The 10 Worst Places To Live In Colorado For 2024


The worst places to live in Colorado are Fort Lupton and Aurora for 2024 based on Friday Night Science.

People who live in Colorado are weirdly protective of their state. It’s almost like they warn you: Don’t you dare say anything bad about Colorado, especially if you don’t live here.

Well I am about to, and I don’t. So deal with it.

To be fair, I’ve been to Colorado many times, and it is a beautiful place. I’ve boarded there, and I’ve camped out in the mountains and in the deserts. Many of my friends spent time there, and many still make Colorado home. I hear nothing but great things.

But is it all good there? Of course not. Just like any other state, Colorado has some issues. And the purpose of this post is to use science and data to determine which places in Colorado are the absolute worst. If you live in any of these places, you might agree with this analysis. And if you don’t agree, you have to admit that the criteria we’re using makes a lot of sense.

After analyzing all 75 cities with a population over 5,000, we came up with this list as the 10 worst places in Colorado:


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The 10 Worst Places To Live In Colorado For 2024

  1. Fort Lupton
  2. Aurora
  3. Sheridan
  4. Lochbuie
  5. Federal Heights
  6. Trinidad
  7. Evans
  8. Greeley
  9. Pueblo
  10. Brighton

Worst Places To Live In Colorado Map

Where are these places, you wonder? And before you get all riled up and say we’re picking on small towns in Colorado, that’s not the case.

We understand there’s a lot of good in every place. For example, the best place to live in Colorado is Louisville.

However, according to data (which doesn’t measure things like beauty and ‘friendly people’), the state has far better options for making a place home. And the worst place to live in Colorado? The worst place to live in Colorado is Fort Lupton.

Read below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your city fared in 2024.

If you’re looking for something more national, check out the worst cities in America or the worst states in America.

For more Colorado reading, check out:

The 10 Worst Places To Live In Colorado For 2024

Fort Lupton, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Jeffrey Beall | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 8,164
Average Home Price: $451,653
Median Income: $71,293
Unemployment Rate: 7.1%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0383
More on Fort Lupton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Fort Lupton came into existence as a trading post in the 1830s, part of the early migration to the area. You can still see a reconstructed version of the original fort in town. Life was presumably tough in the area back then. It remains so today, as Fort Lupton stands as the number 1 worst place in Colorado to put down roots.

The education system is a major drawback for the 8,164 residents. Even on the high side, the schools in the area rank a paltry 4/10 on Great Schools.

There are pluses to life in Fort Lupton. The crime rate hovers about 60% below the national average. Meanwhile, the overall cost of living is about 10% below the U.S. norm, thanks in large part to affordable housing.

Aurora, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Jeffrey Beall | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 387,349
Average Home Price: $472,149
Median Income: $78,685
Unemployment Rate: 5.5%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0537
More on Aurora: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

In 2012, Aurora suffered a horrific mass shooting that killed 12 people and made headlines around the country. Unfortunately, this wasn’t an isolated incident. The crime rate in the area stands about 50% above the national average. This is the main factor that makes Aurora the number 2 worst location in Colorado.

Though its 387,349 residents battle a high crime rate, Aurora has other benefits to provide. Located about a half hour east of Denver’s city center, it gives excellent access to the region’s major metropolitan area. Meanwhile, the economy is relatively strong, with unemployment at 5.5% and the median income at $78,685.

Sheridan, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Jeffrey Beall | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 6,062
Average Home Price: $424,232
Median Income: $53,707
Unemployment Rate: 10.1%
Crime Per Capita: 0.1094
More on Sheridan: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Federal Heights, located in Adams County, Colorado, has unfortunately earned its reputation as one of the worst places to live in the state. With a concerning crime rate and poor safety conditions, it’s no wonder residents have concerns about their well-being. While it’s important to note that every community faces its own challenges, Federal Heights struggles with high crime statistics that contribute to its unfavorable ranking. However, amidst these difficulties, there is hope for improvement. By addressing the underlying issues and working towards creating a safer environment, Federal Heights can transform into a better place to live for its population of 6,062 residents. Additionally, its location within the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood Metropolitan Statistical Area offers opportunities for growth and development.

Lochbuie, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Jeffrey Beall | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 7,963
Average Home Price: $457,546
Median Income: $84,556
Unemployment Rate: 2.3%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0537
More on Lochbuie: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Lochbuie originated as a development called the Spacious Living Mobile Home Park…or “Space City” for short. These days, it gets its name from a town in Scotland. Unfortunately, it also counts as the number 4 worst place to live in Colorado.

Built on the northeastern edge of the circle of suburbs surrounding Denver, Lochbuie sports a median income of $84,556 and an unemployment rate of 2.3%. Education is a major problem for the 7,963 residents of the town. The schools score a 3/10 on Great Schools.

Things aren’t all bad in Lochbuie. Locals have excellent access to one of the region’s major metropolitan areas. It’s just a 30-minute drive to the city center.

Federal Heights, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Jeffrey Beall | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 14,173
Average Home Price: $401,479
Median Income: $56,316
Unemployment Rate: 3.8%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0433
More on Federal Heights: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Nestled within Arapahoe County, Colorado, the city of Sheridan has unfortunately earned the unenviable title of being the worst place to live in the state. With a population of 14,173 residents, Sheridan struggles with numerous challenges that contribute to its poor reputation. One major concern is the city’s high crime rate, which poses a significant safety risk for its inhabitants. In 2021 alone, there were 118 reported incidents of violent crime, including 0 murders, 17.0 cases of rape, 20.0 robberies, and 81.0 aggravated assaults. These alarming figures reflect a crime rate that surpasses many other cities in Colorado.

However, it is essential to note that despite its drawbacks, Sheridan offers hope for improvement. Efforts to enhance safety measures and address the underlying issues contributing to crime can help transform this troubled community into a safer place for its residents. Additionally, Sheridan’s location within the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood Metropolitan Statistical Area provides opportunities for economic growth and development. By focusing on addressing poverty levels and improving income prospects for its residents, Sheridan has the potential to rise above its current status as one of Colorado’s worst places to live.

Trinidad, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Billy Hathorn | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 8,334
Average Home Price: $242,035
Median Income: $47,908
Unemployment Rate: 8.2%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0448
More on Trinidad: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Trinidad has a violent history. In the early 20th century, it was the site of a deadly labor dispute between miners and the Colorado Fuel & Iron company. These days, those types of clashes are a thing of the past. Still, the community has its challenges. It sits at number 6 on the list of least appealing spots in Colorado.

The economy presents a major issue for Trinidad’s 8,334 inhabitants. The unemployment rate stands at 8.2%, while 20.1% of people struggle below the poverty line.

Crime is nearly double the national average and schools in the area top out at mediocre. That said, there are bright spots. Located in the southern part of the state, near the New Mexico border, residents can enjoy the region’s natural splendor at places like the Spanish Peaks State Wildlife Area.

Evans, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Jeffrey Beall | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 22,092
Average Home Price: $388,506
Median Income: $75,544
Unemployment Rate: 7.9%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0301
More on Evans: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Greeley, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Peter Romero | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 107,949
Average Home Price: $411,873
Median Income: $65,525
Unemployment Rate: 5.6%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0379
More on Greeley: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Pueblo, CO

Source: Wikipedia User John Wark | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 111,430
Average Home Price: $286,223
Median Income: $52,794
Unemployment Rate: 6.6%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0810
More on Pueblo: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

When you’re looking at things from purely a scientific standpoint, Pueblo is by far the worst place in Colorado.

The crime here is really bad and nearly 1 in 15.1 residents are without jobs — by far the highest in the state. And those who are employed earn a measly salary. The schools are underfunded and home values are low and not climbing at all.

If you’ve been to Pueblo, it would be hard to argue against this ranking. And if you live there, you might have expected to see your town towards the top of the list. The rest of these cities are a distant second.

Brighton, CO

Source: Wikipedia User Jeffrey Beall | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 40,569
Average Home Price: $497,256
Median Income: $86,975
Unemployment Rate: 5.1%
Crime Per Capita: 0.0340
More on Brighton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Methodology: How we determined the worst places to live in Colorado for 2024

To figure out the worst places to live in Colorado, we used Saturday Night Science to idenift what kinds of things people like and then decide what cities have the least amount of those things.

We don’t think it’s a stretch to assume that people like the following things:

  • Good education
  • Lots of jobs
  • Low crime
  • Low poverty
  • Nice homes
  • High incomes
  • High population density (Lots of things to do)
  • Short work commutes
  • Health insurance

The data comes from the Census’s most recent American Community Survey and the FBI Uniform Crime Report.

We broke crime down into violent crime and property crime to give violent crime a more significant weight. If you did a simple calculation of all crimes per capita, property crimes are typically 7x more common and bias that ranking.

Furthermore, only cities with at least 5,000 people were considered — leaving 75 cities.

We then ranked each city from 1 to 75 for all the criteria, with a #1 ranking being the worst for the particular criteria.

Next, we averaged the rankings into one “Worst Place To Live Score.”

Finally, we ranked every city on the “Worst Place To Live Score,” with the lowest score being the worst city in Colorado — Fort Lupton. Read on for a detailed look at the ten worst cities in Colorado. This article is an opinion based on facts meant as infotainment. We updated this article for 2024. This list is our tenth time ranking the worst places to live in Colorado.

