Pueblo vs. Grand Junction (Denver, Durango: home, job openings, colleges) - Colorado (CO) - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

McGowdog · 11-23-2015, 12:15 PM

Quote:

You'll hear nothing good about Pueblo on these boards except for some banter by a local [url="[QUOTE=Josseppie;42040156]

Crime will be the first thing to come up as a strike against Pueblo, but I hear that GJ is no picnic either.

McGowdog · 11-23-2015, 12:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShadoAngel

For the above stats, please note the US average is 295.

Another crime stat link had Pueblo at 158 with a national average of 37, Colorado as a whole at 42, and Colorado Springs had 103. Lower than Pueblo, but that southeast part of CoSprings has a massive amount of crime as seen by the daily news.

You just got to take all these stats with a grain of salt. Times are tough and there's no Utopia around here, that's for sure.

Grand Junction posted a 73 on this other crime scout site.

Denver posted 182.

travelbug1993 · 11-23-2015, 01:11 PM

Thanks for all of those links! Those pictures are beautiful.

The stats are good to know, but as I mentioned earlier, I'm really not too concerned about crime. As long as it's not like south side Chicago or anything, I don't really care. Y'all have certainly given me a lot to think about though!

Tully2 · 11-23-2015, 02:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by travelbug1993

Hey y'all,

I know these moving threads are a dime a dozen, but every person and their lifestyle is different, so I wanted to see what you'd recommend for me. I'm considering a move in the next few years to either Colorado or Washington.

Some background: My husband and I are 23 and 21, but we're not big "partiers". Nightlife isn't a huge deal, as long as there's at least a pub or two where we could relax on a Sat. night. We're avid hikers and do almost all of our hobbies outdoors, hence our draw to the Western U.S. We're not planning on kids, so schools don't matter. I live in a town in the Midwest of about 60,000 and it feels about right to me, though I'm more than fine with smaller. I'm a little intimidated by bigger but as long as it's not huge (like Denver) I think I'd be fine.

I know a common complaint about GJ is location, transportation isn't an issue, I'm used to a long commute (esp. to bigger

cities) where I live so I don't really care about that.

Oh, also I'm a Registered Nurse so I am hoping that jobs won't be an issue in any of those areas, but who knows. Pretty much every state has higher cost of living than my own, so I don't really care about that.

So what do y'all think? I'm leaning a little more towards GJ (I have a coworker who almost moved there a few years back but didn't for family reasons) but would love to hear more about Pueblo!

Thanks !!

If you are an RN with some experience, you shouldn't have trouble finding a job in Grand Junction. I am a retired RN (retired last year) and the hospital I used to work at here in GJ called me 6 months later asking if I was interested in returning to work. They want to use less travelers and were calling everyone who had recently quit to see if any of them were interested in returning.

We moved to Grand Junction 25 years ago from Southern California and have never regretted it. I am originally from the Midwest but we had been living in California for 16 years.

You can PM me if you have any questions about nursing in GJ.

Josseppie · 11-23-2015, 03:05 PM

One thing to note is Pueblo inflates it's crime data to increase the federal funding we get. Good for the budget bad for the public relations. Personally I would rather they did not do it but it is what it is.

beezle1 · 11-23-2015, 03:52 PM

What about coming out on a vacation where you can check out all the areas you are interested in?

McGowdog · 11-23-2015, 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Josseppie

One thing to note is Pueblo inflates it's crime data to increase the federal funding we get. Good for the budget bad for the public relations. Personally I would rather they did not do it but it is what it is.

Prove this claim please. I don't believe it until I see facts/evidence about it.

Josseppie · 11-23-2015, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by McGowdog

Prove this claim please. I don't believe it until I see facts/evidence about it.

I am not sure how to prove it. I guess you can look up the crime stats as here is what they do as I was told by people in Pueblo who would know. If there is a burglary instead of counting it as one crime as cities do Pueblo counts it as multiple crimes (at least 3). This gets more federal funding for the city. Honesty this makes sense as I live in the city and I do not feel unsafe as if I did i would move in a NY minute as so city is worth living in if you feel unsafe.

6.7traveler · 11-23-2015, 04:27 PM

My wife took a 3 month travel nurse job in Grand Junction last year. They put us up in an apartment right downtown. Downtown GJ is pretty cool. I wasn't the biggest fan of GJ proper because I don't like "big" cities but it was close to really cool places. It was 1000 times better than pueblo. If your looking into Pueblo area, I'd pick Canon City.

Let's Go Here · 11-23-2015, 04:57 PM

This may surprise some people. but if I had to choose between the two, I would take Pueblo in a heartbeat.

The two towns are very similar in size and have had economic issues for several years - Pueblo more so since they haven't recovered from the steel mill's collapse in the 80s. Grand Junction has been hurting ever since the area's oil & gas industries tanked in the late 2000s. Both towns are home to average-sized colleges, and have a handful of local events that help boost the local economy. Both have a good variety of chain restaurants, but Pueblo gets the nod (by a mile) when it comes to "mom & pop" restaurants.

Both cities are a fairly reasonable drive from the mountains - they are much more accessible from GJ though. GJ is much closer the mountain tourist towns like Glenwood Springs, Aspen, Helluride (not a typo), Crested Butte, etc.

Crime statistics are what they are - Pueblo has a huge gang problem but based on what your income would be you should be able to live in a low-crime part of town.

I would choose Pueblo over GJ for two reasons - Low cost of living, and access to the Denver area. Real estate prices in GJ are pretty steep, and not worth the price for living in an area that is very isolated. It's VERY expensive to fly out of the local airport, and traversing the mountains during the Winter is no cakewalk. Pueblo is only 2 hours from downtown Denver (give or take, depending on traffic), while GJ is solid 4 hours away.

This doesn't mean that I want to live in Pueblo, but if I had to choose between the two, Pueblo would win.