Glendale??? (Denver: gated, apartments, condo)

[Kurios]

We are in need of information on Glendale. I will be taking a job in Glendale (kind of in the area of E. Alameda Ave. and S. Colorado Blvd.), and there is a slight possibility I will be taking a job in downtown Denver near the convention center, but for now I would like to focus on Glendale. We are a sincere young couple on the move, hoping to one day purchase a home in the Colorado rural areas and save money in the Denver area. We will be moving at the earliest in October and the latest in January. Any help and patience is appreciated.

-What is the general 'feel' of Glendale?
-Is it a conservative or liberal area?
-Are the politics of Glendale heavily affected by that of Denver?
-Is there a city smoking ban?
-Is there a recycling center or recycling program in the area?
-Is there a difference between the cost of living in Glendale compared to other Denver areas?
-What culture dominates the area?
-Are there a lot of chain restaurants and businesses or more ma and pa shops?
-What time does the city start to shut down? any 24 hr. stores?
-Are there any organic stores? restaurants? grocery stores? farmer's markets?
-Where is the best place to get a cup of coffee?
-Is there a lot of greenery and landscaping in the area?
-How accesible are the parks? ie Washington park? Mir park? Brest park? Crestmoore park? Smith Lake? or any others I should know about?
-Is Glendale a 'walkable' area?
-What gyms are in the area? are there reasonable rates and terms?
-Is Glendale a cat friendly area?
-What is traffick like?
-How long is the commute to downtown Denver? by car? by bus? by rail?
-In your opinion is there a better place to live, within a reasonable commute, than Glendale? What would your reasoning be?
-What do most people in the area do for fun? bars? clubs? dancing? billiard hall? swimming? outdoor recreation? comedy club? adult entertainment? movie theaters?
-What is the mainstream fashion in the area?
-Is Glendale more blue collar or white collar?
-Are there generally many houses for rent in the area?
-What is the quality of education? coleges? technical schools?
-What is the music scene like? live music?
-Are there street performers in Glendale or downtown Denver?
-How far do you need to drive before you are in the mountains? ski resorts?
-What is the quality of healthcare? health insurance rates?
-Is Glendale known for something or famous for anything?
-How is the air quality in Glendale?
-Can you drink the tap water or do you need to buy bottled water?
-In your opinion, is this a good area for a young couple to get ahead?
-Does Glendale have many travelers going through the city?
-Are there any cheap, quality extended stay hotels you would suggest staying in for an area research trip? or any short term apartments?
-Is there anything else you think I should know about the area?

I have been researching Colorado and the Denver area since January on this forum and throughout the rest of the net. I would like to be as prepared and knowledgable as possible. Any first hand experience or advice would be very appreciated.

Again thank you so very much for your time and input.

[Kurios]

I see my thread was moved into the denver forum section anyway...
so is there any information to offer please?

[2bindenver]

Glendale is surrounded by Denver. There are not many houses. Lots of apartments, and "gentleman's clubs."

Denver streets are on a grid north/south except for downtown which is on a diagonal following the river. Glendale borders Colorado Blvd. to get downtown you need to cross University & Broadway going east. 10-15 minutes.

I would bet you pick a place in Denver.

Glendale kids go to the Cherry Creek schools.

[tfox]

Glendale is a tiny enclave of Arapahoe county surrounded on all sides by Denver. The whole "town", such as it is, is only about half a square mile in size and is the largest of several other tiny enclaves in southeast Denver. Its population mostly lives in a few apartment complexes and condominium buildings -- some of whom probably have no idea that they live in Glendale and not Denver.

In years past, its claim to fame was its presence of strip clubs and other adult oriented businesses to escape regulation in Denver proper. Glendale politics in those days were virtually run by a coalition of adult-oriented business owners (the infamous Tea Party). Today, a few strip clubs remain but the town has now turned to annoying the city by siphoning sales tax from the city of Denver by building big-box stores and strip malls.

The only other curiosity is that Glendale is part of the Cherry Creek school district while the rest of Denver is part of Denver public schools. Cherry Creek schools are arguably much better than DPS, though it does vary from school to school. Glendale and some of the other county enclaves may be a good fit for someone who wants city life but also Cherry Creek Schools.

To be frank, most people don't even know that the city of Glendale exists. It's more of a jurisdictional quirk than anything else, and really there's no appreciable difference between Glendale and the surrounding neighborhoods in southeast Denver.

