Any families from San Diego who moved to Denver? (Arvada: houses, employment)

[dasearch]

I posted something similar on the San Diego forum.

My wife and I are in the middle of planning a move either back to Denver or to give the San Diego area a try. We are from Denver but moved away about 8 years ago before having children. But we've been back at least once a year since leaving. We're drawn back to Denver but I really like both cities and just want some thoughts from folks who have lived in both.

We are very lucky to be able to live in either location with my job and so landing immediate employment is not an issue. I realize there is an obvious cost difference but we have done our due diligence and been home shopping in both locations multiple times and know what that difference looks like for us. We can purchase a home in either location in areas with seemingly good schools. In CO were looking at: Arvada, Ken Caryl, Greenwood Village, Highlands Ranch area, Louisville. In CA: Poway, Encinitas, Carlsbad

I'd really like to hear from folks who have made the move from San Diego to Denver who have children. Here's a few questions:
Happy you made the move?
If you could afford to live in either place would you still pick Denver?
Happy with CO schools vs. say Poway, Carlsbad, Encinitas, etc?
Traffic way worse or not as bad as you thought it would be?
Variety of activities for kids keyword being variety?

Any specific negatives you'd like to point out or make sure folks area aware of with either location? Besides water issues in CA, traffic on i-70 into the mountains...

Thanks.

[BabyBoomers2]

Most people in San Diego would really wonder why anyone would want to move to a "snow-belt" area. San Diego just happens to be the most "Heaven On Earth" that can be found..........if you can afford it. The weather is supreme year-around and very well noted for that. Heck, all of Florida isn't as popular as San Diego.

Wife and I are both from "snow-belt" areas and really had no problem moving from Orange County to Englewood, CO. But, if the finances were there, San Diego sure could have been the choice for us.

[sunsprit]

grew up on Point Loma (near SWYC, but with a lot of time spent in Mission Beach, LaJolla, Sunset Cliffs, Ocean Beach, and Pacific Beach), I moved to Boulder for school years ago ...

and have returned to SD frequently over the years to sail/fish/dive with my buddies there. Lots of fishing trips to the Coronado islands or Cedros, sailing up to Catalina, racing dinghy sailboats from various clubs all along the SoCal coastline.

But the allure of a 4-season climate and the easily accessible outdoor recreational opportunities in Colorado were and remain far more interesting to me. The pace of life in Colorado was always more attractive for me ... and I'll take the real changing of the seasons over the minimal summer/winter swings of San Diego's climate.

Even with the ready access to the ocean activities minutes from my residence in San Diego, it simply can't match the wide variety of things to do that appeal to me in the Rocky Mountain area.

From a financial perspective, even with the opportunity today to live near Shelter Island and my day boats and use of blue-water capable sailboats ... San Diego remains a nice place to visit. But I couldn't live there again full time and not have a 4-season climate, nor the ready access to my airplane and back country camping/fishing/exploring experiences.

IMO, Denver's traffic issues are still less burdensome than getting around San Diego. Both have their warts and rush hour slow downs ... and Denver has winter inclement conditions to contend with. But for my needs to get around, Denver still is easier.

The areas in CO you're considering are pretty nice places. My kids went through the schools from our Ken Caryl residence and I thought the district was pretty good.

In the long run, I think it comes down to the balance of what climate zone and activities/interests are paramount in your life's view. If you hear the ocean and related activities calling you ... then Colorado won't be your choice.

PS: Unlike the above poster who paints a rosy picture of weather being "supreme year-around" in San Diego, I well remember Santa Ana conditions, small craft warning conditions off the coastline, and a combination of heat index/humidity which didn't agree with me as well as lower temps/humidity of Colorado.

As well, I have friends now in the San Diego area who are there only because jobs have required them to move there. As soon as they can get out of there, they will be cashing in and heading back to Colorado ... where they were a lot happier with all the accessible outdoor recreation and the 4-season climate. Or so they say when we're out fishing or diving or sailing ... we'll see when the moment comes when they can afford to retire or find alternative job opportunities in Denver, where they moved from some years ago to chase the bigger income in SoCal. Seems to me that all they've done is move their cost of living upward to match their incomes. They left Denver $350,000 housing to replace it with $1mil housing in San Diego ... and their Denver houses were nicer.

[rushhournewb]

Only reason to move to SD is if you just have to live in a temperate climate. And are nuts about the ocean. I moved there (La Mesa) way back when, just to see. It was fun for the first year (hey, 70 degrees in January!) but I soon got tired of getting into a hot car, year 'round.

To go anywhere, well...go east and you hit the desert. Go north you hit LA. Go south and you got the Mexican border. Go west and, woops, there's the ocean. So I felt hemmed in big time. I did learn how to drive fast while there, though. Goes something like this: soon as the light turns green, put your foot in it and just keep accelerating until you absolutely have to slow down, like a red light or a stop sign. If even then.

