Good walkable neighborhoods for families? (Denver, Arvada: houses, school district, living)

[PVPete]

Just curious what were some good walkable neighborhoods for families. We prefer older homes in more dense, urban areas. They must be safe though. We prefer if its in a good school district, but depending on the price, we can do private school. Price range of $200k-$300k. We have two kids, so probably around three bedrooms with enough space that the young ones can play. Near transit would be great too if possible.

Also, how cold does it get in the winter? Is it colder than the Midwest? We're from Kansas City.

Thanks for your help!

[Bradburn1]

You will be hard pressed to find a single family home in a walkable Denver neighborhood with good schools in your price range. They are highly desirable here and as a consequence have higher prices for a decent 3 bedroom house. A search of Washington Park, Bonnie Brae, Cherry Creek and Olde Town Arvada returns zero results in that range, The Highlands has a handful of listings in that range but their public schools are not so hot.

I would consider Stapleton. Although new, and with some parts walkable to the town center and some parts not, it has great parks and schools, some homes in your price range, has an RTD park n ride and future rail planned, and is close to downtown, unless you need to be closer to Boulder for work in which case I would suggest where I live, Bradburn Village in Westminster which is similar to Stapleton but smaller and more walkable (but is a higher density/more urban mixed-use neighborhood surrounded by large lot suburbia). Both neighborhoods have tons of kids and are very friendly/social.

[davebarnes]

Originally Posted by PVPete

Also, how cold does it get in the winter? Is it colder than the Midwest? We're from Kansas City.

You won't even notice the winter season.

[davebarnes]

Originally Posted by PVPete

Just curious what were some good walkable neighborhoods for families. We prefer older homes in more dense, urban areas. They must be safe though. We prefer if its in a good school district, but depending on the price, we can do private school. Price range of $200k-$300k...two kids...three bedrooms...Near transit.

I am biased in favor od Denver because that is where I chose to live.
1. This will help. Denver Maps - Downloadable Maps (City-wide) You want the Neighborhood Map, at a minimum.
2. Denver has some very good elementary schools. Middle schools are mostly crap.
3. Neighborhoods and schools. Your child can attend any school in Denver provided there is space.
a. Sunnyside's Beach Court Elementary gets a good rating at Colorado School Grades
b. Berkeley is also affordable, but Centennial Elementary is awful.
c. West Highland has a few houses in your price range and Edison Elementary is OK and getting better.

You should drive to neighborhoods of interest and get out of the car and spend time (0.5+ hours) walking around.

[Autodidact]

Consider Park Hill neighborhood. I think it's exactly what you want, and in the right part you should be able to find a house you can afford. You may also want to look at City Park West and even Curtis Park. Congress Park is perfect; not sure about price of homes there.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by PVPete

Just curious what were some good walkable neighborhoods for families. We prefer older homes in more dense, urban areas. They must be safe though. We prefer if its in a good school district, but depending on the price, we can do private school. Price range of $200k-$300k. We have two kids, so probably around three bedrooms with enough space that the young ones can play. Near transit would be great too if possible.

Also, how cold does it get in the winter? Is it colder than the Midwest? We're from Kansas City.

Thanks for your help!

I grew up in KC, so know the climate differences. In winter, the average highs are higher in Denver than in KC, but lows are lower than KC. But it's drier, so the cold doesn't feel as bad as in KC. I know people in KC think Denver is a "blizzard a week" for 6 months, but it's not the case. And summer is spectacular in Denver compared to KC. Low humidity, cooler evenings, few bugs... you can actually use your outdoor living space here.

I live in Stapleton and in the price range, you might find a 3 bdr. courtyard house with no basement, but that's a pretty tight budget for an actual house in Denver in an area with good schools. One note... the Denver Public Schools are much better than KCMO. They vary by neighborhood, but you can find decent schools in DPS.

[Dorthy]

You can easily find this in metro Denver. Look at the older parts of Englewood, Littleton and Arvada. Both Englewood and Littleton have Light rail and Arvada will have light rail in the near future. They all have walkable downtowns with a mix of older homes (early 1900's) mixed with mid century (think brick ranches) homes. Overall, the schools are "better" in Littleton and Arvada but Englewood has some good schools to choose from as well. Of these three, Englewood has the most urban feel and imo, is one of the most walkable areas of the Denver metro area. You could find a nice home in your price range in Old Englewood.

[bhcompy]

You can look in the suburbs for that price and possibly find something. Not dense urban downtown, more quaint downtown. Littleton, Parker, etc. Still walkable, still close to public transport(particularly Littleton, Parker a short drive)

[PVPete]

Originally Posted by bhcompy

You can look in the suburbs for that price and possibly find something. Not dense urban downtown, more quaint downtown. Littleton, Parker, etc. Still walkable, still close to public transport(particularly Littleton, Parker a short drive)

Yes, we're not looking to live among skyscrapers, but somewhere that has a nice main street type we can walk to from our house.

Thanks for all the input everyone.

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

You didn't say where work will be located, and that should be the focus of your home search. Denver is really spread out, and personally I wouldn't want to spend several hours a day in my car. There are neighborhoods meeting your criteria all over the metro area, even some of the suburbs.

So let us know the location of work (address or major cross streets, please) and we can give you more localized help with the neighborhood.