Parker or Elizibeth? (Denver, Colorado Springs, Greeley: HOA, condo, crime) - (CO) - City-Data Forum

5sharps · 10-06-2006, 11:10 PM

New to forum, though researching for 9mos. moving-relo- from Hemet, CA (Riverside County) over the mountains from Palm Springs. Dept. Mgr. for Lowes, with wife and 2 daughters: ( Special Education Teachers moving too!) Not happy about the pay cut, though can afford their own house/condo.

??'s Radon? Mosquitos w/ West Nile,?? Can live with that over high density, yuppie, snobs, no values-non caring, non English speaking, (my fault I didn't learn another language, as if I didn't see it coming!)

Yes we drive crazy here, more like defensive AND offensive, with many uninsured/licensed drivers. And when people wave at you here, it's usually with one finger and a horn.

Your weather is like '31' Flavors, unlike our 2- seasons (358 days of summer and 7 days of fall). Variety 'spice of life' !!

Windy? Is it all the time, alot of the time,? unlike our Santa Ana's (Aug. Sept. Oct. )

I did research on everything above. Are vacant lots hard to come by unless you go with the subdivisions builder? Houses too high in Wash, Oregon. Looking for new homes w/ 8500+s/f lots.
Ranch-w/wo fin. basement, or a lot to build a concrete ICF house.

Does Parker, like our Hemet, have a small town mentality? That's OK. You have to 'pay your dues' before you get hired locally !
Family-values / neighbors look out for each other?

Infastructure, as oppose to the lines on the google maps? From Parker to Castle Rock, CS, Denver? seen the traffic web cams.

Will be 'visiting' 10/20-26/06

Read 90% of threads Denver and Colorado Springs.
Not sure myself what I'm asking, maybe just need to see/feel it all.
We hate So. Calif. or Northern Mexico- Los Angeles is the capital.

Greg

oceankidz · 10-07-2006, 08:07 AM

Radon ??? I am trying to research the issue - possibly a dumb question but is it only contained inside your home?? surely it is a issue where ever you spend time including outside?? Are there areas north or south that are worse than others?

5sharps · 10-07-2006, 12:31 PM

http://www.epa.gov/radon/zonemap/colorado.htm

Some builders lay down plastic sheeting and add vents with fans to exhaust gases out from ground below grade/slab. And most DON'T!! As I've called and asked. Just the same as Colorado has been going through a drought. Most locals don't talk about it to outsiders, I wonder why???

5sharps · 10-07-2006, 12:42 PM

About the research on moving to Colorado, these items don't appear much at all on forum sites. We didn't know about the West Nile until a family friend got bit inside his house in Greeley, and in a coma for a month. Not big issues, but should be mentioned??

Radon
http://www.epa.gov/radon/zonemap/colorado.htm

Mosquito-West Nile

http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/dc/Zoon...AN_WNV_06.HTML
and http://www.fightthebitecolorado.com/

2bindenver · 10-07-2006, 01:54 PM

most builders allow testing, but do not mitigate if rating is above EPA guidelines. It would be up to the new homeowner.

Colorado.gov has a pdf about radon in CO http://snipurl.com/yfhf

If 24 hour tests average above 3/pcl, then mitigate & retest. Most people do not live in their basements. Testing should take place in the lowest finished space, and not in near the laundry (humidity effects the results) room.

About half of buyers use buyers agents when buying new, and the onsite person will not bring it up.

gpraceman · 10-16-2006, 02:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 5sharps

Just the same as Colorado has been going through a drought. Most locals don't talk about it to outsiders, I wonder why???

While we had been in a drought, I don't know that we would still be considered in one. Today's Rocky Mountain News said "Denver Water's resevouirs are fuller now than they've been in any October since 1999.", "The drought is essentially over" and "Denver Water's resevouirs are at 90% capacity". That is a far cry from the 51% of capacity back in Oct 2002.

We still need to not go hog wild on our water usage and continue to conserve to make sure we will have enough water into the near future.

