Best Colorado City?: hot summers, mild winters
 

Hi everyone. Our family (we've no kids so we don't care about schools etc) wants to relocate to Colorado to be somewhat-driveable to relatives in Amarillo TX, Silverton NM. We need help so we can better research specific CO cities. Can anyone please provide feedback and suggestions about which Colorado cities have most or all of the following: 1) Very mild winter (i.e. little to no snow and temps above 40-ish); 2) Close proximity to steams, lakes, rivers, mountain hiking/camping/biking 3) Warm but not extreme-heat summer 4) "Progressive" city with arts, music, dog-friendly town with off-leash dog parks, zoo and modern retailers like WholeFoods, Starbucks, Costco 5) Low elevation 6) Decent cost of living (i.e. do-able house rent and sale costs; taxes) 7) People Diversity (i.e. ethnic, age, social, gender-orientation) 8) Science/Environment jobs 9) Lower elevation (I have asthma and one family member is senior with COPD 10) Low crime areas 11) Rain is OK but don't want to be near flood zones 12) Job-growth and potential for progressive companies to build there.
We had our sights set on Pueblo CO but TV and internet stories showed they had flooding and extreme winters this last year. Also, Pueblo is now a Seller's Market for real estate - at the time we were looking, they were a Buyer's Market and we could have bought a 4-br, 3 bath home there (in nicer safe area) for $60,000 - not any more.
Currently we live in a very hot, dry desert border town :( It's time to move and I truly appreciate any and all feedback so we don't make another grave mistake moving to a city without doing research.
I can be emailed at.. [email protected] or I will try to figure out how to gt to his forum thread again.
Thanks for your time, wisdom, expertise and care.

Start here. Colorado is the only state entirely above 1000 meters. Lowest point near the Kansas border is 3317 feet. Everywhere else is higher.

The lowest point, the Arikaree River at the Kansas border be a low crime area though. One out of 12.

My thought was Grand Junction. You will get used to the 4800 to 5000 foot elevation. http://www.usclimatedata.com/climate...tates/usco0166
It's on I-70 and is served in daylight hours by the Amtrak California Zephyr.

Where is Silverton NM

It is unlikely to find a house for $60,000 that has your wants that anywhere close to I 25 corridor. Winter temps you list aren't likely for even southern CO. Elevation is also doubtful.

I think you need to reevaluate your list.

And if jobs are needed, as I guess they are, perhaps that's the place to start. It sounds like you are wanting small towns with bigger city features.

With asthma, I'd be looking with that concern in mind as most important.

I think our collective leg is being pulled.

Thank you for ideas and suggestions thus far. Maybe I'm trying to be too specific with my needs. My asthma does take priority, it's just that I really want to be closer to biological family... as I get older. Ironically this AZ border town is one of the worst for Allergies, Asthma due to all the pesticide spraying and heavy winds blowing the particular matter around.
I meant to say my nephew lives in Farmington NM (sorry).
I've heard Grand Junction has mild winters and there's some parts that are desert like.
I've researched most of the southern CO towns and as I said, I had my heart set on Pueblo as it's drivable to Colorado Springs (for the big city amenities, yes)... but I did not purchase (was skeptical buying sight-unseen) during the buyer's market and this was winter saw heavy snow & flooding for Pueblo.
I appreciate everyone's time, expertise and look forward to more information.

Okay, I'll bite. I live in western Colorado, near Grand Junction. GJ meets many of your criteria, but not all. Winter is quite mild but 40 degrees is a bit unrealistic.


I don't get your concern with flooding in Pueblo, unless you live on the riverbank. Same goes for here. We are an arid area of the state so only flooding would happen with unusually heavy rain. Not unheard of, but not probable. I have lived in Colorado over 50years and don't remember bad flooding in Pueblo. Of course the memory could be fading.Other places in the state have had bad floods however. You need to contact the towns you might be interested in and get information and don't rely so much on on Internet and TV.

This entire post feels out of whack. Expectations are unrealistic, in my opinion. No place in Colorado meets all your requirements.

Hope you find what you are looking for.

If you need to be close to Farmington and Amarillo, why aren't you considering New Mexico?

My choice in Colorado would be Durango.
A friend moved to Pueblo for a job and hated it.

I don't think you're going to find what you're looking for.

You couldn't buy a garage in Durango for $60,000. No zoo, no Costco, high elevation, no scientific jobs, job growth? tourism is #1 business. Rentals are very costly as the compete with both enter and summer seasonal rentals.

OP is better off looking in NM, honestly.

As I said... ;)

The amenities the OP is looking for can't be found in a mild climate in any state for $60,000. No way, no how. I do think Albuquerque would come close, or closer.

There are some things ABQ would tick the boxes for OP but altitude would still be issue as would the winter temps. While we have the Rio Grande, there really aren't streams or lakes.

Some scientific jobs at Los Alamos but it's a pretty unpleasant commute. Maybe
Sandra Labs, but again, those are pretty high demand jobs. Job first, then housing is important in NM, we are a pretty poor state with lack of jobs for higher skill jobs.

Parts of California meet all of her requirements (I think) except the cost of living.

Gotta be a joke. Denver is hotter than heck in the summer. I lived there ten years and finally decided if I was gonna be hot all summer I might as well get rid of the May and October snowstorms, and moved to CA. Love it here.

TF