Where to live if working in Tech Center area? (Denver: apartments, to rent)

[obug]

Hi Everybody,

I'm looking at a job that's in the Denver Tech Center area and I'd like to just get a general idea of where I could live. My wife and I are planning to live in an apartment. I can pay quite a good amount in rent so I don't need to move to a "bad" part of town to save cash.

Our needs are fairly simple. I'm looking for an area that is safe, clean, and preferably no more than a 15-20 minute commute from the tech center area. It would also be nice if the area was designed for walking (e.g. has sidewalks in good condition) and there is some shopping area nearby - even a major mall is fine.

I think Centennial and Englewood meet these criteria. Am I correct in thinking this? Are there any other areas I should be looking at?

Thanks!

[2bindenver]

There are nearby parts of all of those cities and Denver that are "walkable" you can see walkscores.com. I do not believe there are any "bad" parts of town near there.

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

There are tons of nice apartments in the DTC. Look around Dry Creek and I-25 (both sides). There are also apartments on Yosemite just south of Belleview. Major mall close by is Park Meadows at County Line Road and I-25, with lots of newer apartments very near. All these areas are safe and well-kept.

[vegaspilgrim]

There are tons of really nice and new/newer apartments right in the Tech Center (Greenwood Village/"Englewood" 80111 and Denver 80237). I'd start there and then expand your search outward if you don't find what you're looking for. For high end shopping/dining/entertainment there's the Landmark (google it) and there's the Park Meadows mall. Greenwood Village has a ton of nice trails, sidewalks, and parks for walking.

[Sheridan1962]

Lone Tree has a ton of nice apartments near the light rail station that are walkable to dining/shopping, and a close drive to Park Meadows Mall. It's a very nice area, and close to the DTC.

[Count David]

I pay $800 for a 2/2 in the shadow of the DTC's mini-skyscrapers in Denver 80237. I could walk to two parks if I wanted to.

There are no bad areas down here. For reals.

[jamesdenver]

By "walkable" are you look for urban life? (Walk to shopping, restaurants, coffee shops, transit etc) or suburban with parks and greenbelts?

I work in the north end of the Tech Center, near the Landmark which is a great pocket of the Tech Center, although a bit isolated in my opinion. I can't really walk to anything from my job, but I bike to work often and do many errands by bike in the area. The Tech Center has great sidewalks and connects to many parks and trails but is spread out -- so you can walk plenty but you walk to walk rather than go places. I find the north end of the Tech Center (where I work and 80237 mentioned above) has excellent transit connections, easy to get downtown via rail, airport via express bus, etc) which is rare for most suburban/office parks areas, and a huge state park with trails and lake just a mile away.

If you're working within a few minutes walk from any of the light rail stations you could consider anything along the Southeast Corridor, from Broadway to Lone Tree, including neigbhorhoods closer to downtown which are more walkable in an urban sense. Washington Park and Louisana/Pearl comes to mind as a great neighborhood (can find excellent newer condos to rent) and 15 minutes by rail to the Tech Center stations, and anything north of Orchard is a pretty easy rush hour drive.

If you like walking and shopping check out Cherry Creek Mall and Cherry Creek North especially. Well designed, all the big stores and higher end stuff, and a great farmers market every Saturday.

[ucbedge]

They have a new "walkable"-type area with shops and apartments in the Inverness area. Commute to DTC would be 10 mins.

I live in Highlands Ranch and do more walking than I ever dreamed with all the trails around here. Having two dogs and manicured trails = instant walking lifestyle.