North Denver vs. South Denver (Aurora, Lakewood: loan, house, tech jobs)

[FromBroomfield]

Which side of Denver do you like better? Why?

[Katiana]

I like the north area. I'm one of the few on this forum that lives there. I like the suburban cities, as opposed to living in unincorporated areas. I like it that the cities provide some of the services instead of private HOAs (recreation, etc). I like being more on the edge of the metro (I know this could be done down south, too). It's a personal thing, that's my opinion.

[vegaspilgrim]

Technically, "north Denver" is a series of neighborhoods in the NW part of the city of Denver, such as Highlands, Jefferson Park, Berkeley, Sloan's Lake, etc. Technically, "south Denver" refers to neighborhoods in the south-central part of the city of Denver, like Baker, Platte Park, Washington Park, Bonnie Brae, DU area, etc. I am much more familar with south Denver, and only recently on trips back home have I even explored much of north Denver. Both are nice; north Denver is up and coming fast, but still has a ways to go. South Denver is much more gentrified. I really enjoy Old South Pearl St and the section of Broadway between 6th Ave & Alameda, so I'll give south Denver the slight edge, even though North Denver is catching up fast.

In terms of the "north" and "south" metro area (which is what I think you are asking about), I prefer the South metro area. The Tech Center is the biggest job center in the front range, and it's right in the heart of the south suburbs. The NW side of town (Arvada, Broomfield, Boulder suburbs, etc) is very nice too. The NE part of town, including the NE most part of Denver, Montbello, Green Valley Ranch, north Aurora, Commerce City, and Brighton sucks IMO. There are some new subdivisions there that are WAY out and are nice and might have potential (Reunion, in particular), but I personally would never live in that part of town.

[Katiana]

Yeah, you're right, vegas, about the difference between the city and the metro area. We used to live in Sloan's Lake, which we felt was N. Denver though some say it's just west Denver. We liked it. Liked the hills, better access to the mtns (did a lot of skiing back then). Liked that is was more residential, had less commercial. Conversely, would have liked some decent shopping; had to go to the burbs for a mall. Gentrification had not yet begun when we lived there. It was a working class 'hood, which we liked.

DD lives in S. Denver and loves it, thinks the west side (n and s) is a dump. She has the better access to shopping with Cherry Creek Mall, a nice Target and Walgreen's nearby. Is near DU with all that being near a college entails, both good and bad, closer to downtown area.

[HighlandsGal]

I live in the Highlands and am just beginning to explore the metro area a bit more after moving to CO from MI last July. I prefer the feel of North Denver area (my neighborhood, Arvada, Wheat Ridge, Lakewood, Westminster, etc.) It reminds me of the midwest more and like that these areas are established.

I feel like the southern suburbs are very sterile and all look the same. Although I do think that Castle Rock is very pretty in terms of landscape. Just blah when it comes to actual daily living.

[NickMan7]

I agree with living north of downtown. I have lived in Westminster, Superior and [currently] Erie and love it. I have always had family in southern suburbs and I find it to be too busy for my liking. I just don't enjoy crowded areas and the southern areas are too much so for me. The Parker and SE Aurora areas are very nice and are convenient to the Tech Center, but if you work in downtown, it can be a long commute. Unfortunately, northern sections of the Denver Metro are growing and commuting to downtown is beginning to become laborious. Until CDOT completes is plans to move more accessible public transportation to the northern reaches, I think the commute is the only negative thing about living north. Regardless, I wouldn't live anywhere but north in the Denver area.

[tigerwings]

Originally Posted by HighlandsGal

I live in the Highlands and am just beginning to explore the metro area a bit more after moving to CO from MI last July. I prefer the feel of North Denver area (my neighborhood, Arvada, Wheat Ridge, Lakewood, Westminster, etc.) It reminds me of the midwest more and like that these areas are established.

I feel like the southern suburbs are very sterile and all look the same. Although I do think that Castle Rock is very pretty in terms of landscape. Just blah when it comes to actual daily living.

Also being from MI (here since Oct 2006) I get the same feeling with the north suburbs. But when it came time to buy, I ended up in SE Aurora. Found the house and price I liked. My wife also loved Castle Rock, but was out of my price range, and the commute would have been too long.

I lived in Westminster for 5 months. The morning commute into the city down I-25 (not downtown, but the mousetrap area) sucked. Took 30-40 minutes to go 12 miles. The afternoon commute was usually 25 minutes.

Also lived in Glendale for 10 months. Usually took 15 minutes in the AM, 30 in the PM.

[tfox]

The northwest (US 36 corridor) and northeast (I-25, I-76) suburbs should be thought of separately. The former is more white-collar and the latter more blue-collar.

As you approach Boulder to the northwest, the suburbs become a bit more pricey and upscale due to their proximity to Boulder. Also, the US-36 corridor is a high-tech jobs magnet, nearly as much as downtown or the DTC. The northwest surburbs are just about built out at this point -- there was a huge boom in the 1990s, but developers ran out of buildable land. What new construction there is is mostly on the eastern side (Erie, Broomfield, Westminster).

The north and northeast suburbs, along I-25 or I-76 or I-70 east tend to more dominated by the largely industrial jobs in their corridors, and have historically been a bit more blue-collar. Most of Denver's heavy industry is concentrated in its northeast quadrant, so that does have an impact on the nature of the neighborhoods. From what I can tell, in this case blue collar doesn't necessarily mean unsafe or dangerous, with perhaps a few exceptions. As you head further north or northeast, you get into newer construction areas, like north Thornton or Commerce City's north Range, which tend to attract a wide mix of middle class families and first time home-buyers.