21yo couple to the C-Springs area, mayhaps Manitou or...? (Denver: apartment, rentals)

[dgreenb]

Hello! We've been working on a plan to move to Colorado, and after a lot of indecisivness I think we've got it worked out. Looking to do a year in C-Springs, a summer in the mountains (Leadville or elsewhere), then finally Denver after that. That's the plan. I'll work on steps 2 and 3 later so we can skip the input on that, but for now I could use some help learning about the springs.

We've chosen the springs area because of the affordable rent. Under 500 sounds ideal and perfectly attainable based on what I've found so far.

About us...
21 year old engaged students. We aren't much for the bar scene so that doesn't matter much. Honestly I suppose we aren't that preferential with the entertainment immediately available nearby our apartment. Curious about the parts of town. What can you tell me about the different parts of town as far as what its like, what the people are like, and what it has to offer? Avoiding the sketchier areas is obviously a priority, any "rough" parts of town? Anywhere in town with a heavier population of students?

We are coming from Springfield, MO. We live right in the middle of town near the main university here and its great. However, a quiet or busy part of town would be fine there, as long as its not...undesirable or trashy.

What options are available for two year tech/community colleges? Currently working on a transfer associate degree.

Also, what can you tell me about the surrounding areas? Manitou seems very cool, but isn't offering much for rent at the moment. Anything you can share about manitou or other nearby towns would be great as well.

I'll think of more as I go...thanks a ton for your time!

[Mike from back east]

North of downtown is the campus of Colorado College, a pricey private college. Lots of students and lots of charming old homes in what is known as the Old North End Neighborhood (ONEN).

Avoid the S.E. corner of the city, over around Citadel Mall and east of there, not that great. No real ghetto here. West side can be funky and cool, out Colorado Ave in what's called Old Colorado City (OCC).

The area near UCCS is nice also, more suburban in nature.

search for rentals on padmapper.com or ppar.com
read and heed the scammer warnings on craigslist

[dgreenb]

Informative reply, thank you.

The more input the better!

[hollyt00]

I think you'd love downtown or Old Colorado city. Pikes Peak Community College is what you want to look at for 2 year degrees- I'm not super familiar with it, but I know there are two campuses- one up north, and one down south. Living on the west side may be a tad bit of a drive for those colleges... depends what you find is okay for a commute.

[Mike from back east]

PPCC also has a downtown campus.

[dgreenb]

Right on, thanks! The out of state tuition is a bit intimidating, any other two year schools? I read on the Colorado mountain college site that they give a resident price after living in district for 30 days. Quite curious if any springs schools have something similar...

Either way, excited to check the place out!

Still welcome to more insight, of course.

[ddnicer]

You probably want to live on the West Side. Old Colorado City goes right into Manitou. I live here very close to Old Colorado City and it takes me 5 minutes to get to Manitou.

Manitou is really cute with a hippy type vibe. It can get very crowded down there in the nice weather. It is just a tiny place. There is a park in the middle of it but seems to occupied by local teenagers/homeless. I was down there once with my dogs and they told me to be careful because someone puked all over the place..wonderful!

There is no way around the out of state tuition. I waited a year to get the in-state. PPCC is a great school. I have had classes at all three campuses. Living in Old Colorado City you would be close to the downtown location but are in between the other two campuses. It takes me about 15 minutes to get to either of those campuses.

By the way, if you are looking at places that are under $500, you will probably live in a bad location or it will be prettty dumpy from what I can see. Don't get me wrong, there may be some good deals out there but not so much that I saw when looking for an apartment. I do not like Colorado Springs particularly and I'm on my way out of here but good luck to you!

[hollyt00]

Thanks, Mike. Even though I drove by the downtown campus almost every day for two years (my son's daycare was right by there), I seemed to forget that one...

[dgreenb]

To the west it is. What about it didn't you care for? Denver seems like the perfect city for us, we liked the feel of it a lot more than other cities we've visited such as Chicago. Unfortunately we need a cheaper town to bridge the gap financially between here and there.

C springs sounds like it'll be ok for the transition. I've looked on various rental sites and craigslist and have found several nice properties in and out, just need to find the right area in town.

[hollyt00]

Personally, with OCC, you should come to visit and try to identify the places in the town to live. Often, it seems that it's a good house/block followed by some sketchy houses. It's hard to define where some of the areas are. For what it's worth, I had a friend live smack dab on 21st street (moderately busy street to live on... in Colorado Springs standards) and he loved OCC.