So, yeah, sitting in my lawn chair watching the waves got old. Had no interest in going out in a boat. Getting into a hot vehicle year 'round got old. Feeling hemmed in got old. Every time I came back here to visit I said why am I out there? So, back here I moved. As I was heading out, driving a U Haul and towing my vehicle behind, I got up to St. George, Utah. Stepped out to get to gas and it just felt different...so not Southern California. I said "it's good to be back in the world".

[Timmyy]

Originally Posted by LoveBoating

Most people in San Diego would really wonder why anyone would want to move to a "snow-belt" area. San Diego just happens to be the most "Heaven On Earth" that can be found..........if you can afford it. The weather is supreme year-around and very well noted for that. Heck, all of Florida isn't as popular as San Diego.

Wife and I are both from "snow-belt" areas and really had no problem moving from Orange County to Englewood, CO. But, if the finances were there, San Diego sure could have been the choice for us.

Yeah, I get that question all the time. "Why did you move to Denver from San Diego? Are you crazy?" I grew up surfing and I love the ocean but I realized that I might not be able to ever afford a home in San Diego. I love both places but if I had to choose between the two with money not being an issue I would choose San Diego.

I have been in Colorado for 17 years now. I have bought two homes, got married and have a wonderful family. My transition here was easy because I have always had family living here and I had a job lined up. I think it is a great place to raise kids.

[denverian]

Personally, I'd head back to SoCal in a second! We moved to Denver from OC 10 years ago. I like Denver, love the mountains, love the city, and it's been a great place to raise our children. However, I HATE cold weather. And SoCal just feels more like home to me. I so much prefer the climate there. Denver winters are much nicer than other 4-seasons climates, but it's terribly annoying in Spring when you get lots of nice days, then return to cold and snow (as will surely happen here in a week or 2). And having all the vegetation go dormant is just depressing to me. But my life is about what's best for our kids, so we'll be in Denver another 10 years. I didn't think SoCal (really, much of anywhere) was that great for raising kids.

[Augie Daugie]

I have a few friends from San Diego living in Denver---the main thing they seem to miss is carne asada fries and the ocean.

[dasearch]

Thanks for all the replies so far. We're going back and forth with exactly several of the points folks have made in this thread.

I agree that SoCal is probably not the best place to raise kids and CO is in general a lot more down to Earth. But from what I've gathered North County SD is not too bad of a place...

I also agree that either has great activities it just really depends on if you like Winter. I have to admit that CO summers are what we think about a lot more than the winters. We both like to ski and have introduced the kids to it (of course they love it) but I also like kayaking, hiking, diving, mountain biking, and various other non-winter sports...

We also have family in CO and none in SoCal so that could help drive us back to CO. I guess what's really appealing about SD is what I consider the variety within driving distance. Dozens of beaches, Disney for the kids, hiking, biking, balboa park, the zoo, camping, ocean kayaking, museums all without the need to get on a plane. CO has a lot of these options as well, minus a few. Of course with the cost of living difference you can hit Hawaii once a year!

To me it seems like overall folks in the SD area were pretty friendly and laid back. Also very similar in Denver with a little more standoffishness...at least at first. But both are friendly places with good food options, craft beer, and outdoor-minded folks.

Tough decision when you are not bound to one or the other for a job...but of course money and the cost of living always matters as well - at least for us.

Keep the feedback coming!

Thanks

[DougStark]

While San Diego's climate is extremely mild, no extreme highs or lows (especially near the coast), to me the air there often feels "damp" to me, especially as one coming from drier locations like Phx and Denver. The dampness is especially noticeable once the warming sunshine goes down in the pm (I refer to it as feeling clammy.) Expect dew points in the 50s often (though almost never in the 70s like Florida).

One of the best aspects of the So. Cal climate is the sea breeze, which kicks in around 11am. Wonderful and refreshing.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by dasearch

Thanks for all the replies so far. We're going back and forth with exactly several of the points folks have made in this thread.

I agree that SoCal is probably not the best place to raise kids and CO is in general a lot more down to Earth. But from what I've gathered North County SD is not too bad of a place...

I also agree that either has great activities it just really depends on if you like Winter. I have to admit that CO summers are what we think about a lot more than the winters. We both like to ski and have introduced the kids to it (of course they love it) but I also like kayaking, hiking, diving, mountain biking, and various other non-winter sports...

We also have family in CO and none in SoCal so that could help drive us back to CO. I guess what's really appealing about SD is what I consider the variety within driving distance. Dozens of beaches, Disney for the kids, hiking, biking, balboa park, the zoo, camping, ocean kayaking, museums all without the need to get on a plane. CO has a lot of these options as well, minus a few. Of course with the cost of living difference you can hit Hawaii once a year!

To me it seems like overall folks in the SD area were pretty friendly and laid back. Also very similar in Denver with a little more standoffishness...at least at first. But both are friendly places with good food options, craft beer, and outdoor-minded folks.

Tough decision when you are not bound to one or the other for a job...but of course money and the cost of living always matters as well - at least for us.

Keep the feedback coming!

Thanks

Summers in Denver remind me of summers in SoCal... warm days, cool nights, few bugs and perfect level of humidity.