AUSTIN vs. DENVER - where should we move? (live, best, cost)

[Reign_Cloud]

Young professionals looking to move from Fairfax, VA to Austin or Denver

I am a 27 year old designer/illustrator/painter/street art guy looking to leave Virginia. My girlfriend and I have narrowed our lengthy search down to these two cities. I will mention, however she has asthma as well as pretty bad excema. I've read that people with breathing/skin conditions may not be suitable for Denver. Anyone with these issues find it tolerable to live there? This is a major concern for her. We are pretty active, so she usually does just fine with her inhaler. But we certainly don't want the natural elements to irritate her skin or breathing any worse than now. Any advice?

How is the art scene?
Are there currently art districts?
"First Fridays"....
I know of some creative collectives in Austin. Does anyone know of any in Denver as well?

Rate the outdoors.
We are active, healthy individuals who can't wait to get in some hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking and skiing. What are some awesome spots? How far are they from the inner city?

Housing
What are some great surrounding areas to live in? Something in walking distance to a local produce market would be great

We would really love an industrial loft. (exposed brick, high ceilings, etc.) Is this style frequently known to exist in either area? We are certainly open to apt or town home as well. Looking to spend $1500 or less per month.

Any advice on these subjects is greatly appreciated. We are excited for some really awesome feedback on these two great cities!

[Austin97]

austin has virtually no visual arts. We are probably the allergy capital of the united states. We get tons of mold and cedar.

We have no skiing but good hiking (adequate, but no mountain vistas), rock climbing (good climbing in/near city) and mountain biking (very technical) considering we have no mountains and the max elevation gain is about 200 ft.

Cost of housing downtown will be much higher than 1500.

Id look at denver.

[centralaustinite]

I would dispute the "no visual arts" comment (google EAST Studios tours for a start, Print Austin, etc) but it is not a huge scene and depending what you are used to . . . it may or may not be adequate. No arts district but yes, "First Thursdays, First Fridays etc"

But I will second that there are terrible, year-around allergies here: mold is a constant, then we have high level of tree and grass pollen in fall and spring, and cedar in the fall. For some, it is unlivable.

Austin has never been an industrial city, so the kind of lofts you are looking for are not common and exist only where they have been created to give luxury condos/apt that industrial "feel" and they aren't found at your price point.

Have you considered Nashville?

[sxrckr]

Yeah, no arts districts here... that would be Houston and Dallas.
Also lots of people have major allergies here, so it may not be best for her.

[Idlewile]

I've lived here for 4 years and 13 years across the Denver metro. You need to do a search on "Denver" in this forum and "Austin" in Denver's forum -- there are MANY threads that already exist comparing and contrasting the two, they offer a wealth of info on the topic.

Originally Posted by Reign_Cloud

I will mention, however she has asthma as well as pretty bad excema. I've read that people with breathing/skin conditions may not be suitable for Denver. Anyone with these issues find it tolerable to live there? This is a major concern for her. We are pretty active, so she usually does just fine with her inhaler. But we certainly don't want the natural elements to irritate her skin or breathing any worse than now. Any advice?

STOP right here and read the sticky thread. Austin has terrible allergens that greatly affect many. Based on her eczema, I would say categorically NO. Our family suffers from eczema and allergies and this is not the place for us -- we made a mistake moving here from Denver solely because of allergies. Your girlfriend is even more pre-disposed that any of us -- in you situation, I wouldn't even consider central TX. Yes, Denver can be hard for some (but not all) asthmatics but as mentioned on the Denver forum, the top breathing/pulmonary/asthma hospital in the the country is in Denver.

Originally Posted by Reign_Cloud

How is the art scene?
Are there currently art districts?
"First Fridays"....
I know of some creative collectives in Austin. Does anyone know of any in Denver as well?

Yes. I'd say there's just as many.

Originally Posted by Reign_Cloud

Rate the outdoors.
We are active, healthy individuals who can't wait to get in some hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking and skiing. What are some awesome spots? How far are they from the inner city?

Austin doesn't compare to what Denver offers in any of these sporting categories.

Originally Posted by Reign_Cloud

Housing
What are some great surrounding areas to live in? Something in walking distance to a local produce market would be great

We would really love an industrial loft. (exposed brick, high ceilings, etc.) Is this style frequently known to exist in either area? We are certainly open to apt or town home as well. Looking to spend $1500 or less per month.

While Denver will offer many more industrial loft spaces that Austin (there is a plethora of these in Denver!) your budget is too low for both areas.

[Eastcoasting]

With your girlfriends predisposition towards asthma I will tell you to make sure she has a will drawn up before moving to Austin.

Visual arts are anemic here which can be good if you can make a splash but bad if you are looking to plug into an expansive established structure.

Now I am going to tell you what you probably already know but don't want to hear.

A mere 2.5 hour drive away from you has all the city amenities that you seek, loft space, art scene, markets, museums and easy access to NYC. Outdoor activities will lean more towards cycling, hiking, running and paddling. Skiing and rock climbing will be 1.5-3 hours away depending on what you are looking for.

Thats right Padawan, I speak of Philadelphia.



I don't know bubkus about Denver.

[Novacek]

Originally Posted by Austin97

We are probably the allergy capital of the united states. We get tons of mold and cedar.

We're not even in the top 30.

Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America - Information About Asthma, Allergies, Food Allergies and More!

http://www.aafa.org/pdfs/FINAL%20pub...0Fall_2014.pdf
http://www.aafa.org/pdfs/FINAL_publi...pring_2014.pdf

[Trainwreck20]

We're not even in the top 30.

There are lots of rating systems, some have us as low as 40 or so, others in the top 5. Depends on your criteria.

[HappyTexan]

Originally Posted by Reign_Cloud

Young professionals looking to move from Fairfax, VA to Austin or Denver

I am a 27 year old designer/illustrator/painter/street art guy looking to leave Virginia. My girlfriend and I have narrowed our lengthy search down to these two cities. I will mention, however she has asthma as well as pretty bad excema. I've read that people with breathing/skin conditions may not be suitable for Denver. Anyone with these issues find it tolerable to live there? This is a major concern for her. We are pretty active, so she usually does just fine with her inhaler. But we certainly don't want the natural elements to irritate her skin or breathing any worse than now. Any advice?

Based on the bolded above...Denver rather than Austin.

[Novacek]

Originally Posted by Trainwreck20

There are lots of rating systems, some have us as low as 40 or so, others in the top 5. Depends on your criteria.

I showed you mine, show me yours.