Summary: Wrapping Up The Worst In Colorado

If you’re looking at areas in Colorado with the worst economic situations, where there’s higher than average crime and little to do, this is an accurate list.

And in the end, Fort Lupton ranks as the worst city to live in Colorado for 2024.

The worst cities in Colorado are .

If you’re curious enough, here are the best cities to live in Colorado:

  1. Centennial (Pop. 107,702)
  2. Timnath (Pop. 7,122)
  3. Louisville (Pop. 20,920)

For more Colorado reading, check out:

Worst Places To Live In Colorado

Rank City Population Unemployment Rate Home Price Median Income Crime Per Capita
1 Fort Lupton 8,164 7.1% $451,653 $71,293 0.0383
2 Aurora 387,349 5.5% $472,149 $78,685 0.0537
3 Sheridan 6,062 10.1% $424,232 $53,707 0.1094
4 Lochbuie 7,963 2.3% $457,546 $84,556 0.0537
5 Federal Heights 14,173 3.8% $401,479 $56,316 0.0433
6 Trinidad 8,334 8.2% $242,035 $47,908 0.0448
7 Evans 22,092 7.9% $388,506 $75,544 0.0301
8 Greeley 107,949 5.6% $411,873 $65,525 0.0379
9 Pueblo 111,430 6.6% $286,223 $52,794 0.0810
10 Brighton 40,569 5.1% $497,256 $86,975 0.0340
11 Rifle 10,420 4.0% $439,901 $72,955 0.0238
12 Delta 9,137 5.0% $335,333 $45,950 0.0396
13 Cortez 8,832 7.0% $301,599 $55,962 0.0353
14 Glenwood Springs 10,100 3.1% $793,858 $80,806 0.0426
15 Fort Morgan 11,501 4.9% $318,927 $55,407 0.0357
16 La Junta 7,244 6.0% $154,737 $50,799 0.0543
17 Alamosa 9,792 3.9% $284,458 $50,239 0.0700
18 Grand Junction 65,918 4.7% $382,198 $62,993 0.0377
19 Denver 710,800 4.7% $558,402 $85,853 0.0744
20 Northglenn 37,948 4.1% $459,707 $77,797 0.0466
21 Avon 6,115 7.1% $1,150,708 $85,817 0.0180
22 Montrose 20,394 5.1% $423,228 $60,132 0.0286
23 Edgewater 5,002 4.2% $592,807 $71,964 0.0866
24 Lakewood 156,149 4.4% $560,048 $82,786 0.0617
25 Colorado Springs 479,612 5.6% $440,298 $79,026 0.0411
26 Thornton 141,799 4.6% $512,505 $95,064 0.0380
27 Englewood 33,634 4.2% $522,702 $79,375 0.0792
28 Wheat Ridge 32,263 5.3% $594,883 $79,567 0.0561
29 Fountain 29,498 7.0% $389,428 $80,311 0.0244
30 Lamar 7,667 5.9% $167,777 $48,422 0.0133
31 Westminster 115,502 4.1% $521,670 $90,651 0.0469
32 Mead 5,110 2.6% $549,415 $120,532 0.0147
33 Longmont 98,282 4.1% $540,403 $89,720 0.0336
34 Loveland 76,500 4.4% $487,758 $81,898 0.0305
35 Monument 10,548 4.9% $712,688 $102,969 0.0243
36 Lone Tree 13,993 4.1% $927,299 $121,066 0.1166
37 Wellington 11,163 7.7% $466,351 $101,259 0.0305
38 Estes Park 5,906 5.4% $687,234 $63,598 0.0098
39 Berthoud 10,892 2.8% $592,425 $101,817 0.0305
40 Sterling 13,466 3.3% $239,066 $44,556 0.0303
41 Dacono 6,260 2.2% $483,988 $94,783 0.0128
42 Craig 9,013 3.1% $287,429 $52,443 0.0172
43 Littleton 45,531 3.9% $674,009 $90,273 0.0344
44 Firestone 16,704 3.8% $562,511 $106,960 0.0122
45 Gunnison 6,629 4.8% $564,780 $63,229 0.0232
46 Salida 5,697 3.5% $666,776 $63,775 0.0105
47 Fort Collins 168,758 5.3% $545,188 $78,977 0.0291
48 Woodland Park 7,911 3.8% $534,640 $89,341 0.0172
49 Golden 20,461 4.6% $820,716 $90,990 0.0410
50 Castle Pines 11,811 3.6% $863,001 $189,280 0.1166
51 Boulder 106,598 5.4% $974,246 $80,243 0.0326
52 Milliken 8,438 2.9% $443,483 $96,772 0.0046
53 Fruita 13,462 3.5% $430,521 $71,550 0.0129
54 Brush 5,304 3.9% $289,894 $64,475 0.0011
55 Durango 19,148 2.3% $707,331 $76,177 0.0339
56 Steamboat Springs 13,251 3.6% $1,192,382 $93,280 0.0181
57 Arvada 123,066 3.8% $594,157 $106,014 0.0327
58 Broomfield 73,946 3.2% $637,472 $117,541 0.0285
59 Castle Rock 74,065 4.2% $655,932 $135,985 0.0128
60 Carbondale 6,497 1.1% $1,223,499 $92,083 0.0077
61 Breckenridge 5,017 0.6% $1,130,739 $129,481 0.0323
62 Windsor 33,905 4.9% $567,646 $121,754 0.0068
63 Eaton 5,763 3.6% $454,752 $102,314 0.0113
64 Gypsum 8,291 0.7% $676,112 $99,726 0.0077
65 Frederick 15,037 3.0% $545,237 $128,078 0.0033
66 Superior 13,146 3.3% $827,554 $149,464 0.0336
67 Lafayette 30,295 3.7% $684,062 $105,819 0.0295
68 Erie 30,447 4.0% $727,737 $154,509 0.0117
69 Aspen 6,952 2.4% $3,293,818 $94,338 0.0329
70 Parker 58,733 3.2% $684,096 $126,615 0.0204
71 Eagle 7,481 2.0% $914,956 $101,373 0.0095
72 Severance 8,526 2.1% $494,757 $121,047 0.0038
73 Centennial 107,702 3.4% $630,996 $124,617 0.0227
74 Timnath 7,122 0.9% $675,800 $162,976 0.0167
75 Louisville 20,920 3.2% $821,232 $135,840 0.0254
About Nick Johnson

Nick Johnson earned his masters in Business Administration from the Drucker School At Claremont Graduate University. He has written for 39 publications across the country and ran the media relations department at Movoto, a real estate portal based in San Francisco. He has been featured in over 500 publications as an expert in real estate and as an authority on real estate trends.

Nick's the creator of the HomeSnacks YouTube channel that now has over 260,000 subscribers and is an excellent source to learn about different parts of the country.

144 thoughts on “The 10 Worst Places To Live In Colorado For 2024

  1. Pueblo is awesome, filled with great people, a long vibrant history, and scenery to die for. If you want crime, head NORTH….. all the way UP through Denver and all the suburbs! If you want lots of traffic jams, move NORTH. And if you want high taxes move NORTH. If you want lots of people move NORTH. I would love to keep my slice of heaven just as it is!! So much for this “survey”. Keep all the Californians out! That is just fine with me!

    1. There are tons of things I love about Colorado. I moved here from Oklahoma back when I was twelve. Then I moved to Hawaii in 2015 and I can’t picture myself being here permanently any more. I don’t picture myself in Hawaii either. Ever since marijuana legalization in Colorado the culture here has really changed in a way I don’t like. I’m pro marijuana. Anti-cultural changes that came with the influx of people. On top of that I’ve seen other zoning regulations now. In other places you can buy land and slowly build up while living on it. In Colorado you can buy land and never be able to legally stay the night on it until you’ve put 50 grand into it. In the mean time rent here is nothing like it was ten years ago. Good luck trying to save up the money to use your land. Also, the weather. The weather here isn’t enjoyable for anyone and it creates a culture that values being indoors with the TV and computer more than what I consider to be healthy. There are two seasons here. The six month winter and the six month dry season. In April when most states are experiencing their rainiest month, Colorado is experiencing one of it’s snowiest months. This snow might continue into May. The state can’t support most vegetation because there’s a very short time between frosts. Yes, Colorado gets a few warm days throughout the winter and the constant sunshine is a blessing, but those couple warm days in the winter only make Colorado winter look mild when compared to anywhere along the Canadian border or upper east coast.I The rare day in January with a 60 degree high is a one to two hour highlight. It’ll be thirty by sun down. On the bright side, I love the summers. The 100 degree highs in Pueblo or 90 degree highs in Colorado Springs don’t feel hot due to the lack of humidity. On the other hand if you want to swim in the lake the water is still freezing because it just came from melted snow up in the mountains. The weather here sucks. I could deal with the trade off of horrible weather if this state was the same state with the same culture that it had ten years ago. Unfortunately, it’s not. All that being said, I love Colorado. I love the reminders of everything I loved when I was a kid. I will always visit this state. I would choose Colorado over a quite a few other places. The nature is beautiful and when the weather permits I and many other people will spend our entire day in it

