Is your city a Tree City USA?  If you live anywhere in Colorado, the answer is likely to be “yes.” That’s not just because most people consider even the most urban parts of the state to lean toward the natural, but because many Colorado towns and cities exhibit the following standards and qualifications:

1. A Tree Board or Department
2. A Tree Care Ordinance
3. A Community Forestry Program With an Annual Budget of at Least $2 Per Capita
4. An Arbor Day Observance and Proclamation

These fine Colorado tree lovers have been a Tree City USA for many years:

• Arvada
• Aurora
• Brighton
• Broomfield
• Boulder
• Castle Rock
• Colorado Springs
• Commerce City
• Delta
• Denver
• Estes Park
• Golden
• Highlands Ranch
• Lakewood
• Windsor
• Wheat Ridge
• Westminster
• US Air Force Academy–in Colorado Springs
• Northglenn
• Lyons
• Loveland
• Longmont

To find a list of all the Tree Cities in Colorado, visit http://www.arborday.org/programs/treeCityUSA/index.cfm

Photo by Flickr–Creative Commons, by Marina Cast.

After speaking with home buyers across the nation, it becomes clear that the quality of schools is always a concern raised by parents as well as home buyers without children of their own. It’s no secret that a solid school district is of importance to families with children, but the same solid school district can also be found to relate to solid home prices and market interest.

Some of the school-related factors that make for desirable neighborhoods include slower speed limits, invested homeowners, and a sense of community that translates into lower crime rates and higher quality of property care.

So that you can make informed decisions about the areas in Colorado you might be considering for relocation, check the Colorado Department of Education’s school rankings and report cards, online at http://reportcard.ode.state.co.us

There you can get detailed reports about how well students fare in standardized tests, and even what the average salaries are for teachers and administrators.  Of course, there’s no substitute for firsthand information, which is why most parents and concerned citizens check their neighborhood school district information well in advance, and make a visit or a phone call directly. You can easily get the name of the neighborhood public school when starting your search for a Colorado home by searching listings by school district.

Some Colorado cities with notable schools include:

• Table Mesa area of Boulder
• The Newlands Neighborhood in Boulder
• Colorado Springs, zip code 80920
• The 80124 zip code in Littleton
• Aspen
• The 80126 zip code in Highlands Ranch

COhomefinder takes the fear out of buying a home in Colorado

‘Tis the season…

with Halloween just a few days away, and the fall festivities coming up, it’s time to take the kids through that time-honored rite of passage in Colorado.  It’s time to go to the corn maze and pumpkin patch.

Where the Maize Is

You’ll find the corn mazes in communities where there’s–what else?–plenty of room for the Great Pumpkin to roam and the corn to grow tall enough to make things interesting.  Among some of the top runners:

• Brighton, in Adams County
• Thornton, at 104th and Riverdale Rd.
• Henderson, and if you want to really get roomy, Strasburg.

And for those who want to get out, without getting way out there, there’s a slightly more urban garden experience to be had in Littleton, at the Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield.

Boulder, Broomfield, and Longmont feature a handful of “U pick it” farms between them, some with a hayride and petting zoo thrown in. But if you’re looking for something spooky, you’re going to have to make a trip to Colorado Springs‘ Haunted Mines.

Be safe, and pick a winner, kids.

The Pepsi Center, the site of most DNC activity

It’s all over, and the votes are in: The greater Denver area did a great job hosting the Democratic National Convention.  Who says? Jon Stewart of The Daily Show, cable TV’s best and brightest fake news show on Comedy Central. In their first broadcast of “Indecision 2008: Guess Who’s Coming to Denver” from University of Denver’s Newman Center, Daily Show’s Stewart warmed the crowd by remarking how “suspiciously friendly” the locals are. “You’re all in very good shape,” he said, and then mentioned mountains, beer, trout, and riding horseback. No surprises there.

While there were protests, there were no major scuffles with police; according to most, the convention went off without a hitch, and Denver looked great. Residents with homes in or near Downtown Denver neighborhoods, Auraria, the Pepsi Center, University of Denver/Observatory Park neighborhoods, Highlands, and outlying metro suburbs with good access to the light rail system were mostly reported unbothered by all the activity. Some even rented their homes out at a premium to attendees from out of state.

And for the types who were either uninterested or annoyed by all the traffic, crowds, and hubbub, getting away from it all was a snap.

In Boulder, there was no indication whatsoever that there was any special event at all just 30 minutes down highway 36.  The same story with areas like Fort Collins, and the corridor between Colorado Springs and Denver. Steven Colbert of the same network’s Colbert Report, however, did tease his audience about how he was staying at the Overlook Hotel, a reference to the movie The Shining which was filmed in part at the allegedly haunted Stanley Hotel in Estes Park.

Colorado has a long and rich history beginning with the gold rush attracting residents from far and wide, and today, the state’s economy is diversified, noted for its concentration of scientific research and high-technology industries.  Other booming industries here include food processing, transportation equipment, machinery, chemical products, minerals, and tourism.

But with the help of Coors Brewing Company in Golden,  Colorado also produces the largest amount of beer of any state. Not coincidentally, Coors Field in LoDo is always a good place to pick up a brew. But it’s not just all fun and games.  The federal government is also a major economic force in the state, hosting important federal facilities including NORAD and the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. NIST makes its home in Boulder, and the U.S. Geological Survey and other government agencies are located at the Denver Federal Center in Lakewood. In downtown Denver, you’ll find the governmental landmarks of the Denver Mint and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.

In any case, when you visit Colorado, you’re going to want to drink up.  Cheers to that.