NYC to Denver? ? (Aurora, Boulder, Broomfield: appointed, fit in, neighborhoods)

[capn_a]

Hey all --

I've been in NYC for almsot 8 years now. Am 25, from Rhode Island, went to school here and stayed, but have decided I want to spread my wings and try out some place new.

I am getting my personal training certification (NASM) and am looking to do something fitness oriented. I am also a blogger/writer and an actor.

Obviously, I thought I wanted to be "an actor," which is why I moved to NYC in the first place but now I'm looking to settle somewhere that I can be outdoors more, enjoy skiing, hiking and a better and less expensive quality of life.

I am also gay, but not big in to the "gay scene," so am wondering if Denver is the right place for that?

Is it somewhere that fitness-related jobs are flourishing? Especially if I wanted to start my own fitness entrepreneurial business (building my own client list, as opposed to working for a gym.) Where are some good neighborhoods to check out. I have a 1 year old mutt, who is a medium-sized dog -- so it would need to be a dog friendly neighborhood.

Am also just wondering what kind of "vibe" the city has. I know NYC. It's crazy, there are a ton of people everywhere/all the time, it's dirty, it's absolute chaos on the weekends and everyone is mean. What are the main differences?

Please let me know what your thoughts are, as they are greatly appreciated.

[davidv]

First of all, Denver is not the East Coast. Not even close. If you are looking for that but calmer, you will be disappointed.

So, in no particular order:

1. The entire metro area is dog friendly.

2. New York is crazy crowded. Denver is not. Imagine the population of Brooklyn spread out over the land area of Rhode Island. That is what the Denver metro area is.

3. Denver is quite fit, but most people have the discipline to work out on their own without a regular trainer. There are also a lot of trainers who live here because they were attracted by the active lifestyle. There is lots of competition.

4. The people in Denver are laid-back and mostly friendly, however many are reserved and have a small circle of friends (I am guilty of this one). We are not going to be BFFs anytime soon.

5. Denver is gay-friendly. The traditional area for the gay population is centered around Cheesman Park, but gay people live all around the metro area with no problems. The suburbs are very family-oriented, so unless you have a partner and kids, you wouldn't fit in will.

[capn_a]

Denver has 600,000 people. Brooklyn has 2.6 million. So your comment doesn't make much sense? I'm really trying to suss out what is helpful about your comments, but you have kind of a negative attitude, dude. Thanks anyways.

[CREW747]

I would recommend The Dallas area over Denver for you...We have driven from The DFW metro area to Denver to visit family.We love visiting and living in The Dallas area.I can not think of a better spot to relocate to right now than the DFW metro area.We relocated to the Dallas suburb of Prosper from Greenwich,CT a few years ago.

[davidv]

Originally Posted by capn_a

Denver has 600,000 people. Brooklyn has 2.6 million. So your comment doesn't make much sense? I'm really trying to suss out what is helpful about your comments, but you have kind of a negative attitude, dude. Thanks anyways.

If you read again, I was referring to the Denver Metro area (pop. 2.52 million spread out over an area of about 900+ square miles).

For someone who has spent his entire life on the East Coast, you are quick to dismiss the description of an area in which I have live my entire life. I have seen many people like you come out with romantic notions and stereotypes of Denver only to run into the brick wall of reality.

Sorry for not pumping you up to tell you what a great idea this is, and that the entire city is just waiting for someone like you to show up and get us all into shape. The fact is that you would just be one of thousands of people migrating to Denver without a job and without any contacts hoping to start up a business in a very competitive environment.

Spend some time browsing the threads here and you will find that a common theme is that the people here are both friendly and stand-offish.

Denver is a great place. That's why I live here, but no place is perfect.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by capn_a

Denver has 600,000 people. Brooklyn has 2.6 million. So your comment doesn't make much sense? I'm really trying to suss out what is helpful about your comments, but you have kind of a negative attitude, dude. Thanks anyways.

I've been to RI, and the Denver metro area is no where near the size of RI, area-wise.

The actual city of Denver is quite urban and if you prefer a more urban lifestyle, you can find it here. Downtown is busier than many, but not NYC type busy. You'll find lots of outdoorsy/fitness oriented people here, generally more friendly than NYC, and Denver is very gay friendly.

[davebarnes]

Originally Posted by denverian

I've been to RI, and the Denver metro area is no where near the size of RI, area-wise.

RI is 37 x 48 miles
Boulder to Castle Rock is 48 miles.
Boulder to DIA is 37 miles.

[SJaye]

I think David's overall point is getting lost in semantics. Compared with New York, Denver is much less densely populated. Denver's population density is somewhere around 4,000/square mile. New York's is over 27,000 overall, Manhattan's can approach 70,000. In fact, from my observation, the population density of the central area of Denver, including LoDo and the surrounding neighborhoods like Capital Hill, remind me of the density of Long Island. Just a difference to be prepared for.

[davidv]

Originally Posted by davebarnes

RI is 37 x 48 miles
Boulder to Castle Rock is 48 miles.
Boulder to DIA is 37 miles.

Rhode Island is 1,214 square miles. Of that number 1,050 square miles are land.

Calculating straight line distances of the Denver Metro Area:

From the northern border of Broomfield County to Castle Rock is 45 miles

From C-470 and I-70 in Golden to E-470 and I-70 in Aurora is 27 miles

45 x 27 = 1,215 square miles.

[capn_a]

I don't know David, you just have a condescending tone. I definitely will not be getting you in to shape.

But to everyone else, I so appreciate your thoughts and Crew -- I will definitely look in to Dallas. I just need to get out of NYC and make a fresh start, so I'm open to places. Being from New England and growing up skiing and loving the outdoors, I think it would be a great, different option.