    2. I grew up in Pueblo. I went to high school there. I would have to say that Pueblo is the armpit of Colorado:

      1. There are no amusement parks or museums that you can spend an entire day at
      2. The people here that I have met are mostly evil horrible people
      3. 300 days of sun (and in the summer its super HOT) and 65 days of clouds with a few drops of rain
      4. They don’t have jobs for a lot of different types of technical occupations – for example, would you find a PeopleSoft developer job posting in a place like this? I don’t think anyone in Pueblo is smart enough to understand what Oracle or SQL Server even is. But they have doctors and dentists! (hmm, what does this mean?!?)
      5. Lots of prairie land and no trees. Trees are to the west – near the mountains, Pueblo is far away from the mountains. Don’t look for Douglas Fir here or Pine.
      6. I was looking at real-estate in Pueblo and found that when compared to Denver, many of the houses listed were way over-priced – like they were in a metro area that had more than 1 Best Buy.
      7. More bars per capita than any other city in Colorado.
      8. Once you graduate from high school, the next logical step for many is to get married and have kids
      9. The highways coming into Pueblo and going through Pueblo are poorly maintained. They have dead grass and dead trees everywhere. Nothing looks green and healthy and professionally maintained.
      10. In the summer, there are mosquito breeding pits everywhere – poor drainage maintenance
      11. The mall is a small laughable joke
      12. I can count on one hand the number of nice formal sit-down restaurants in Pueblo (R.I.P. La Renaissance)
      13. One of the graveyards in Pueblo is out in the middle of the prairie on the road to Beulah – it is so ugly, why bury anyone in a place like this?
      14. Pueblo has 0 escalators

      1. I also grew up in Pueblo and graduated high school there, but have not spent a day of my adult life living, working, or owning property there. Here is the list of the fastest ways to lose money there:

        1. Buy a house, they are worth more on the lumber yard shelf and appliance store than sitting assembled on a lot inside Pueblo city limits.
        2. Work for a local employer, especially if you have a local address. The pay is a joke.
        3. Get caught on the eastside of the Fountain River after sundown!

        Additional comments to add to the above list:

        1. The above mentioned cemetery on the road to Beulah it the same road to the largest (and oldest?) landfill in the county. Bury your loved ones across the highway from your trash!!

  2. Mr. Johnson, have lived in Alamosa my whole live, evidently there is a prison I have missed in our town for 65 years. Please forward location, would like to check it out!

    1. You tell him Danny. People from Alamosa and surrounding communities don’t want His kind messing up a good thing. He is more than welcome to stay in the cesspool he lives in North of the Valley

  3. The author is a terrible researcher….the categories he uses under each city isn’t even consistent. Roadsnacks.com is among the worst journalistic websites I have ever encountered…scientifically validated of course.

  4. So you don’t live in Colorado, and you’re judging? And 2 of your main criteria is that a city is dense and that houses are expensive? Wow. Some of us don’t want to live where we have to run into a million people a day, run into traffic jams, deal with overcrowded and over-priced houses or apartments. See, we didn’t move to Colorado in order to live in a big city. If you want that, there’s a million places you can get that.

    We go to Pueblo a couple of times a year, as do other people I know, from cities you rank as ‘more desirable’ because it’s beautiful and has interesting things to do. You really have no clue.

  5. Cortez CO my home for the last 20+ years yes rural but a slice of heaven. winters are mild compared to a lot of towns here in CO. the greatest pride in this community IS the sense of Community. We are home to Mesa Verde National Park, Canyon of The Ancients. We are very rich with our cultural area that draw people from all over the world. A short drive from downtown Cortez you can be high on the top of mountains or go a short in a different direction and you are in the desert southwest. We are proud of our town it you want gangs and a feeling of being just another face in a crowd go to the top rated towns.Cortez CO I am proud to call you home!

    1. I agree with you! Cortez is a small town, and that’s the way I like it. I live out on Totten road, and I have Phils world, a top rated mountain biking course less than a mile away. We have an amazing Recreational center, we have a brand new high school, better than most others in our area, I could go on, and on.

    2. Hi, I actually googled this so I could check out where people do not want to live as this is more where I would want to live. Glad I see all these supportive comments. I am looking for my forever home. Smaller town, mountains creek or any water if possible mostly the rock. I am on a tight budget. Live older things. Any ideas if can buy or rent in your town or area towns. I need lower humidity it is in minutes here in Midwest. Thank you

        1. I hope 10,000 Midwesterners move to your town, Beebee. I own a summer home in Colorado and have never encountered anyone there as rude as you seem to be!

        2. What a nasty vicious person you are no wonder people are referred to as “boils on the arse of society “.

        3. I miss living in co we lived in Durango. We are moving back next year when the virus is totally gone.

  6. I have to take exception to your list. I’m sure you spent all of about 10 minutes in each of these towns. Data is not all there is to a town. To clarify I don’t live in either Pueblo or Grand Junction, I’m at least three hours from both. And I have never lived in either. BUT I would live in either. Pueblo has probably some of the best food statewide, the people are friendly and the riverwalk is home to many awesome events each year. It like any town has a bad side, but for the most part I love this town. And Grand Junction is its own world! It has beauty, personable people the best wine and peaches around and the best food too. So take another look. Oh where do I live, Greeley, not the best town but it sure as the heck is not 10th worst, I can think of worse places … Denver, Boulder, Lamar, Fort Lupton, Brighton, Gilcrest, LaSalle, Platteville, Commerce City … I could go on for days. … Take some time to visit and really come up with a feasible list!

    1. Sheriff, I take issue with Your assessment that Commerce City is Worse then Your town, I was born and raised in C.C. Colorado and Raised My own family here. I find its as nice here as it is in Your town which I myself have visited. For someone who’s taking issue with this author on how he attacked Greeley as one of the “Worse” towns to live in Colorado,Your sure quick to attack other cities/towns that I’m guessing You have never lived in, and if You have been here…I’m guessing it had to do with Your employment, so Your assessment of My town holds about as much weight as that Author’s Assessment of Yours.

    2. Yes I now live in Modesto, Ca. However I had spent 23 yrs. Living in Grand Junction & surrounding areas. Cedaredge, Fruita, Hotchkiss. I had moved to G.J. in 1982 I left in 2003. I loved that there were so many things to do. And for the most part on the Western Slope the winters weren’t all that bad. There were a couple of them that got down right cold -9 °one year. But it’s not like you had to stay out in that cold. Driving the mountain roads in 4 wheel drive exploring many places was great. Some of the rock formations were just beautiful covered in multicolored moss. Red,yellow, blue, green & orange. They were amazing. Unfortunately I have not had the chance to revisit. There was a spot up Redlands Mesa where the Eagle’s would nest every year, they were so much fun to watch. I loved driving over the Grand Mesa on color Sunday. OMG now that was spectacular! I would recommend that drive to everyone. I’ve heard it has changed quite a bit. I would love to leave here & move back to Colorado. It is truly Gods Country!

  7. I particularly would much rather live in a small town on the western slope enjoying outdoor activities, where my dog can pee on real grass, than live in a place where there is more concrete than dirt and it costs an arm and leg to park my car after getting stuck in traffic for 45 mins trying to drive 5 miles.

  8. I have lived in the Pueblo area for most of my life. I moved to Arizona and Texas for a short time, but I came home. I resent the implication that everyone in Colorado buys weed and smokes it. None of the numbers that are in the article fit my life, house, or neighborhood. Shame on you for writing your article, without really checking out the facts. Surveys only tell the person who designed the survey what they wanted to know. I will take the Sun Shine on my porch, the deer and elk in the field, the turkey out by the barn, the quiet because my nearest neighbor is 1/2 mile away, and when I turn out the lights, my sky if filled with stars. The best place that I have ever lived.

    1. Hi Mary, My wife and I are very seriously considering moving to Pueblo Co within 3 years. We are from Michigan. I saw on CNN that it was one of the top economically places to live in the U.S. Would you be able to contact me by e-mail to give me a little more info on Pueblo?

      1. l live in Pueblo now. If you’d care to contact me, I can tell you about it. Economically feasible if you’re not looking for much. Not a lot of decent jobs here at all, not any really decent wages to speak of unless you might be a doctor, lawyer, or other business professional. You definitely do NOT want to live anywhere around the east side. There is a lot of crime and police are definitely overwhelmed. We moved here probably after reading the same article you did and were very disappointed. We are very happy with the weather, though. That was the selling point for us.

      2. Hi Chad,
        I am from Michigan and lived in Pueblo for 20 years, loved it. If you can get a good job and live here, you will love it too. We had to move to Denver to keep employed but hope to move back to Pueblo when we retire; we miss the neighborhoods, the cultural diversity, the zoo, the parks, historic downtown, the art community, easy to get around, no traffic, so close to the mountains and of course, our friends.

      3. If you watch CNN you must be a libtard. We don’t want you here in Colorado. Michigan sucks so stay there. You are not welcome here in Colorado

        1. Agree, but we fought for that argument in the 70s , but lost out thanks to corrupt roam timer still hate out if staters but keep it to myself !

      4. Pueblo is great. Fishing, boating and lovely walks. If you are looking for night life look somewhere else. Pueblo is friendlier than most. Pay attention and you are safe

    2. Mary Morris, That sounds like heaven! I don’t even live in CO.. but I’ve been researching different areas. I can’t agree with this article because a graph and numbers won’t tell me much. It’s the real life, flesh and blood conversations and view points of those who live and make a life in these towns/cities.

