What is the best place in Colorado to live? (Denver: low crime, neighborhoods)

[Viper2]

My wife and I currently live in northwest Washington state. We are thinking about possibly moving from here in the future, maybe 5 - 10 years from now, not sure though. We are going to visit Colorado in June of this year. I am studying to be an IT professional and my wife is in the finance industry.

I would like to know what are some good places to visit in Colorado that may be good candidates to possibly relocate to in the future?

Which cities:

• Have vibrant economies (relatively speaking of course since the whole nation's economy is not doing very well right now)?

• Have good access to the outdoors (i.e. hiking trails, walking trails, parks, rivers, etc.)?

• Are clean and have relatively low crime?

Any responses will be appreciated.

Thank you very much.

[wanneroo]

There are really only a few cities in Colorado, all strung along the Front Range on I-25. It's one long blob of urban and suburban areas, some with nicer neighborhoods than others, but mostly to me, much of it is all the same.

Colorado is mostly desert so not much in the way of stunning rivers going through these cities. Clean? Most suburban areas in these cities are clean enough. Crime? As in any city, crime is always there. Vibrant economy? Colorado is suffering like everywhere else.

Probably the main priority is to find yourself a good job first then locate within 20 miles a decent place to live.

[80skeys]

Littleton
Fort Collins
Colorado Springs
Golden
Grand Junction
the west side of Denver


There's also a lot of really nice small towns but these don't fit your requirement of strong economy and you'd be hard pressed to find an IT job, so you'll need to concentrate your efforts on the above list.

[vfrpilot]

We are thinking about possibly moving from here in the future, maybe 5 - 10 years from now, not sure though.

According to a certain expert of all things Pueblo, you need not look no further than Pueblo. In your time frame Pueblo will be the largest and brightest city in Colorado, possibly the state capital by then.
Honestly though, asking for advice for a contemplated relocation in 5-10 is kinda funny. No advice today will be relevant in 5 years. Your priorities will be different as well as the area you consider. Why do you want to move to CO?

[Mike from back east]

The word "best" is subject to MASSIVE interpretation, that old "eye of the beholder" stuff the smart guys all talk about...

For IT pro's and financiers, the best JOB location is Denver. There's a ton of stuff there, of all sorts, to please most any set of desires.

[livecontent]

DENVER is your answer. For Denver is the core city of the region and it has all the amenities you are seeking. For, if it did not have value, then the suburbs, other cities and small towns would not have the economic reason for existence. There would be few jobs. If crime in the city is bad, so becomes the suburbs. If the city is clean then the suburbs are cleaner.

The City of Denver sets the pace, philosophy and value of the region. Denver is very proactive is the building and maintaining an extensive parks, open space and trail system. So the suburbs as they become in existence, followed Denver. Denver has an excellent growing public transportation system that extends out into the suburbs. Where, I grew up--the suburbs were ignored, because the city was weak. Denver has significantly and constantly invested into the arts/entertainment/culture and the suburbs benefit and have followed that lead. Where I grew up, there was minimum investment and the culture was lacking.

I am not saying that Denver is the best place for you to live--though it is for many. What I am saying is that without a strong, vibrant, clean, relatively crime free city that has a outdoor focus; there would be less "best" places" for you to choose.

This comes from my history, having grown up near Buffalo, New York. Buffalo much less of these good values that is attribute to Denver; and Buffalo has further collapsed since my youth. Consequently, the cities and towns around Buffalo are valued less because there is not a good core city, even though many of the towns are nice but have a collapsing economy, affected by Buffalo. That is why people leave and the area fails to attract new residents. The same can be said for Detroit and other cities that have significant livability problems.

You have many "best" places to choose to live along the Front Range and it all is maintained and tied together by the strong City of Denver.

Livecontent