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We're moving from San Diego to Denver and any advice is wanted! We're a lesbian couple, late 20s and mid 30s. We're planning on renting for a few years and then buying a house. What is the weather like? I'm originally from Connecticut, and loved having seasons, but hated how extreme they were. We do like Denver because it has seasons. I'm not worried about "everything being brown," because it can't be worse than the CA drought right now. What is traffic really like? I've spent most of my time in CA living in San Francisco, and am curious how it compares to there? Or LA, SD? What highways should we try to avoid? How friendly/open-minded/gay-friendly are people? Probably looking to move to the Southwest metro area of Denver, what are the "good/bad" areas? Any knowledge on how a French Bulldog may react to the climate/elevation? In general, what are the pros and cons of living in Denver?
Denver area winters longer in duration due to altitude than CT, oft-times with colder temps. The winter clime can be offset by the days of sunshine and perception of warmth (and maybe, chinook winds), but overnight will drop down to the cold temps again. Dry climate is nice for most months of the year; I lived in Denver area for many years and did not need air conditioning although a swamp cooler for a few nights per year was nice to have.
Denver area traffic comparable to bay area, LA, or SD traffic. The main corridors are the only way to access much of the area, so that's where the traffic piles up during rush hours; effectively, you cannot avoid using those main routes. Diverting to some of the major surface streets with traffic lights and traffic volume frequently is not much quicker than the snarls on the major corridors. Longer traffic times during inclement weather, too.
Living in SW Denver metro area has few, if any, bad areas. But you will need to access Denver from there on only a few major corridors. C-470, Santa Fe Drive, Wadsworth, Kipling, Hampden Aves, Broadway, University, and so forth. You can't avoid this congestion except by traveling in the off-rush hours.
Probably best to locate a residential area close as possible to where you'll be working.
We're moving from San Diego to Denver and any advice is wanted! We're a lesbian couple, late 20s and mid 30s. We're planning on renting for a few years and then buying a house. What is the weather like? I'm originally from Connecticut, and loved having seasons, but hated how extreme they were. We do like Denver because it has seasons. I'm not worried about "everything being brown," because it can't be worse than the CA drought right now. What is traffic really like? I've spent most of my time in CA living in San Francisco, and am curious how it compares to there? Or LA, SD? What highways should we try to avoid? How friendly/open-minded/gay-friendly are people? Probably looking to move to the Southwest metro area of Denver, what are the "good/bad" areas? Any knowledge on how a French Bulldog may react to the climate/elevation? In general, what are the pros and cons of living in Denver?
Thanks!
The weather is ever-changing.
The traffic may be comparable to San Diego's. Nowhere near as bad as LA. Worse than Phoenix. Better than Seattle and Portland. Kind of like Sacramento.
I am a relatively new resident of the west metro (I lived in the Denver Tech Center and Aurora previously). The traffic on I-70 over here is never bad. I love it.
I-225 northbound just completed a makeover, and is now absolutely amazing. TBH, the areas with the worst commutes are the far north metro (Northglenn, Thornton, points beyond) and south metro (Castle Rock, Parker).
I'm not gay, but the population here is fairly open-minded. I wouldn't think you would have any sort of problem here.
If you're talking SW Metro, there are no bad areas. Everything south and west of say Sheridan/Jewell is absolutely fine. Everything south of US 285/Hampden its entire length is absolutely fine. The town of Sheridan and a little part of Englewood might have some grit, but nothing scary at all. 95% of the south metro area is typical American suburbia.
I'm not a dog person, but we just took in two (I have no idea what kind they are), and they haven't said anything to me about the climate or elevation (they moved from Phoenix). They still throw a fit every time someone opens the front door, so I can't say they've noticed.
Re: Pros/cons: most people take a liking to living here. There is no ocean, so if that has any bearing on your happiness, don't consider coming. There aren't as many amusements as Southern CA. It rains more. It snows. It gets cold. There are tornado warnings. But most of the time, it's nice. The culture revolves around the Denver Broncos, and of late, weed. People are transient, or have been here their whole lives. It's a good place to build a life. The economy is good, housing is expensive. People don't move out of the way of ambulances. People tend to be more introverted (just my experience, most people don't agree with me on this). There's not much in the way of natural water, no forest, no mountains in any direction but the west. It's dry, not humid.
The traffic may be comparable to San Diego's. Nowhere near as bad as LA. Worse than Phoenix. Better than Seattle and Portland. Kind of like Sacramento.
I am a relatively new resident of the west metro (I lived in the Denver Tech Center and Aurora previously). The traffic on I-70 over here is never bad. I love it.
I-225 northbound just completed a makeover, and is now absolutely amazing. TBH, the areas with the worst commutes are the far north metro (Northglenn, Thornton, points beyond) and south metro (Castle Rock, Parker).
I'm not gay, but the population here is fairly open-minded. I wouldn't think you would have any sort of problem here.
If you're talking SW Metro, there are no bad areas. Everything south and west of say Sheridan/Jewell is absolutely fine. Everything south of US 285/Hampden its entire length is absolutely fine. The town of Sheridan and a little part of Englewood might have some grit, but nothing scary at all. 95% of the south metro area is typical American suburbia.
I'm not a dog person, but we just took in two (I have no idea what kind they are), and they haven't said anything to me about the climate or elevation (they moved from Phoenix). They still throw a fit every time someone opens the front door, so I can't say they've noticed.
