Live in Evergreen, Work in DT Denver (Golden, Center: for sale, real estate)

[Julesunder]

Hello All!

Going threw allll these post, the most re-occurring theme stated for new comers is...."live by where you work".

Duly noted....However, my hubby has his little heart set on living in Evergreen. He will be working downtown on 17th and I'm a converted domestic engineer , so no issues on my side.

Honestly, is it really that bad of a commute? I understand when it snows, its a bear, but he has the flexibility with his job, if its to difficult to make it in the office, he can work from home...no biggie.

He would have to be in the office about 7-7:30 and would leave between 3:30-4:30 pm. We are moving from Houston Texas, where his present commute time is 45mins-1 1/2 hrs, one way, so a 30-45 min commute for him would be totally worth it if he could live in Evergreen.

Is it really that bad? Do any of you guys make that commute to DT?

How about getting around town? we both have 4x4


Many thanks in advance for any advice.

[sunsprit]

Commuting from the Evergreen area to DT Denver, your husband will be one of many in the rush hours each day.

It's not a terrible commute by the area norms, but count on most of an hour each way at those times of the day, depending upon where he's originating in Evergreen and what parking arrangement is made in DT Denver. That, of course, is in good weather with normal rush hour traffic. Be aware that at certain times of the year, "sun slowing" of traffic happens Eastbound in the AM heading into the sunrise and low sun angles blinding traffic.

Wintertime commuting will be dependent upon the storm fronts, snowfall amounts, how close to the start of the AM commute the storm continues dropping snow, icing conditions, etc. On most days in an average year, it might add up to a matter of a few minutes extra time to commute. On some days, it could double the commute time. As long as there isn't a storm in progress during the day, by afternoon the sunshine may have done a lot of clearing of the roads ... but one must still be careful in the shaded portions of the road, especially in the mountain areas.

Having the flexibility to work from home on the bad snow/traffic days will be a plus. One less vehicle to clog up the roads at the time.

Your 4x4's will do well most of the time, but you'll rarely encounter deep snow as a problem unless you're in a subdivision or rural area that doesn't have much in the way of snow removal when prudent to do so. The Denver area relies heavily on natural melting to clear many streets. The more frequent concern will be ice-slick surfaces.

[2bindenver]

What about Golden? Then light Rail is an option.

[denver_hacker]

I know several folks who live up in Evergreen, Conifer, Bailey, etc. and all commute daily to Downtown Denver. They generally avoid peak traffic hours and can work from home on occasional days. Basically the commute sucks compared to the average Denver commute, but living up in the mountains makes it worthwhile for some people. Those folks seem to like space and privacy.

I also know a few folks who've tried it up there, hated it, and moved back closer in. The drive and lack of city amenities wasn't worth the view to them. One relative I have with a newborn got really sick of the one way 30 minute drive to a grocery store...she forgot diapers a few times and that was it...

[Count David]

Originally Posted by 2bindenver

What about Golden? Then light Rail is an option.

Or, he could drive to the light rail, and take it in the rest of the way.

[alliern]

Or you can live in Evergreen and be 5 minutes from a major grocery store, have a wonderful community when you want it, privacy when you want it, gorgeous scenery, great outdoor activities such as hiking, biking, ice skating on the lake, snowshoeing, highly rated schools from elementary through high school, low property taxes, elbow room, and fresh air.

[SkyDog77]

I say go for it. Sounds like you are going in with eyes open. He won't be the only one. Plenty of people do it.

[cowboyxjon]

I have co-workers who live in Evergreen and Conifer and I work downtown. The co-workers have EcoPasses and use the RTD Express Buses to Civic Center station. They don't seem to mind the commute and they work from home when it snows or the weather is bad.

[whoisjongalt]

When I lived up there, I always made it from downtown to Evergreen (at least the Evergreen Parkway exit) in less than 30 minutes unless there was crazy weather that day, but I wasn't commuting during rush hour. The real determining factor is how close you are to I -70 or 285. If you live in Hiwan, it's no time at all. If you live way up Brook Forest or somewhere like that it can double your commute. But it is definitely worth it.

[Julesunder]

Great, thanks for the advice! Looks like we are going to take a serious look at that option.

One question tho, we've looked on a several real estate websites and it seems like there are a lot of homes for sale in Evergreen, they have been on the market for longs periods of time and deeply reduced from the original asking price.

Now this is great for us if we decide to go that route, but could be a rough resale market. Any incite on the area or why the houses have been marketed down so drastically?

thanks