend living closer to the workplace (particularly as one that is not a fan of sprawl.) I don't like Highlands Ranch myself, but it would be quite an appropriate area for one commuting to Lone Tree and could certainly accomodate that price range. Centennial and Parker also seem like they would make a better fit as far as distance goes.

[vegaspilgrim]

Tallyn's Reach is in a much more scenic & rugged location with rolling hills, natural pine forest clusters, and awesome mountain views. It's located on the outer perimeter of southeast Aurora, which is a very nice, family friendly suburban area. IMHO, the Cherry Creek School District is the best in the area-- it doesn't get any better than that. Tallyn's Reach will be MUCH closer to work. Getting on E-470 (you'll pay a few bucks in tolls but it will be worth it) will get you to Lone Tree VERY quickly. If suburbia is what you want, Tallyn's Reach will be a good fit for you. The Southlands outdoor mall at E-470 & Smoky Hill Rd will take care of most of your shopping needs. There's not currently a whole foods in that part of town though. There is a Sprouts store (same as Henry's in CA) nearby.

Stapleton is a flat infill development built on the former Denver airport. Stapleton is a textbook example of a new urbanist community. Advantage of Stapleton is it's closer to downtown & the core of the city & the mountains, whereas living out in southeast Aurora will require a much longer drive to get to cultural/entertainment/recreation events.

Take a look at my southeast Aurora photo tour. Southeast Aurora, CO -- PHOTO TOUR. This includes a bunch of pictures of Tallyn's Reach. Also besides Tallyn's Reach there are other great neighborhoods in the area that you should check out, such as Saddle Rock.

[SenseiGerry]

DEFINITELY Tallyns. There's a new natural grocer on Smoky Hill Rd, approx 4 miles away. The commute from Tallyns to Lone Tree is about 15 minutes via E470, a tool road, but darn well worth it. The school district at Tallyns is Cherry Creek - one of the top districts in the state.
Stapleton? Uh, no thanks. Close to the inner-city. Walmart closes at 10 PM because they've been robbed so many times. Denver Public Schools are typically among the lowest-achieving in the state. They may have a natural grocer, but you might get mugged on the way back to your car.
By the way, I live close to Tallyns but I work as a police officer in Denver, so I think I know my neighborhoods.

[Kaizmama]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

Tallyn's Reach is in a much more scenic & rugged location with rolling hills, natural pine forest clusters, and awesome mountain views. It's located on the outer perimeter of southeast Aurora, which is a very nice, family friendly suburban area. IMHO, the Cherry Creek School District is the best in the area-- it doesn't get any better than that. Tallyn's Reach will be MUCH closer to work. Getting on E-470 (you'll pay a few bucks in tolls but it will be worth it) will get you to Lone Tree VERY quickly. If suburbia is what you want, Tallyn's Reach will be a good fit for you. The Southlands outdoor mall at E-470 & Smoky Hill Rd will take care of most of your shopping needs. There's not currently a whole foods in that part of town though. There is a Sprouts store (same as Henry's in CA) nearby.

Stapleton is a flat infill development built on the former Denver airport. Stapleton is a textbook example of a new urbanist community. Advantage of Stapleton is it's closer to downtown & the core of the city & the mountains, whereas living out in southeast Aurora will require a much longer drive to get to cultural/entertainment/recreation events.

Take a look at my southeast Aurora photo tour. Southeast Aurora, CO -- PHOTO TOUR. This includes a bunch of pictures of Tallyn's Reach. Also besides Tallyn's Reach there are other great neighborhoods in the area that you should check out, such as Saddle Rock.

Wow, thanks so much for those photos!! really gave me a nice feel of the area. This may seem like a silly question but- does the grass get green? I have never lived anywhere it snows (I grew up in Hawaii and have lived in Souther Cali for 12 years) so this is a serious question
I am actually excited to live in a place with 'seasons' for once.

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by Kaizmama

Wow, thanks so much for those photos!! really gave me a nice feel of the area. This may seem like a silly question but- does the grass get green? I have never lived anywhere it snows (I grew up in Hawaii and have lived in Souther Cali for 12 years) so this is a serious question
I am actually excited to live in a place with 'seasons' for once.

Are you asking about lawn turf? Your grass gets green, if you water it, from May through September. Once it starts geting below freezing and/or you stop watering your lawn, it dries up. If you're asking about the native prairie grass-- it gets green for about two months of the year (May-June), sometimes longer if it's a particularly rainy summer. Mid-late summer it turns a very faint green color, and by fall and winter it's completely yellow/brown.

[caelia]

Originally Posted by SenseiGerry

DEFINITELY Tallyns. There's a new natural grocer on Smoky Hill Rd, approx 4 miles away. The commute from Tallyns to Lone Tree is about 15 minutes via E470, a tool road, but darn well worth it. The school district at Tallyns is Cherry Creek - one of the top districts in the state.
Stapleton? Uh, no thanks. Close to the inner-city. Walmart closes at 10 PM because they've been robbed so many times. Denver Public Schools are typically among the lowest-achieving in the state. They may have a natural grocer, but you might get mugged on the way back to your car.
By the way, I live close to Tallyns but I work as a police officer in Denver, so I think I know my neighborhoods.

Wow, this is a really inaccurate post. First of all, there is no natural grocer in Stapleton, so there is zero chance of getting mugged on your way home from it. Second, the schools in Stapleton are actually very good. Westerly Creek has very high parent involvement and was just rated as a distinguished school.

Personally, I too would recommend Tallyn's Reach to the OP given her circumstances, but let's not get carried away bashing Stapleton. I highly doubt people would be spending half a million dollars to buy a house in Stapleton if it were anywhere near as "dangerous" as this poster suggests. In fact, a lot of families will be bringing their children into Stapleton tomorrow for trick-or-treating because it is such a safe environment for children (oh, and the houses are so close together, making it easy to rack up a lot of candy in a short period of time!).