  9. I live in pueblo and I like living here all the places this writer says is the best places to live in Colorado are all places where the rich live

  10. The writers certainly have never visited any of the places but simply looked at the numbers published, which are usually not too accurate. The top 5 “best” cities are simply suburbs of other big cities and those of us living in small cities choose to do so. There is plenty to do, we can drive to other places for additional entertainment or dining options, and we don’t have to put up with the traffic or pollution. Small cities allow you to not only know your neighbors well, but also most everyone living there, a definite advantage when raising children. I’m glad, though, that you published this list–maybe it’ll keep people away and we can enjoy our little cities by ourselves.

  11. Seems very accurate. I’ve lived in Colorado my whole life. Grew up in Alamosa, and the area south of the tracks is dangerous. There were “gang” fights in the alley by our house and at the park. The economy sucks there. I left as soon as I could. Now I go back for visits and they have changed the Main Street area all up so it’s annoying just to try to drive around town. There is a large jail and a youth correctional center. My senior year of high school we got to go on a field trip there lol cause there is nowhere else to go but the Sand Dunes and Alligator Farm I suppose.
    The area has nice scenery though and the other communities in the San Luis Valley are nice. But Alamosa sucks.
    Pueblo was were we went to get school clothes, shopping and to “get out of town” I am not at all surprised by it being number one ranking. Lol “pue town” we called it.
    All the other towns I’ve been to as well. The only one that surprised me was Delta. It has a nice down town area and seems like a some what pleasant place. But I’ve just drove through.

    1. Rebecca….. Well I’m not sure how to respond to your comments about alamosa?!?!?! …… Well for starters maybe your mom shouldn’t have kept ur ass in the barn as long as she did and if I remember correctly your family didn’t live in south side you lived on a farm!!!!! And don’t forget who some of your friends are the claunch’s Sara they all live in and around that area!!! So don’t forget where you grew up and where you come from! Also before you slam a good place remember where you live now!!!! I guess that Christian life your mom tried to instill in you at such an early age did no good! Another thing to remember you never know who reads these things and who might know who you are and who knows your family

      1. Nick, I lived on the south side of Alamosa from the age of three until I was eleven years old. Near the Boyd school 423 1/2 eleventh street to be exact. Then we moved out of town, north of Alamosa about 15 minutes. It wasn’t a farm, I have a western heritage and that’s how we were taught to dress and act if that’s what gave you the impression. Furthermore my comments weren’t directed at the San Luis Valley as a whole, but at Alamosa the town itself. I don’t know why people deny there is a real problem there for a town that size. I went to a Private Christian school until I was in 6 th grade because my parents didn’t like th Alamosa school system, their choice, I know nothing of the quality of the education provided in Alamosa.
        As far as all the supposed friends I have disgraced by my comments, I am so very sorry. But I may make more negative comments in the future so I can actually hear from you more often.

  12. Low population densities and low home prices are positives, not negatives. This article is all wrong. The cities they listed are actually great places.

    1. Exactly. Low population density is a huge plus along with low home prices. And part of being in Colorado is being outdoors – so why do you need tons to do in your town. Also, visit some of these places. Montrose, Grand Junction and Delta have some of the mildest winter weather in the state. Add in the views – how can you beat them? Loved the one comment about jobs being hard to find with people pouring into the area – hello – if that doesn’t show the place is a really desirable place to live. The the best places – all high dollar. Wow, just wow on this article.

  13. I’ve been reading the comments as well as the story. I am from Colorado born and raised in Grand Jct. I do not want to view my home in the way the writer writes about it. However I have to agree with some of it as well. I currently live in Utah which I HATE. I miss the beauty of all the green trees and foliage. However I must agree as a parent that the schools are not the best, the wages are disappointing, and unfortunately there is a noticeable division between those who have money and those who don’t. I and my family had to move to Utah just to get above the poverty line. (which we have more than done). However my home town will always be part of my heart, soul, and blood. And as the local superstition goes I did not take any dirt with me I hope to return some day.

  14. You, Nick Johnson, are an idiot..not only are your pictures very outdated….pre 1960 for Grand Junction, your facts are skewed. I have an idea…..stay out of those towns don’t go to them and if you’re planning a road trip from Denver to Salt Lake or Denver to Durango, guess what? You will have to pass through many of those towns you mentioned. you’ll have to gas up probably grab a snack and get some of the most beautiful views of Colorado anywhere. I wonder where you live Mr Nick Johnson. I bet it doesn’t compare with any place in Colorado.

  15. There’s a lot of personal bias here. The author apparently needs people and entertainment, so of course smaller cities are going to be high on this “undesirable” list.

    I sought out a place with low population density, and I don’t need constant stimulation from having stuff to do, I am perfectly capable of making my own fun.

  16. I live in pueblo and it isn’t that bad. I think the guy who wrote this is kind of a douchebag. If hegot off his bum and aactually saw and experienced the places he wrote about maybe he would be more knowledgeable and not sound like an idiot. I do agree there is crime here as there is everywhere but if you avoid the people who have drama and are into drugs n major alcoholics you can avoid some bs. Yes bad stuff does occasionally happen to completely innocent ppl. Pueblo has a cool history and is a beautiful place if you open your eyes and look.

    1. we bought a house in Bessemer. while we were gone they stole the copper pipes from the basement.
      then they stole the swamp cooler motor
      then the swap cooler faucet
      we sold the house
      the day of closing we were sent a picture of the entire window broken out
      and the swamp cooler gone
      the city is full of thieving scum
      and the grinders are stupid tiny sausage patties
      best thing we ever did was to sell that house on abriendo and keep our house in Texas.

  17. Lower population density = Worse??? What kind of scientific data is that. I took one look at the population density (i.e. how close the houses were together) in Colorado Springs and got the heck out of there. I am sure that those that live in the low population area are getting exactly what they want. To me, high population density = worse. This whole article is crap!

  18. Hard to know where to start with this rubbish. If someone hadn’t brought this to my attention it would have stayed where it belongs … in the dung-pile at the bottom of the guinea pig cage. Pictures are google street-view so obviously the writer doesn’t even travel to any of these places (does he even own a vehicle?). The writing is on 3rd grade par with E L James. The stats are severely dated (unlike the author? – just a guess). The assumptions are juvenile. His general unhappiness with life is vomited on to his keyboard. I am desperately searching for a post from ANYONE who believes or trusts anything this yahoo spits out. I could eat a bowl of Alpha-bits and crap out better drivel than this.

  19. A few observations as a writer (and, beside the point, a life-long Coloradan born in Cortez)
    1) This article is to get attention, notoriety. For whoever wrote this –it is not worth scrolling back up to see a name or a gender–any response is success. This is on the same literary level as that scratch on the bathroom wall that says, “All freshman suck.” Enjoy a few minutes of fame, and then go piss off some people in Mississippi somehow.
    2) This is not science, and not research. This is some census figures thrown into a Excel spreadsheet and sorted, to support a narcissistic opinion. Throw in a couple online images, and maybe Photoshop a couple birds out. (Great job on the Pueblo shot, BTW…powerlines don’t hang if they are severed twice in 3 feet.) I hope you are proud of your contribution to “science.” Best wishes getting this into the Library of Congress. Let us all know when the public reading is. Morgan Freeman may be available…I hope you are proud of yourself.
    3) This is one of billions of examples of the internet further diluting journalism. Journalism has always had the potential for deceit, bias, histrionics, etc. The internet gives it the opportunity to be worthless yet relevant, more a factor of boredom than anything else. I hope we are proud of ourselves.
    4) Oh look, I spent 12 minutes on this response. I am so not proud of myself.

  20. I have to disagree that Cortez is the 8th worse place to live. I lived in Cortez from 1983-2005. I think Cortez offers the nice small town feel. Cortez offers both mountain and desert scenery. Cortez has a lot of great cultural experiences as well as good food. I left Cortez for better employment opportunities. As much as I like to visit I personally would not raise a family in Cortez. The biggest devalue to Cortez is all these marijuana shops popping up all over the place, which brings in the crime promotes the ever increasing drug culture. Cortez will probably never get a hold of the drug problem unless they get some common sense politicians to reverse the current laws.

  21. This writer probably has never been to any of these cities he has mentioned. I find this review to be inaccurate and lacking in facts. Maybe this writer should get out of his mom’s basement and actually do some real world research.

  22. Grew up in Pueblo, lived in Rocky Ford, Aurora, and later Greeley. The criteria used, especially population density, seem to swayed to big city(think upper northeast) living. By that logic New Jersey(which has the highest state population density) MUST be the best state to live, right? Space is appreciated in Colorado. Of all the places I lived in Colorado I disliked Aurora where I could only afford an apartment-yuck. Still to this day I CHOOSE to live in a town of around 100k people with space and limited traffic. I guess not everyone looks at towns the same way, and depending on which criteria are used(and how they were interpreted) the “science” could produce significantly different results.

    1. My family has only lived in Colorado since April. We moved here from Utah for my husbands job. We currently live in Aurora and I HATE it! The congestion and expensive apartments (we live in a SMALL 2 bedroom apartment in the middle of the city and pay 1260 a month)!! We love smaller towns and are trying to find somewhere in Greeley or Evans to move to. Not only is it closer to my husband’s job, but we enjoy the small town feel and would love to raise our kids in a diverse culture as well as a quieter town. If my husband worked down south we wouldn’t hesitate to live in these other “terrible cities”!

  23. Alamosa does NOT have a prison! Why don’t you get your facts straight? How much of the rest of this article is bull??

  24. so glad you hate the small towns ‘without anything to do’ like Delta and Montrose
    let the wholesome living alone and we can do without the influx of city dwellers, not too many wholesome places left that aren’t ruined by people like you and your attitude.