SouthDenverGuy · 10-17-2006, 07:27 PM

I read these posts and wonder if folks think Denver/CO is like Mars or Siberia! We don't have 3 legs, 4 eyes, or purple skin. You CAN die of something if you work at it (even worry)! CSU is one of the centers that is doing major research into West Nile, and we had 4 cases this year I think (do the math here). We have Hantaviruses here too - wait until you read about them! Along with AIDS, STDs, and all the rest they have in all the world. I was bitten by a Brown Recluse spider in 1999, and that sucked, but got well quickly. We have lots of Prarrie Rattlers - saw 2 last week in the afternoon on the bike path sunning themselves - just walk or ride around them!
You will probably think me an idiot I did so little research - I came out here in 8/95, from Atlanta to test the '95 Range Rover in the Rockies with Land Rover (I was a mechanic). I was staying in CO Springs and loved the climate. I loved the Rockies, and all the folks I talked to. The crime was 1/5 of Atlanta's, climate was dry, schools great, good jobs, and racism almost non existent. This is Not rocket science here! Went home, talked with family, put home on market, sold home, spent Xmas one more time in Atlanta with friends and moved to CO in Jan, 1996. Wish I had moved here in the 70's.
My son called me 2 years ago while driving from CSU to go snowboarding to tell me "Dad I am so glad you had the b-lls to move us to Colorado."...just warmed my heart! If you love outdoor stuff, this is the place. We are the "leanest" state in the nation, so we are not all hiding inside scared to death. If you want to worry about everything, just live anywhere. Sorry for the rant, but this is getting absurd!

And BTW, Parker or Elizabeth? - you are splitting hairs here. Don't analyze this to death.

I have been told by Headhunters that CO has a funny stat - when people lose jobs here, they will commonly stay to find another here, rather than take one that comes up back east or in CA.

SouthDenverGuy · 10-17-2006, 07:35 PM

...and 5 sharp, this was NOT directed at you, it is just there are endless posts here that make me wonder if people have ever driven 50 miles from home.
If you want to know about Radon, I will write a note about it, as it can be cause for concern; not panic.

Mike from back east · 10-17-2006, 08:08 PM

Thank you for saying what I've been feeling for some time. I don't know how many times we've seen people wringing their hands over our weather. I no longer bother responding, merely tell folks to use the Forum Search tool to find all of the endless postings on the weather/climate. Of course, some of that is understandable, as back east where I'm from all they see on TV is the high country and semi-trucks doing the jack-knife boogie at Eisenhower Tunnel...every stupid time it snows....and people see these highlight films and they think ALL of COL is like that. NOT! A few times I resorted to saying things like "millions of people live here year round...how bad can it be?"

Another pet peeve is that some (not all) newbies get on here and say they are considering X city, yet give no details of what they can afford or anything else, and expect someone to do a brain dump just to reply to their "tell me everything" post. There's a fine search tool with v-bulletin, if they'd use it they'd get most questions answered right away. Funny, some who don't get a reply to these "tell me all" inquiries will come back in a day or two and post a comment about no one caring to help them.....sniff sniff....someone gimme a tissue. Shoot, if they want someone to dig it all up for them, why not just ask a realtor for the info, they usually have all of that at their fingertips...but they don't trust realtors; they must think us average joe's out here somehow have a bucketfull of elegant gems sparkling with 20-carat factoidal brilliance....and, here's the irony of it all, half the people here responding to these inquiries are realtors, the people that these posters are afraid or too shy to call and talk to....

The ones I get a laugh from are the ones who want to live in a modern, lovely, tree-lined, crime free, walk-about downtown, in a lovely home, that costs only $165k, has great schools, low traffic, fresh air, clean water, parks, playgrounds, a 5-minute commute, acreage for a garden, near museums and culture, a block from exquisite dining, free parking, no HOA with covenants to silence their yapping hounds from hades, and LOWWWWW taxes (of course). Shall we wake the dreamers up with a loud fire-alarm bell....

s/Mike

SouthDenverGuy · 10-17-2006, 08:30 PM

The ones I get a laugh from are the ones who want to live in a modern, lovely, tree-lined, crime free, walk-about downtown, in a lovely home, that costs only $165k, has great schools, low traffic, fresh air, clean water, parks, playgrounds, a 5-minute commute, acreage for a garden, near museums and culture, a block from exquisite dining, free parking, no HOA with covenants to silence their yapping hounds from hades, and LOWWWWW taxes (of course). Shall we wake the dreamers up with a loud fire-alarm bell....

s/Mike
IALMAO.......and you left out being next to the Rockies and 5 dollar lift tickets, with no lines! If you think a fire alarm bell will do it, have at it
George