Thinking of moving from England

[barefootmeg]

Whew! It looks like there's been lots of discussion, so my thoughts might have already been expressed by someone else. But I'm going to throw them out quickly any way.

We live in Old Town and it's been an absolutely fantastic place to raise our kids. Our neighborhood elementary school (Dunn) was 4 blocks away and provided a strong sense of community as parents and kids all walk to and from school together. Parents often hang out on the grass, coffee in hand, chatting long after the bell has rung and the kids are in class. Our kids also attended our neighborhood middle school (Lincoln) which doesn't have that same walking to and from situation, but still had a very strong sense of community - especially between the kids and the teachers, which is probably more important by that age. They're all going to be in high school (Poudre) next year.

I love that our kids can grab a friend (all but one of their close friends lives within 4 or 5 blocks of our house) and wander downtown for ice cream or bubble tea on their own. They don't have to rely on me to drive them somewhere. So they have a sense of autonomy, and yet they're still nearby so if I need to get to them quickly, I can.

We're right smack in the middle between two large parks - City Park (the best place to hang if you have little kids because there are trees that will keep you all from getting burned to a crisp in the summer) and Martinez Park (which connects up with the bike trail and the river).

And if you want to still be close to all the action, but you want a larger property, there are several horse properties on Vine near Lincoln that I pass regularly. There's a berry farm, llama farm, horses and cows all along that street. And I often see deer when I'm at the school. And yet the school is only about 2 miles from downtown - a short bike ride.

There are a lot of great neighborhoods in FC. I'm just telling you our experience. But I have friends all over town and I don't know a single person who complains about where they live. It's a great town all around. :-)

[Yukichon]

Thanks for such an informative post. The house we have bought is just near S Lemay & Carpenter, so our views are majestic and we seem to have plenty of homes nearby so hopefully the kids will make some great new friends. Most of the schools look great but we are particularly interested in Coyote Ridge Elemntery & Kinard Core Middle school. Our allocated schools are Cottonwood Plains elementary & Lucile Erwin middle which both get 7/10 on the great schools website as opposed to 10/10 to the other two. We are hoping that we can put kids in a school of choice without too much of an issue. Would love some feedback n any of the schools we have mentioned.

[ShigarakiTeacher]

Hey Yukichon! We are a family with two kids 4 and nearly 7 who just moved here from ireland. My husband is from there and I'm from the States. He loves football too (Liverpool!). He got a job as a teacher in a big high school here. We are looking forward to living the outdoor lifestyle here. Welcome to Fort Collins!

[Yukichon]

That's great....how are you all letting in? Does this mean he will find out the best places to watch the football for me lol
Which part of town have you guys decided on? We will be be in the SW near S Lemay & College...