Moving to Denver in July - Help!

Hello - We moved here last year and moved to northern Westminster. My husband works in downtown Denver, it's about a 30 min commute with traffic, although he leaves pretty early in the morning to beat most of it. We chose this area because it's close to everything. We are only 20 mins from downtown during normal drive time, 20 minutes from Boulder, and 20 - 30 minutes from hiking in the mountains, which was important to us.

I joined the MOMs club when we moved out here (www.momsclub.org you can find a chapter near you with the link at the bottom). It really helped me meet people and learn about fun things to do in the area.

Hope this helps and good luck.

I have lived here my whole life and love it, once movedto AZ for 5 yrs but had to come home!!! My husband and I just bought our first home in Littleton an we LOVE it here (around Kipling and Coalmine) We live in endless culdesacs and the school my son goes to is awesome. There is a great little academy right around here that is pretty good from what I hear, I am a home daycare provider so my kids dont go to daycare. Well anyways hope you love it here in CO and good luck with your move

Good luck with the preschool/childcare at DU, heard there are 2year waiting list. Check out qualistar on the web. They are a non-profit that rates childcare centers and have access to a referral system. Good luck and welcome to denver

Congratulations! I think you will love Colorado! One area close to DU is by Washington Park. It is beautiful and expensive. I live in Highlands Ranch and I love it for the community, and the rec centers. My sister lives in Littleton and she really loves it.
M. Petersen

Just relocated here myself so wanted to wish you all the best with your move.
Take lots of pictures of where you are and establish routines fast when you arrive. It helped my 4 yr and 21 mtn old get settled quickly.

I'm too new to give advice on houses and areas. I love Centennial where we live but don't know where that is compared to the University. Sorry.

A great thing we found was to buy a Denver map. The one the Realtors use. It made finding new homes easy and we use it all the time.

Hi, BethAnne!
There are a bunch of really great neighborhoods right around DU. Here's a list of a few:

Stokes (where I live...it's a little hidden gem of a neighborhood, ask your realtor about it)
Belcaro
BonnieBrae
Observatory Park
University Park
Washington Park
Wellshire
University Hills
CherryCreek North
Hilltop
Lakota Heights
Cory/Merrill

These neighborhoods are all a bit pricey, but they'll get you to DU within 5-15 minutes. You can still find houses that haven't been scraped and rebuilt, but the new houses will run you anywhere from $800,000 to well over $2,000,000.

If you don't mind a longer commute, the areas mentioned by the other moms will probably get you more house for your money.

As far as schools go, there are plenty of really great pre-schools in Denver (including Fisher at DU) and a few good public schools, too. Also plenty of private schools. And you can't go wrong in the Cherry Creek School District (a bit South/Southeast of Denver), it's considered one of the best in the area.

All in all, you're pretty lucky to be moving here. It's a great place for families and the people are really happy and friendly. And the weather is near perfect! If you have any questions or want more details about neighborhoods, feel free to send me a message anytime.

Yes, the DU child care/preschool rocks! Not sure what tuition is in comparison to others. Not sure what your budget will be, but anywhere near DU or Washington Park neighborhood and Cherry Creek are also close by. You will love it here, lots of family activities and lots of fun. Colorado is very outdoorsy, soooooo many parks and pools. Check out Colorado parent magazine (Coloradoparent.com), such a great resource. There are soooo many malls to run and play and shop at for the cold days of winter or if it is toooo hot in summer. Also check out local news websites (9news.com myfoxcolorado.com thedenverchannel.com cbs4denver.com) from there you can get further ideas. I am a Colorado native (one of few, and live in SW metro area. We are 30 min or so from DU. Very clean, middle to upper middle class primarily white suburb. Beware of weather here...80 degrees one day snow the next. Always wear sunscreen in summer (closer to sun due to altitude), keep a sunshade and snow brush in your car always. We use car seat blankets in summer to cover them so they do not get tooo hot, and to keep warm in winter! You will enjoy the change, but will miss the moisture! Good for you for doing soooo much research ahead of time. Good luck with everything.
C.

Hi Beth,
I live in a little 1960's neighborhood just south-west of I-25 and Arapahoe. The houses are smaller ranch-style homes, but the yards are big and the landscaping is mature - - big trees, lots of shade, Cherry Creek schools. It's kind of far from University, but there is a light-rail stop very close.

Hello,

We live about five minutes from DU (Evans and Downing, by Porter Hospital) and we LOVE this neighborhood. The prices have gone way up in the last five years, so you will definitely get more house for your money if you live closer to the suburbs. Even so, we love being close to the city while still living in a very friendly close-knit neighborhood. Harvard Gulch is a great park (has a par 3 golf course, rec center with outdoor pool, newly remodelled play area for the kids) and there are a ton of great restaurants within a short distance. We are about 15-20 minutes away from downtown, the zoo, and the Museum of Nature and Science. My kids are little (4 and 11 months), so we are just trying to figure out schools - the other tricky part to this part of town. We are technically in Denver by about 2 blocks. According to the people I have talked to, the neighborhood grade school, Asbury, is a very good Denver public school. The middle school, Grant, is in a "transition period" where they are really trying to improve it. If you prefer, there are three Catholic schools within 10 minutes of here (All Soul's, Most Precious Blood, and Lady of Lourdes) and you can open enroll in many of the other public schools in Englewood or Littleton (neighboring suburbs). Hope some of this information is helpful!

K.