Re: Pros/cons: most people take a liking to living here. There is no ocean, so if that has any bearing on your happiness, don't consider coming. There aren't as many amusements as Southern CA. It rains more. It snows. It gets cold. There are tornado warnings. But most of the time, it's nice. The culture revolves around the Denver Broncos, and of late, weed. People are transient, or have been here their whole lives. It's a good place to build a life. The economy is good, housing is expensive. People don't move out of the way of ambulances. People tend to be more introverted (just my experience, most people don't agree with me on this). There's not much in the way of natural water, no forest, no mountains in any direction but the west. It's dry, not humid.
Hope this all gives you an idea.
This guy gives good advice. I am still shocked people write that much to help a stranger they do not know out. We still have a few good citizens in America left. Kudos to you Aguliar.
A lot really depends on where you work and where you want to live.
If you need to go across town to the DTC, you only really have 3 options:
1. C-470, which is a beltway with only 2 lanes in each directions and is very bad during rush hours.
2. Ken Caryl-Mineral-Dry Creek, which is about a mile north of C-470. It is typical surface street congestion.
3. Hampden Ave (US 285), which is VERY congested and stop and go east of Santa Fe.
If you have to go across town, live near one of these streets.
Downtown is accessible by Light Rail, but it takes 27 minutes from the Mineral Station to get downtown (and anywhere from 10-20 minutes to drive to the Mineral Station).
Denver West/Golden is perhaps the most accessible, as it is a straight drive up C-470.
I would not recommend commuting anywhere else (Broomfield, Aurora, Airport) from this area.
We're moving from San Diego to Denver and any advice is wanted! We're a lesbian couple, late 20s and mid 30s. We're planning on renting for a few years and then buying a house. What is the weather like? I'm originally from Connecticut, and loved having seasons, but hated how extreme they were. We do like Denver because it has seasons. I'm not worried about "everything being brown," because it can't be worse than the CA drought right now. What is traffic really like? I've spent most of my time in CA living in San Francisco, and am curious how it compares to there? Or LA, SD? What highways should we try to avoid? How friendly/open-minded/gay-friendly are people? Probably looking to move to the Southwest metro area of Denver, what are the "good/bad" areas? Any knowledge on how a French Bulldog may react to the climate/elevation? In general, what are the pros and cons of living in Denver?
Thanks!
I moved here 9 years ago with my partner from Orange County.
As for the weather, summers are great and like SD, it's not too humid or buggy. Great for being outdoors a lot. Fall through Spring, it's rather bi-polar, with temps swinging from warm to cold, snowy to dry. But there are plenty of warm, pleasant afternoons in winter where you can still get outside. Winter is very dry, and there's rarely much snow on the ground for extended times. But you'll probably want a humidifier in your home for winter.
Traffic can be bad, especially on the 25 anywhere. But not nearly as bad as LA. Living close to work is still a good idea.
Denver is very gay friendly, but the southwestern 'burbs are the most conservative area. I wouldn't care to live out there personally, but we have kids, so really need to live where we're accepted and where there are many other gay couples with kids (as is the case in our neighborhood).
The dog will be fine. We brought a dog here and the only thing I noticed was that she was very thirsty the first couple weeks.
Thanks for all of the responses! I haven't come back on here, as I expected I'd get alerts if there were any responses. I'll check out what you all had to say, and I'm sure I'll have a few more questions!
Denver area winters longer in duration due to altitude than CT, oft-times with colder temps. The winter clime can be offset by the days of sunshine and perception of warmth (and maybe, chinook winds), but overnight will drop down to the cold temps again. Dry climate is nice for most months of the year; I lived in Denver area for many years and did not need air conditioning although a swamp cooler for a few nights per year was nice to have.
Denver area traffic comparable to bay area, LA, or SD traffic. The main corridors are the only way to access much of the area, so that's where the traffic piles up during rush hours; effectively, you cannot avoid using those main routes. Diverting to some of the major surface streets with traffic lights and traffic volume frequently is not much quicker than the snarls on the major corridors. Longer traffic times during inclement weather, too.
Living in SW Denver metro area has few, if any, bad areas. But you will need to access Denver from there on only a few major corridors. C-470, Santa Fe Drive, Wadsworth, Kipling, Hampden Aves, Broadway, University, and so forth. You can't avoid this congestion except by traveling in the off-rush hours.
Probably best to locate a residential area close as possible to where you'll be working.
I definitely understand the altitude will change weather a bit. I do realize that hot is hot and cold is cold at some point, but is the cold as bone-chilling as CT, or even SF? I realize SF doesn't get the drops in temperature that would happen in Denver, but the cold in SF is piercing. I'm just trying to get my best guess on what it will be like. Growing up in CT I was usually forced to wear coats, but I realize that having not been in cold temperatures for several years now, that it is going to take a good amount of time to get used to it. I'm most likely going to be going into Rad. Tech or Sonography program at Red Rocks CC, the Arvada Campus. I already have my Bachelor's in Biology, and am hoping to actually be able to do something with my education! My girlfriend, on the other hand, will most likely be working in Denver/Aurora area. I'm realizing this is horrible placement. How are Littleton and Englewood? I was thinking I'd take the 470 to school. She would most likely hit more traffic, but my commute would be longer, is what I'm thinking. Correct me if I'm wrong. We know traffic is inevitable, but obviously want to make it as minimal as possible. Thanks for all of the help!
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