Relocating to Parker (Highlands Ranch, Castle Rock, Greenwood Village: transplants, houses, neighborhoods) - Denver - Colorado (CO) - City-Data Forum

ARFJ · 11-03-2013, 06:33 AM

My husband just got a new job in Greenwood Village. We are looking for houses in the 350-400k range and on a quick trip up there, he thought Parker looked like a good fit for our family. We have two kids ages 8 & 5. I need advice on preschools, elementary school and specific subdivisions in Parker. As far as schools go, we are looking for a school that offers some kind of program or extra challenges for gifted kids and a great school community. I am concerned with some of the 7 ratings on a few schools in the neighborhoods that seem like a good fit for us online. The school he attends now is rated a 9 on greatschools.com and we love it there. What are some good preschools out there? She is currently enrolled in a preschool 2 day/week, but I would love for her to go 3 days. As far a housing goes, we are looking for a 4 brdrm in a family friendly subdivision with lots of young kids in the 350-400k range.

2bindenver · 11-03-2013, 07:43 AM

I would expand your search at first to a 10-15 mile radius of work. Look at all the houses that fit. Then reduce your potential area to those neighborhoods that feel right for you. You might miss on a great neighborhood by being too narrow too soon.

What do you like about where you are now?

ARFJ · 11-03-2013, 03:15 PM

We are definitely open to other places. It's just from his initial visit, Parker is where we would like to focus our efforts. If our realtor thinks he/she has found a great house in a great school district somewhere else, we would definitely take a look. My husband spent a few days driving around the areas of Lone Tree, Centennial, Highlands Ranch and Parker. He thought Parker fit our lifestyle the best from what he could see and is most like where we currently live. We definitely aren't city people. We like the suburbs and newer homes.

Right now, we love our neighborhood feel. Everyone looks out for each others kids. We have ladies nights, book club, Fall festival with a costume parade, movie nights in the park, campouts. It's a very social neighborhood. Since the majority of people are transplants, and don't have family around, we rely on each other for many things and have become extended family. Our city has about 60,000 people, but you don't go anywhere without running into someone you know. It's has a smaller town feel, but with all the amenities close by.

kizlykdm · 11-06-2013, 12:11 PM

While I can't address the social aspects of particular neighborhoods, I can hopefully help you a little bit. On a large scale, both Cherry Creek SD and Douglas County SD are very high performing. For your individual needs, I would stop by the schools and get a feel for them. What is the environment like? What does it look like in a typical classroom? I was a former teacher for 12 years and you can gauge a lot from a school by physically going there and talking with teachers / administrators -- especially asking tough questions concerning gifted programs etc...

I have some websites for you if you want more statistical data to compare the elementary schools. Feel free to pm me. Since you are big into a neighborhood feel, that is often easier to find in the smaller communities. So, Parker would be a good fit. It sounds like Castle Rock would be ideal as well for a commute to Greenwood Village that fits your criteria.

For a 4 bedroom house in both Parker and Castle Rock in your price rance, you are looking at about 3000-4000 total sq. ft. Each place on a quick search has about 20-25 properties currently fitting that criteria in a variety of neighborhoods. Please let me know if I can be of further help.

kizlykdm · 11-06-2013, 12:15 PM

I would also add -- take a look at places where bulletin boards are posted in neighborhoods. These often give a feel of the types of events in the neighborhood. Also, even the schools themselves often hold a lot of events. Taking some time to just wander and explore in a few areas can give you some sense of the "neighborhood" feel.

2bindenver · 11-06-2013, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kizlykdm

It sounds like Castle Rock would be ideal as well for a commute to Greenwood Village that fits your criteria.

Have you made that drive lately? It's 40-60 minutes depending on where you start and when you leave.

skins_fan82 · 11-06-2013, 02:56 PM

We moved to Parker about 2 years ago. There is SO MUCH new construction around here, its not even funny.

scrapper105 · 11-06-2013, 04:05 PM

Oh goody, I get another chance to rail against using the rankings on greatschools.

Please, please, please don't look at the score - they are completely meaningless and are only partially based on data. Drill down and look at the actual data on the school - I believe the most meaningful is how well the school does compared to state averages.

infinitylove · 11-07-2013, 02:07 PM

check out schooldigger.com

and then visit each school.

Virginiagrrrl · 11-09-2013, 12:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ARFJ

My husband just got a new job in Greenwood Village. We are looking for houses in the 350-400k range and on a quick trip up there, he thought Parker looked like a good fit for our family. We have two kids ages 8 & 5. I need advice on preschools, elementary school and specific subdivisions in Parker. As far as schools go, we are looking for a school that offers some kind of program or extra challenges for gifted kids and a great school community. I am concerned with some of the 7 ratings on a few schools in the neighborhoods that seem like a good fit for us online. The school he attends now is rated a 9 on greatschools.com and we love it there. What are some good preschools out there? She is currently enrolled in a preschool 2 day/week, but I would love for her to go 3 days. As far a housing goes, we are looking for a 4 brdrm in a family friendly subdivision with lots of young kids in the 350-400k range.

We just moved to Parker last March from Virginia, and we love it here. We have two kids, 11 and five years old. We live in Clark Farms and think the neighborhood is great. It has a real community feel, and it is close to everything that Parker has to offer.

That said, we were not super impressed with the school (Cherokee Trails) for the few months that our daughter was in it. She came from a GT program back in Virginia, and before we moved here, she cleared the lottery for a middle school/high school Charter in Highlands Ranch called the STEM School. We knew she'd be switching there this school year, so we didn't bother trying to get her into Douglas County's GT program. That was a mistake. She was bored in class and she struggled a bit with that. Now at her new school, she is doing very well and feels challenged. I should mention that my best friend has lived out here for a while now (also in Clark Farms) and her two kids (11 and 9) both went to the neighborhood school from Kindergarten on, and she only has good things to say about it. Her 11 year old is at the same middle school charter that my daughter is at, and doing well too. BTW...my son is in Jr. K at a Christian private school in Parker, but he will be moving to public school for kindergarten. Not sure yet whether it will be our neighborhood school, or a charter.

Douglas County has a program called the Discovery program, where all the kids in the class are GT kids, and the classes move faster and beyond the general grade. I've heard it is pretty good, and they are expanding it next year. I believe it starts in 3rd grade!

If I can answer any other questions about being a newbie in Parker, just let me know.