  25. Obiviously a ‘city dweller’, we are happy that you don’t like beautiful pristine places full of wholesome living like Delta, Montrose, Grand Junction area I have spent 18 years there and its people like you we don’t need.

  26. What a shame that you couldn’t be bothered to spend any time in any of these communities. Your “scientific” information wouldn’t pass any academic muster. Had you really visited any of these cities, you would have discovered communities with character, quality of life and devoted residents — not simply an opportunity to exercise juvenile humor. Here’s hoping you find a life. You could have a great one here in Greeley.

  27. I was born & raised in La Junta, CO. La Junta is a very quiet, friendly town. My job took me up & down the valley from Fowler to McClave. It also included Ordway area. So I guess I could say I have been & seen it all. I traveled all over CO for meetings, trainings, etc. I never went to a place I did not like or find interesting. Even growing up we as a family we traveled all over CO to visit family & were in most of the top ten worst places.
    I am sure this is one of many research projects about CO. You can put in any numbers you want & come up with anything. Scienctific? I do not know? Everything is done by computer & the information they want to feed into it. Then it comes up with the answers they know are right. Every medical, social, school, enviromental etc. have room for error, just like this one. You are all right they have apparently never lived in CO or maybe never visited either. So…….take this research with a grain of salt. We know the true answer without a rating. Colorful Colorado is a Beautiful State, has a lot of interesting & fun things to do with Family & Friends.

  28. For Christ sakes. Really ssome of these towns on here a are actually just really nice little quiet towns. Of course a small town is gonna have less budget for its schools. I live just down the road from Greeley, that city might kinda smell on a warm day but it’s unique and people there are happy. I wanna know how Commerce City didn’t make this list.

  29. I grew up in Trinidad and must say it was one of-the happiest time of my life. The people are very welcoming warm and real. They have some of the best food you can find. The guest of Legends is one of the most beautiful drives you will ever take. Sure there is crime and legal weed. If you like that kind of thing you are not breaking any laws by buying it, unlike some bigger city’s. School was laid back and and I went on to be a nurse at the Jr. College there. Forty years I worked at this profession. It allowed me to raise my children and they always had good food on the table. I go back and visit at least once a year and still want more. I would retire there if my children and grandchildren live close. All of my memories are the best. You have many different nationalities living in this small town so you learn the many ways of life of others. I was never bored, and the weather is great. If you want fake greedy people around you and getting stuck in traffic everyday then go to that better rated bigger city where everyone is trying to keep up with their neighbors. I have lifelong friends that I still keep in touch with today. Now if all this is not your cup of tea then move on we don’t want you here. But if you are in need of help or anything else people do not hesitate to help without expecting anything in return. That’s my Trinidad.

  30. Facts aren’t accurate here. For example, there is NO prison in Alamosa and never has been. Stats on crime are also inaccurate-( many family members are in law enforcement.) As are the stats on education- (family members high up in school systems have these facts and stats are not what you quote.)

    Cortez has a lot more going than you allude to. It is a tourist town with great hiking, biking, hunting. Mesa Verde is a huge tourist draw. The people are honest, kind and hard working.

    Your “facts” are off and you’re insulting. Happy to have people like you staying out of our beautiful state.

  31. Last year, CSU Pueblo THunderwolves were the NCAA DIvision 2 Football National champions and East High was the 3A high School football champions. Living in such a bad place must make you pretty tough. Pueblo Reservoir is the most popular reservoir in the state. Pueblo is home of the Pro Bull Riders Hall of Fame. Pueblo is famed for its chili peppers, and though other towns try to imitate the “Slopper”, none can live up to the original. Ask the Travel channel.

    We have been the site of the Little Britches National Champion Rodeo for years, as well as the location for the Colorado State Fair. We have a beautiful Riverwalk . We have an excellent art museum. We have a great climate, boasting over 330 days of sunshine a year, and as a result great agricultural industry.

    If your entire set of parameters are wealth related, Pueblo will not come in as the most desirable, but we aren’t snobs. But just because you make more money and have a high priced house, doesn’t make your town better. Aurora comes in ahead pf Pueblo? Are you kidding me? Commerce CIty? We take care of our infrastructure better than the Springs which is why we have to deal with Fountain Creek flooding, despite agreements with the Springs to deal with their irresponsible dumping. Pueblo has its share of problems, but it is a great place to live.

    Actually, I have traveled all over Colorado for 59 years, I am a 4th generation Coloradan and I choose to live in Pueblo. If you have never been here, you don’t know shit about this town.

    1. I am new to Colorado and I love it here. The person who sent this article with state statistics is way off track. I live in a comfortable, small town that has a lot of home conviniences. Very low crime and much more positives. Rifle,Co.

  32. This article is part of what is wrong with America today. People looking at the negative side and posting crap that is numbers and figures without finding the real value of what a community offers. I am an analytic so I get the numbers thing, but the whole idea of posting the “Worst” places is cynical.

    Why not focus on the “best” places to live and leave it at that.

    People need something to hope in and to believe in, not another article that confirms their already struggling attitude about their town. Why not be a part of the answer?

    Just my thoughts.

    Sincerely

    1. I worked in Greeley for almost 4 years. I like the town. It has lots of parks, and a lot of things to do. The Stampede is a lot of fun and attracts big name entertainers for a reasonable price. And Stuft Burgers has the best burgers in the world.

    2. Hi Alison!

      Can you (-or anyone else who reads this) post the pros and cons of living in CO, or namely your own town? I’m researching places, but it seems there is only superficial and bias info online.. geared toward the more popular and populated cities.

      I’ve tried forums, but people somehow get off subject and into rabbit trails that are not relevent. Would be nice to have an honest conversation on the pros and cons from locals and their everyday life in these rural areas.

  33. Thank you for your distorted and superficial review of Grand Junction, Colorado. If it helps keep more people from moving into our wonderful little town, so much the better. If you’d taken the time to maybe ask a few folks about quality of life here, you might have learned something. As it is, well, anyone can make lists.

      1. Totally agree with you, lived there from 1990 to 2004, was a beautiful little town. What a crap hole it is now. So sad to see what it had turned into.

  34. I can’t speak for the other owns in Colorado..but I was born and raised in montrose and honestly he was dead o. if not it should be ranked number one!! The town puts more effort into the looks rather then the schools!! The drug and crime rate is ridiculous !! People will get arrested and let go with slap on the wrist over and over. there have been numerous suicides by high school kids just from being bullied!! As far as jobs you have to know someone who knows someone to gret one. The people are lazy!! So to live there is aweful but to visit yes its gorgeous and offers so much outdoors stuff to do. it’s sp sad to see what its become. I personally after 26 years had to leave because I was scared for my own kids safety with all tthe crookidness. makes me cry just to think of what its become!!

    1. So, I’m just wondering…since you were afraid of your children’s safety in Montrose and had to leave…where did you go? Denver, Colo Springs or some other city on the front range?

  35. As a Greeley native, I am amazed at the inaccuracy of this survey! The author’s criteria is very narrow and ignores a lot of quality of life issues that make Greeley shine! We have the Union Colony Civic Center that cities much higher on the list would die for! We also have one of the finest Schools of Music and Drama in the country at UNC which puts on many performances at UCCC including an annual Jazz Festival. This festival brings in world class talent. The UCCC also attracts big name entertainers that other cities much higher on your list would have zero chance of attracting! We also have an annual Blues Festival that has grown dramatically in popularity in recent years. The Poudre Trail extends 21 miles from Greeley to within a few miles of Timnath. It will eventually connect with Fort Collins. The scenery on this trail is amazing! Mr. Johnson doesn’t know what he is talking about!

  36. Having lived in Pueblo all my life, and visited many other cities, I’ve always been proud to make Pueblo my home. Whomever, wrote this article you should have done your research better. Pueblo is the home of the military Hero’s. We are proud to have 4 men who were born and raised in Pueblo. No other city in the US has that honor. We have a beautiful river walk, and the Pueblo Resivour. We are proud to have 2 excellent colleges CSU-P, PCC. Our community is currently working with city council & county commissioners to develop the PDA once the mustard gas project is completed. We have Vests one the biggest manufacturing plant for wind generations in our town. We have various other employment opportunities within Our town. Our police force is currently working on addressing crime related issues. Our Pueblo city school system is also working very hard on the turn around status .We have some of the most friendliest people you could ever want to call neighbors.

  37. You will not get any “likes” from me. This study is unscientific, inaccurate, and not useful or truthful. Shame on you.

  38. Pueblo has a huge heroin problem, unemployment, kids being raised by grandparents when parents are drugging, schools that are failing, high crime, soil that is causing deep foundation cracks in the buildings, slum designations, homeless camps, pollution, lack of noise, weed, identity theft enforcement (among other things the PD cant afford to police) gangs, drive bys, lack of funding on important things and reckless spending on exotic convention centers that will remain close to empty.
    All those people who love Pueblo, rather than get defensive, look at it honestly and help fix it.

  39. Hi guys, can you help me for the cheapest cities in Colorado? The cheapest property (small house ok, I only live with my partner and no children) is preffered. I have plan to move to Colorado, maybe about +- 5 years from now. Thank you very much!

