From Boston to Denver - Please suggest some areas to live in (Aurora: apartment, to rent)

[boston2denver]

After having read several of the posts about where to live in Denver and looking at Craigslist, I'm posting my own. My girlfriend and I are moving to Denver in July and will be looking for a place to rent for at least the first year. Just for reference, I will be working in the downtown area near the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. We would love suggestions of good neighborhoods to consider.

We are a couple in our 30's w/o kids, but with two small dogs. We enjoy staying at home and therefore love to have a comfortable, nice space to live in.

The ideal neighborhood for us would be quiet (not on a busy street, residential, and peaceful), allow us to have a yard, and be near good running/bike paths/trails. If possible, we would love to have easy access (one bus or one light rail ride away) through public transportation to the downtown area. This is our ideal - does anything close to this exist?

We would like to pay $1600 or less (ideally less - we would love for it be closer to $1000, but will pay more for the right place) for a 3+ bedroom single family home. Again, 3 bedrooms is ideal, but if we found the right 2 bedroom place (even in a duplex or apartment), that would work also. Most important to us is the neighborhood and location, next comes the size of our home (on which we are flexible).

Thank you in advance for all your help. These forums are so helpful.

[Dorthy]

I would look at Littleton, particularly the areas close to the Littleton light rail stations. That way you could ride the rail to work while at the same time be in a quiet area with trails nearby.

ETA: There are actually a lot of places that would meet your criteria. You could also look in Park Hill (south) and Mayfair which are both Denver city neighborhoods which would provide a quick easy bus ride downtown via Colfax.

You could look at the Washington Park neighborhood as it has a nice running/bike path and quick access to downtown.

The Virginia Village neighborhood is right on the Cherry Creek bike path and has bus access to downtown.

There are so many many more. What else do you want in a neighborhood? Do you want to be able to walk to things close by such as grocery stores, restaurants, etc. or do you want something more suburban?

[denverkid]

How long of a commute is acceptable for you? How close to the city center would you prefer to live?

As Dorthy pointed out, there are many places throughout the metro area where you could get a 3 bedroom house near public transit and running trails in your budget. Aurora near I-225 and Parker Rd. jumps out to me. There's a light rail stop right there with a direct line to the Denver Center for the Performing Arts (it's a 33 minute trip). It's also right next to Cherry Creek State Park (lot of running trails).

As for more central Denver locations Park Hill and Mayfair fit your budget and house requirements (not sure about running trails). Washington Park certainly fits your house/running needs, but might be out of your price range.

Another central Denver location I'd consider is the Sloans Lake (maybe even into the Highlands) area.

[boston2denver]

Thanks for the info Dorthy. From reading the forums, Washington Park has piqued our interest. To answer your questions:

What else do you want in a neighborhood?
We really only care about living in a quiet neighborhood with good running/biking options nearby. We love our current neighborhood because everyone takes care of their homes and yards, it's quiet and peaceful, we live near an excellent bike/running path, and have easy access to public transportation (we realize that coming from Boston the public transportation will be a little different in Denver).

Do you want to be able to walk to things close by such as grocery stores, restaurants, etc. or do you want something more suburban?
As far as grocery stores go, we tend to buy our produce from a local farm, our meat from a butcher, and the other things we need from specialty stores. In our current location, this means we have to drive. Being able to walk to grocery stores and restaurants is not a priority for us.

[boston2denver]

Thank you denverkid for your help.

And to answer your questions: How long of a commute is acceptable for you? Preferably not more than 45 minutes driving, but up to an hour on easy public transportation. Less would be great.

How close to the city center would you prefer to live? We don't really care about living near the city center, we care more about the neighborhood and having access to good running/biking trails.

We agree with you that there are many places throughout the metro area where we could get a good house, but that is exactly what is overwhelming to us! We will look into the area in Aurora that you pointed out as well as Cherry Creek. Thanks so much!

[maximusmgm]

If you are looking at Wash Park also look at Platt Park. South Pearl (Platt Park's main street) is one of my favorite places in town.

[Spot]

Originally Posted by maximusmgm

If you are looking at Wash Park also look at Platt Park. South Pearl (Platt Park's main street) is one of my favorite places in town.

Both of these areas are great.

[80skeys]

Based on your criteria, Washington Park would be a good fit for you.

[boston2denver]

The neighborhoods suggested look appealing. We are also looking towards the Boulder area: Louisville, Superior, Lafayette, and Erie. Anyone here live around there and make the commute to downtown Denver? Those areas appear to be further out than we'd like but from doing a little research it seems to be a normal commute for many. We'll be taking a trip down there and looking at all these places to get a better idea. Thanks again for the input.

[2bindenver]

It's not a normal commute. It's not ideal under any circumstances.

Do you live to work or work to live?