[xxman777]

Glendale really should be part of Denver. Its more like a Denver neighborhood then a separate city. In the past they have had a lot of problems figuring out who should respond to their 911 calls because Denver and Glendale police departments couldn't figure out where the boundaries were. I guess they have fixed that problem and they were contracting with Denver to provide a lot of their services. Nearly all the housing (if not all the housing) is not single family. It used to be where a lot of immigrants would move when they came to the country because the housing is affordable and near upscale areas where the jobs are. I haven't lived there in a couple of years so I don't know if that is still the same. My favorite place to grad a cup of coffee is Peaberry's. They used to have location in Glendale but I've heard it closed, they do have locations in downtown, Cherry Creek or farther south on Colorado Blvd near I-25.

[EugeneBKLYN]

I heard that Glendale has a large Russian community. Is this true?

[Kurios]

thank you for the information so far, it is very much appreciated.
any other information would be very, very helpful.
keep it coming

[BlueWillowPlate]

Originally Posted by EugeneBKLYN

I heard that Glendale has a large Russian community. Is this true?

It still was true when I left Denver back in '05.
The other thing I remember about Glendale were the traffic cops; they were always on the lookout for speeders.

[DouginDenver]

Originally Posted by Kurios

thank you for the information so far, it is very much appreciated.
any other information would be very, very helpful.
keep it coming

It is a stretch to call Glendale a neighborhood at all. It is a sales tax generator. It has a Home Depot, car delarships, etc. It is bascially a commercial strip on Colorado Boulevard, with some mostly not very nice apaprtment buildings behind them - east of Colrado Blvd. There may be a free-standing house or two in Glendale, but not many if any. It's not a place I would recommend anybody to live. As for coffe, there is a Starbucks in the Barnes & Noble.

[DouginDenver]

Originally Posted by Kurios

We are in need of information on Glendale. I will be taking a job in Glendale (kind of in the area of E. Alameda Ave. and S. Colorado Blvd.), and there is a slight possibility I will be taking a job in downtown Denver near the convention center, but for now I would like to focus on Glendale. We are a sincere young couple on the move, hoping to one day purchase a home in the Colorado rural areas and save money in the Denver area. We will be moving at the earliest in October and the latest in January. Any help and patience is appreciated.

-What is the general 'feel' of Glendale?
-Is it a conservative or liberal area?
-Are the politics of Glendale heavily affected by that of Denver?
-Is there a city smoking ban?
-Is there a recycling center or recycling program in the area?
-Is there a difference between the cost of living in Glendale compared to other Denver areas?
-What culture dominates the area?
-Are there a lot of chain restaurants and businesses or more ma and pa shops?
-What time does the city start to shut down? any 24 hr. stores?
-Are there any organic stores? restaurants? grocery stores? farmer's markets?
-Where is the best place to get a cup of coffee?
-Is there a lot of greenery and landscaping in the area?
-How accesible are the parks? ie Washington park? Mir park? Brest park? Crestmoore park? Smith Lake? or any others I should know about?
-Is Glendale a 'walkable' area?
-What gyms are in the area? are there reasonable rates and terms?
-Is Glendale a cat friendly area?
-What is traffick like?
-How long is the commute to downtown Denver? by car? by bus? by rail?
-In your opinion is there a better place to live, within a reasonable commute, than Glendale? What would your reasoning be?
-What do most people in the area do for fun? bars? clubs? dancing? billiard hall? swimming? outdoor recreation? comedy club? adult entertainment? movie theaters?
-What is the mainstream fashion in the area?
-Is Glendale more blue collar or white collar?
-Are there generally many houses for rent in the area?
-What is the quality of education? coleges? technical schools?
-What is the music scene like? live music?
-Are there street performers in Glendale or downtown Denver?
-How far do you need to drive before you are in the mountains? ski resorts?
-What is the quality of healthcare? health insurance rates?
-Is Glendale known for something or famous for anything?
-How is the air quality in Glendale?
-Can you drink the tap water or do you need to buy bottled water?
-In your opinion, is this a good area for a young couple to get ahead?
-Does Glendale have many travelers going through the city?
-Are there any cheap, quality extended stay hotels you would suggest staying in for an area research trip? or any short term apartments?
-Is there anything else you think I should know about the area?

I have been researching Colorado and the Denver area since January on this forum and throughout the rest of the net. I would like to be as prepared and knowledgable as possible. Any first hand experience or advice would be very appreciated.

Again thank you so very much for your time and input.

Just curious, where do you live now? You say you have been researching for months, but - and no offense - your questions make it sound as if you have not looked at a map. Its 10 minutes to downtown, 5 minutes to Wash Park, and there are lots of neighborhoods of Denver both east and west of Glendale that are not too pricey - by Denver standards. But Denver, depending on where yuo live now - is not cheap.