  40. Many of these locations have been under the guidance of Republicans thus the low educational spending. The crime problems are related to an uneven distribution of wealth, unemployment (despite plethoras of worthless committees aimed at correcting the problems) and a dwindling middle class. Many of those communities appear to be happy with the mundane. However Colorado beats the hell out of 70% of the states in the US. I wonder where the enlightened author of this mess resides.

  41. Everyone getting offended by this article lives near or lives in one of these shit hole towns. He is reffering to statistics, not the “heart” of these places. I’ve lived in Colorado my entire life living in Greely and GJ, point blank, there are much better places in this beautiful state to live. May I suggest Capital Hill in Denver.. It’s quite nice, or Boulder if you like the mountains. Don’t compare places like Alamosa to places like Dillon.

    1. Statistics based on what? based on the assumption that those are the things people look for in a town. on the assumption that those are the things that make life good and enjoyable, that regardless of your surroundings your income level, house value, and educational opportunities are all that matters. The fresh air and what you are surrounded by, the materials in your day-to_day life, are what make life interesting enjoyable and stimulate the mind. Cities were once built of unaltered chemicals. . in teh late 1970’s that changed with the alteration of teh molecules of teh actual materials we use, from teh walls we live in to our car exhaust.We are expected to go with tha t while the “historic” unaltered houses are bought up.But this is part of the prejudiced and hard taught teaching that we as americans should be unconnected to the natural world except for weekend hikes or vacations.

    2. I agree Katy, I lived in Grand Junction for 17 years, it use to be a nice place to live, not any more…I moved to Lakewood co, I love it here.
      Started my own buisness, I have so many more opportunities living here. I’m a single mother with 3 grown children, own my home and buisness. If I can make it here, anyone can.

  42. What’s not to love about Pueblo? A Div. II National Championship Football Team, great food, hiking and biking trails, an Urban kayak course, the largest recreational lake in the state, friendly people, PUEBLO CHILE, and a University that offers big name concerts, music and arts performances, and distinguished speakers. Low cost of living means we can spend our money on things we love to DO rather than a mortgage that breaks the bank!

  43. i was working down in pueblo 15 years ago. i didnt know a soul there. on more than one occasion i had complete strangers treat me like family. gotta admit its a boring town but a boring town with some wonderful people

  44. We moved to Pueblo in September, and we’re loving it. So you say Pueblo is the worst place to live in CO. Well, that’s based on your very subjective criteria, but I will say this: living in the “worst” place in Colorado is far better than living in “better” places in other states in which I’ve lived. In Pueblo, we could buy a house at a much more affordable price than anywhere else. The people have been nothing but friendly, and everyday we meet people who have recently moved here. The farm markets are great; there is so much local food and produce. Typical, though: the city that does the most work for the state is the one that is easy to put down. Pueblo works for CO, and the whole state should be proud of it.

  45. Hi,

    I’m sending this regarding the story you printed last year about the 10
    worst cities in Colorado. I have to say that you were spot on with your
    information.

    In addition, not sure if it is of any interest, but here is something that
    burns my craw. My parents owned a business in La Junta, CO for about 4
    decades. They sold it as a big loss due to the awful conditions of La
    Junta. They also sold their home at a giant loss. Their business and home
    had been paid off for decades.

    I find it interesting that the city of La Junta employees, who are related
    or good friends with each other, certainly do not work for salaries that
    businesses and homes sell for in this dilapidated part of Colorado.
    Cronyism runs rampant in La Junta, and I presume in the most undesirable
    cities in the United States.

    I wonder how many denizens in these towns are aware that they pay hefty
    property taxes, utilities, etc for a city that cares zero about them.

    I know I sound bitter, but I am bitter because the checks and balances in
    these poor towns are out of sync with the high salaries these small city
    employees get for doing as little as possible.

    I am very happy that my parents strongly urged myself and my siblings to
    leave this terrible part of Colorado, and never look back. I have not been
    to La Junta or Colorado for 16 years, and I will never return.

    Thank you again for your excellent story, and regards.

  46. I live in Pueblo and I don’t see what’s wrong with it.. Barely anything happens here. And i live in the middle of the crime. The projects.

  47. Pueblo is a real shit hole; the crime has gotten even worse in the past 2 years with pets being stolen out of their yards, cars and trucks being stolen, homes broken into every day, people having things stolen right off a truck when moving in somewhere. way too many bad people moving to the whole state for legal weed. Anything and everything is a target to be stolen and then sold on Facebook buy and sell pages. People knowingly buy stolen goods because they think they’re “getting a good deal.” There is no more low cost of living in Pueblo, the rents are going higher every day and there are no really decent jobs. Most of it’s fast food or other minimum wage things that are difficult to survive on. It’s horrible and I am SO GLAD we moved out.

  48. As far as alamosa goes. Yes the crime rate high but the quality of life is amazing. It’s a very safe place to live. Sure we have s high crime rate but that’s because a lot of drugs go through that town and mysteriously nothing ever gets done about it. They have one of the highest cops per capita in the country. It’s a small town treated like a big city. Growing up there was great really really boring but great. Gangs are hardly a problem when you grow up knowing each other. Such a small town but the FBI is always there? Maybe next time to a real story instead of throwing around some jargen you know nothing about.

  49. Unfortunately Mr. James is quite correct about the situation here in La Junta. The crony cabal has undermined virtually all the systems here, including those that normally stabilize a community. The schools have had several consolidations and closures and the college is struggling. And speaking up here to try to help is dangerous as it is not uncommon for such people to be driven out of their jobs or be followed around town by the authorities.
    Usually the attitude is to not pay attention to the problems, cover them up, or pretend somehow sports are going to solve it all…yeah right. And now there have been several high profile incidents with the valley cops which have given the place a internationally bad reputation.
    There are some good people here but without local reforms they will either have to go or find life here intolerable.

  50. Science? Are you kidding me? You’re a real Einstein bud. Lower population density is worse? That means low income apartments makes a city more desirable and a house with an actual yard undesirable and a home with horse property is clearly only for the least fortunate people.
    Education. How about you base you’re research on the quality of education that a child receives rather than how inefficiently the school district spends money.
    Home values? Higher is more desirable? That’s a slippery slope. I will say a more desirable area will tend to drive home values higher but higher home values doesn’t make a place more desirable. I know that I’ve never thought to myself if I had a higher mortgage I would like my house more or I really wish I could live some place so expensive that I can’t even afford to buy a house.

    Might be time to look up scientific method

  51. I don’t think that’s accurate. Those reasons why those towns are “the worst” places to live depend on people and their needs and what causes them satisfaction in a home and town. Cortez has a lot of natural beauty, and people in those areas are friendly and care about the outdoors and their environment. If that makes them happy, then it isn’t the worst place to be.

  52. The author should check out the HOA in this area and see how
    mismanaged this HOA’s are.
    There are Board members that think they run a Kingdom.
    An there is no agency to enforce there shady actions.

    When will the Government finally stop this .

  53. Come on guys, You got to like this roadkill site- or what ever it’s called.
    We moved to the Cortez area 15 years ago from Santa Fe. And before that we in Durango for what defiantly seemed to long. In fact, I’m still in therapy from that experience.
    The guy’s right. Bottom line- Cortucky sucks. . The towns cut off from the north by the San Juan Mountains, the east by the La Platas, the south by Mesa Verde, and the west by the Southern Utah Desert canyon country.
    What a pit. No interstates, shopping malls or direct flights to any where- just a bunch of hippy dippy organic farmers, misanthropic artist types and a bunch of over educated archeologists digging around in Anasazi ruins hoping to find the meaning of life.
    Admittedly, there is an interesting music and public art scene developing, which is defiantly out of the box and pretty cool- but only for those who are a part of it. Other wise, There’s not much for the poser crowd.
    Defiantly not the kind of place you want to go to be seen.
    One thing I got to admit about the area (county) that is hard to beat- it’s the only irrigated mountain canyon environment in the southwest where you can build without a committee telling you what to do. That’s like heaven if your creative.

  54. I’ve lived in Colorado now for 19 years. It’s a very tough place to make a living. I’m ranch broker and sell property all over the state. My favorite place is the Yampa river valley around Steamboat, but you have to be a millionaire to live there now and winters are tough. I’ve lived in Grand Junction, Colorado Springs, Canon City, and Woodland Park, also Steamboat Springs. The Colorado Springs, and Denver areas are very expensive, and I will never live there again due to congestion, and rude new people always moving in and out. Canon City is a gross little town, but it is affordable. I liked Grand Junction, which is similar to Canon with nicer mountains around it. Canon has ok mtns, but not as attractive as the grand mesa. The eastern slope is windy and the mountains are steep rugged and not very user friendly. The soil is pretty bad most places east of the divide, with the exception of a few areas. I personally like Montrose, but I think employment is a problem there. Same with Grand Junction. The worst places are definitely, Denver metro, Colorado Springs,Pueblo, Canon City, Trinidad, Walsenburg, and Alamosa. The best places are Steamboat, Durango, Montrose, Pagosa, Grand Junction, Gunnison, and Grand Lake.Anywhere west of the continental divide, and away from the big cities. The town’s I mentioned are more livable, and that’s why they’re on my list. The problem with most small towns in CO is that you have to make a living, and most of them will not allow you to do that and still afford to buy a home that isn’t junk. You better have a good way to make a living if you’re going to do that. The western slope isn’t crowded and gives you a real Colorado lifestyle, the eastern slope has pockets that are nice but most of those pockets will not afford you a way to make a living. The front range metroplex just sucks because of the people and congestion.

    1. Grand Junction used to be a nice place to live, I moved there in 1990, left in 2007, the town has turned into a crap hole, too bad, it was once a awesome place to live and raise kids.

  55. Also, I would like to say this. There are some nice pockets around Canon, such as Westcliffe (not much to do there). I like La Veta not much to do there either. The mountains west of Trinidad, around Weston (not much to do there either). Colorado Springs doesn’t have much to do unless you like rude people and traffic, same with Woodland Park. If you don’t care to get to know people and are an introverted private person you’ll like the Pikes Peak region with the exception of contending with people everywhere you go. I’ve lived in Woodland 15 years, and no one is from here. If you’re a single male, plan on staying single. Nothing worth picking from in the entire Pikes Peak region, women don’t where makeup and they are tough to get to know. They know there are more men than women so good luck with that, and all of south central CO is like that. Denver is full of Bally California type women/men, city slicker types with low character. The only place I’ve been that seemed normal to me is the western slope where there are some good normal people with small town work ethics, and don’t look like total slums. There’s still a western cowboy culture over there which I like. There are places east of the divide that still have that, but they are small and there’s not enough people to have any kind of a social life.

    1. Broomfield sits on a former nuclear waste dump site. If you like a place that glows in the dark and possibly nuclear waste tainted groundwater then it is a lovely place.

  56. Colorado overall has great views but you pay a price for that the towns I like are salida,crested butte , westcliff, Pagosa springs, durango, (parts) dove creek, you can not make a living because they are to small but I would live in th he’s towns if I was retired

  57. This place is filled with a ton of total druggies n prostitution rings the hippies are gold to this place! More crackheads here than I ‘ve seen anywhere in any state period. Only people who will disagree are the crackheads.I do like boulder it seems like there s a cleaner nicer place to live here but slot of ppl that are slum dogs live in dirty denver and the lil surrounding towns!!

  58. Some of the friendliest people live in Grand Junction! The beauty here is awe inspiring; I wouldn’t live anywhere else; there’s tons to do outdoors and indoors, more restaurants then I’ll ever get to, hiking, biking and walking trails everywhere, fishing, hunting, fruit trees everywhere, live music, extreme biking, motocross, ice skating arena, kids plex “Bananas”, a place for kids with nothing but trampolines. We have indoor pools, Wrigley Field, beautiful parks everywhere, near perfect climate, and the list goes on and on. Yes the economy has been tough, but we have noticed it climbing. I think it’s been tough everywhere; crime as well has increased everywhere from the largest to the smallest cities. I guess your article may help us out though; we are pretty full population wise….

  59. Your’re numbers are old and wrong. You should remove this article or update it. The unemployment rate for Pueblo is 3.8%, not 9.2%.

  60. The WORST place to live is Denver or the suburbs. Phony, not friendly, keep up with the Jones type of people. They are nothings wanting to be something. If they don’t know you, they act like you’ve just insulted their baby if you try to talk to someone you “don’t know.” How do you get to know people if you’re not friendly?

    And seriously, the architecture of Denver and the waaaay overpriced, cheaply mass produced suburbia homes are so ugly!!!

    I think it’s because Denver is so isolated from the rest of the country, they are in their own world. And a sad one it is!

  61. maybe because you are a spoiled white person thats had it hand to you and you like the perkerwood that you are i wonder! stay away!

    1. Being white’s such a drag. I hate worrying if my house is clean all of the time just in case the neighbors stop in and feel like judging me.You’re right. Caring too much about what other people think about me has caused me to be spoiled to the point where I feel like I need to limit the number of yard ornaments I have.

  62. I’m British ( bona-fide alien) Lived in Colorado for ten years plus.
    Take the Rockies away – there ain’t too much left in Colorado.
    The total drivel posted by respondents more or less confirms the website’s comments. How anyone could defend Greeley as a “pleasant” or “desirable” location really defines consumer taste!

    I live in Longmont in case you are wondering and having lived in many many cities (inc small town Nebraska) in multiple countries, I think you need to have spent significant time in South East England, Scotland, The French Riviera, Switzerland,
    Sydney Australia (World’s best beaches and Mountains only two hours apart), Auckland and/or Monaco – before rating absurdly unimportant little townships in central USA.

    What should decide the fate of any residential area anywhere,
    is where you can expect to find seriously interesting history, archaeological significance, year-round acceptable weather conditions, architectural beauty, good cappuccinos (in the correct coffee-cups – not inappropriate cardboard cups)…..champagne in most restaurants, world-class newspapers, normal toasted sandwiches (cheese and tomato, ham and cheese, ham and pineapple etc etc) a humble meat-pie…dare I suggest normal beef sausages for breakfast?

    That’s Colorado gone to begin with…if not the entire US!

      1. There is no more Colorado. It is now Eastern California and has been so since the invasion during the early 1970s.

  63. So I agree completely with Montrose, however Rifle is a great little town and most people have jobs there. The pay is around 15.00 to 20.00 per hour. If you are willing to travel you can get more. Most people are lazy though and want things handed to them and sit on their asses collecting welfare. I see a lot of this because I am a girl plumber and I go into the homes and see what really goes on. Rifle is beautiful. We have a theater, bowling, art shops, and Colorado Mountain College offers so many fun classes at a very reasonable price so that anyone can attend. There is also funding for those who can’t afford it. We also have classes to teach people new trades to help them change jobs if they cant find something in the field they are use to. Rifle also has a golf course, amazing parks, trails, a free water park for the kids in the summer time, and it isn’t far from Glenwood Springs. Glenwood has the Adventure caves and amusement park rides. Rifle Falls is an amazing place to hike or picnic at with caves to explore and a fish hatchery just above the way. There are ice caves in the winter that are awesome to take colored lights in at night. Most people I know in Rifle are doing pretty well for themselves. The schools there however suck. My six kids have been going to Delta schools because they are awesome. My oldest daughter has a 4.8 gpa and a 4.6 for the last two years. All of my kids do advanced placement classes and my 17 year old is going into the National Guard to be an aviation mechanic. My boys who graduated from there loved it and they all did the jrotc. The programs offered at Delta (on a low budget) are amazing. My twin girls (12) love going to school and would rather be there then home. That says a lot for the teachers and staff. They are doing something right. There is a lot of poverty in Delta, but I can say they all pull together as a community to help each other out. I know in both Rifle and Delta, the churches get together to take the less privileged meals during holidays and needy times. I was born and raised in Grand Junction, CO. and moved to Leadville for ten years. Try that on for size. I guess if you ever decide to come to CO. again….look me up. I do fish and hunt, but there are so many other things to do. I hope I can persuade you to change your mind.

  64. I have traveled to 18 other states. So I can at least say Colorado isn’t the only place I’ve been lol

  65. Aurora is an overpriced $h!*h0£3. My meth head lesbian stripper whore neighors were all jacked up and 2 of the drunk dudes visiting.them end up.falling down the stairs and fighting on the lawn. I called.the.cops and.the.police station was only 2.minutes away.by.car and they never.showed.up. meanwhile make a right on red in Aurora and they have 3 cameras taking photos of you and your car and your tag, and then they send you some bs ticket in the mail. Its bs. Walking around Aurora I had seen cars which were abandoned, with flat tires, and tags that had expired long ago. I tried to live in Colorado. Good luck finding work. Maybe if you are a “native” ot friends with some that may open doors, but the only jobs I could find were part time and seasonal. I jumped through their hoops and paid money and got fingerprinted and a background check so that I could get a license from their Marijuana enforcement division to work in the cannabis industry. What a scam that was. 2.years later and I could not even get 1 single job! I even went to the stupid cannabis job fairs. The only offer that I got was to work as a janitor. When I went into any dispensary all I saw was usually a freakshow and mostly young people in their early 20s working as bud tenders and some tried.to give me advice about strains, which was laughable and at times annoying because I had a medical card and had been using cannabis for more years than they were even alive! I asked in the shops I frequented but never got a single interview. Colfax ave. Is full of crackheads. Boulder is full of preppy hippies. It is very expensive to live in coldorado. You should make Broomfield number 1 on your list. They tried to renovate it and make it seem.nice with new construction. Meanwhile they opened a park there, on a.former nuclear waste dump site! That is correct, part of the park is no access because the radiation is so high (and will be for 24,000 years) but for me the entire town should be no access, and they should change the name.from Broomfield to Doomfield. Denver in general is a rip off, overpriced. The cheapest apts.in the city are.on the east side, in Aurora,.but you are paying over 1000 per month to live in.some.ghetto place where they jack up the rent every year and you need 3 part time Jobs to not end up on the street. Good luck.buying a home , the.house values are extremely overpriced. Do.not even.get me started on the dating scene. You may as well just waste your money at the strip club, which Denver has.no shortage of. At least you know what you are getting into there. Just try not to.get shot.in the parking lot. I guess if you are a stripper you can probabaly make.enough money.to.live comfortably. I found some seasonal jobs and part time..they offered extra.shifts but I had to sign up for them on their stupid Web based application, and usually the shifts were always full. The company said they would make announcements after a few months later about who they would keep. Meanwhile some.gay told me they already said to.them that they would have.the job, and they were not even a.good worker. They did more talking then working! I was busting my behind and I.got $€!& on. Meanwhile I met some foreigners from Laos and Malaysia and Nepal and other suck places. They could barely speak English but they told me that they were working full time for this company after being hired by some outside staffing company. They did.not.have.to deal with.the stupid website to pick up shifts, they made as much as I did, or more, and were guaranteed full time.hours and benefits and they even got sponsorship for work.visas so they could come from.their cuntries and stay and work in the usa for 6 or 9 or 12.months or.whatever! some told me they send.the money back and after they leave the usa they go home and.apply.again. and come.back to work..mean while I was a us.citizen. who spoke perfect English and I could.not find squat full time. Not even at a fast food joint. I tried to get all kinds of.jobs. I.left.everything.behind because I could.not.afford to.hire anyone to help me.put into storage. I kept a few.things.but Ieft behind so much. Some of the.things were really.beautiful. they ended.up either in one of my.neighbors places or in the garbage, just like where my life has ended up. It was.not.going great before I moved to Coldoroado, but I wish I had never even moved.there. good luck if you try to.

  66. I’ve only lived in Colorado for two years. I was born and raised in beautiful New England then lived around the southeastern (low country) US for the next 20+ years because it made more sense financially. As economically viable as it was, we eventually grew tired of the heat, humidity, lazy culture, bugs and southeastern twang where stupidity thrived much like the movie “Idiocracy.” Talk about stupid breeding stupid. Since moving to Southern Colorado, we’ve been super impressed with the level of intelligence and how articulate Coloradans are. Some of the poorest folks we meet here can still hold an intelligible conversation. “Bad” schools in Colorado would likely be considered A+ in the southeastern US. Colorado residents have been incredibly friendly, intelligent and easy to mingle with. They are relaxed without the “I’m lazy, stupid and proud of it redneck attitude” that was so prevalent in NC, SC, GA and FL…especially around Jacksonville, FL. Customer service anywhere in the southeast US was nonexistent. Here, even people with the lowest paying jobs, take it seriously and have the best, bar none, customer service (manners) of any state I’ve ever lived in. As far as my specific town currently..I’ll keep that to myself because I don’t want city slickers or south easterners invading my territory. Our town, surprisingly, didn’t make the list even though it has over 50k population and has the normal issues of any town. One thing I’ve learned living all over the country is that your location is all about what you make of it. There is no perfect place unless you’re a billionaire. If you’re complaining about crack heads and bullets flying, that sounds like the situation you or your parents put you in. I’d rather live in a tent for free on BLM land with the beauty of nature than put my family into any downtown US city. People don’t mingle well when drugs, cash and guns are involved so get away from it at all costs if you have any sense. There is beauty and space out west still though it’s going away fast. Colorado is one of the fastest growing states and prices are driving up quickly. Californian’s (another wonderful bunch – did you hear my sarcasm?) are coming here in droves with more money than sense and bringing their attitudes along with them. Yes, I also lived in San Diego county a couple years so I have experience there as well. Do you think I’m judgemental? I am but I speak the painful truth. If you hear a born and raised Coloradan complaining about where they grew up it’s likely because they haven’t experienced life in the other 48 continental states. I’ve lived in 7 and visited most of the others.

  67. The worst place to live in Colorado all depends on your point of view. However, your list fails to list the only real ‘town’ located in the in poorest county with the highest unemployment rate: Las Animas. We are also the place where Colorado Springs and Denver bring bus loads of homeless people every few days. The only requirements for living on a beautiful 500 acre campus for free is that they are homeless with an addiction issue. Once there, they are on a ‘self-guided’ addiction recovery program. In other words, there’s no program, they just meet in groups for AA/ NA meetings if they want. Our town becomes a revolving dumping ground for hundreds of homeless people to come and stay for however long they want, and then go back to being a huge problem in a tiny town. They flood our streets with meth and crime. They break into the vacant homes and live there, defecating all over the floors and leaving trash behind. Before you criticize me for ‘picking on the homeless’, please realize that I’ve spent years working with the homeless and I’ve had some homeless living with me for the past 15 years. I’ve tirelessly helped hundreds of people. I’m just being direct and honest with relaying my first hand observations. Anyway, these homeless cost us $20,000 per person, per year. This is more than the average elderly social security income recipient lives on.
    Next are our employment options: Hormel Pig Farm (yes, where you might end up euthanizing piglets all day), a prison, or one of the small retail businesses, which is a short list: Loaf N’ Jug (small with no Subway), two small restaurants, Dairy Queen, Family Dollar or our newly opened Dollar General store, which will probably mean the demise of the Family Dollar. We have a small grocery store (expensive, questionable cleanliness), and a pharmacy, but yeah, that’s about it. Pizza Hut was going to bless us with a restaurant, but our county commissioner who owns Dairy Queen C*ck blocked that progress in favor of his own monetary gain. The town’s dirty and run down. The only people put into positions of power are people related to the other people in power. Nepotism is the way things are run here. It’s very reminiscent of inbreeding. There’s nothing here. There’s no way to get anywhere, and the town is a depressing cesspool. Lamar and La Junta are waaay nicer than Las Animas. At least they have jobs and a WalMart, which is setting the ‘nice’ standars low, but, still.
    Also missing from your list is the STD capital of Colorado (yes, this is a fact)…Walsenburg! It’s one part hotel manager with AIDS paying addicts for sex, mixed with one part heroin/ meth infestation.

  68. How interesting to find Delta, Colorado listed here. I grew up there and left shortly after I turned seventeen. I have never returned nor regretted my decision.

  69. I currently live in Phoenix, Arizona and I have a job opportunity in Alamosa, Colorado. I am finding it hard to find a rental house that allows dogs. I have family that live in Monte Vista, so I have visited the area many times in my life, but I would appreciate some honest feedback on what to expect if I move to Alamosa. I am a single, 41 year old woman. Please and thank you!

    1. Not at all. Aurora is Huge. It’s supposed to be a suburb of Denver, but is large enough in area to be a city of it’s own at this point. It depends on the part of Aurora you are in. The area near Colfax and North is really terrible. The areas South, closer to Parker are average to good & there is plenty in between.

  70. All you people who are b*tching and complaining about Colorado, why are you still here? Please leave and go back to whatever crap hole you think is the bees knees. My state parks, highways, police stations, wildfire fighters, and pretty much every native Coloradan would really appreciate it! No one is forcing you to live here, and no one is asking you to stay. It’s 2018 there are plenty of other states with legalized mj so if that was your reason for coming here and you hate the state otherwise… there are other options.

  71. Colorado is easily one of the highest and most dangerous places I’ve ever lived. I’m native, and still live in Durango, but the low quality employment, combined with high housing costs, and horrific medical care, means many people in their 40s are dying early to sustain a life that isn’t worth living. Wish I had never come back.

  72. I live in lochbuie. Complete shithole. 2 of the 5 retail establishments revolve around drinking. Graffiti and trash everywhere. Half the town is methed out of their minds. Do yourself a favor and please dont visit. I tell people I live in Brighton because if I tell people I live in Lochbuie I would be embarrassed.

  73. I moved from Seattle to Pueblo to retire. This job data, employment data and housing costs don’t really measure a nice place to retire. I raise peacocks in Pueblo on a 200 acre ranch I could never afforded anywhere else. I had to go to Parker to buy a peacock who was losing his mini-farm to development. Oh my God you do not want to live in Parker. Just the road rage and crowding alone flunks Parker. When I saw that they had rated Parker one of the 3 best places to live I realized this analysis was written by a very young person.
    Take it from a guy who saw Seattle go from nothing but a rainy backwater to San Francisco’s equal, You don’t want anything to do with Parker Colorado. The peacock was very happy to come home with me and live in Pueblo. Here is a little secret: Pueblo is the next Palm Springs. You read that here first in 2019.

  74. You don’t live here? You don’t get to comment. Statistics are numbers. People are the ones who tell the truth. Stay home.

  75. Glad I didn’t see Brighton on this list’s top ten (although it sounds like many residents from the towns and such here aren’t too happy with what they read. These lists can be so subjective anyways so who is to say how accurate it is. Might be clickbait more than anything else.

  76. The median price of a house in Lochbuie is a lot more than $199k. Do your research. ‍♀️

  77. Hey who do you think you are? No one from Utah of all places should be judging colorado. I lived in alamosa for most of my life and it is the best. The people are frendly, good is great, and everything about it is a slice of heaven. Keep your midwest trash out of our state.

  78. There is one nice town is Paonia, I had lived there during short time in the early 80’s. The only problems is not much jobs there, except picky fruits, apples and cherries.

  79. Thank you for this! Anything that keeps brainless people from coming to our town who have no reason to come here! I only agree with the influx of people due to our votes! They all should have stayed and been more active in their own states! Colorado is a place full of beauty and hard workers!

    The rift raft that fell off the I-70 was the one that came from your states! As for Rifles, I don’t know. If you stepped into one of our schools, you would find our educators ensure our children have everything they need and are happy and well-educated! Also, our response to the virus has kept us all alive and well : ). So, with that note, I’ll sit and watch the sunset in the mountains and by the river.

  80. I just moved to Grand Junction from the Midwest about a month ago. Obviously I haven’t lived here long enough to make any definitive statements, but I like it here so far. My main motivation for leaving the Midwest was to escape the suffocating humidity and constant cloudy, gray, rainy days, which were putting a serious damper on my mental health. Happily, Grand Junction is dry and beautifully sunny–I’ve only seen one or two cloudy days since I moved here. I have a reasonably priced house with a beautiful mountain view from my backyard, and I get to go hiking every weekend. Not a bad life!

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