Culturally liberal and educated smaller towns in Boulder County? (Fort Collins: neighborhood, school district)

[fallstreak]

Thanks for the thoughts re: Ridgway and Montrose, I don't know anything about that area at all but it sounds really interesting! Will add it to the list to check out.

[bluescreen73]

You have a lot of incongruent wants.

The Western Slope ticks a lot of your boxes, but a) it's not ethnically diverse (most counties are 75-90% NHW), and b) it's very tribal. The resort areas tend to be more liberal, and pretty much everything that's left is super Trumpy. Also, unless you're living in one of the uber-affluent resort areas, the public schools pretty much suck.

I grew up on the Western Slope. I rarely ever go back to my hometown even though my mom and 3 of my siblings still live there.

[brightdoglover]

Originally Posted by bluescreen73

You have a lot of incongruent wants.

The Western Slope ticks a lot of your boxes, but a) it's not ethnically diverse (most counties are 75-90% NHW), and b) it's very tribal. The resort areas tend to be more liberal, and pretty much everything that's left is super Trumpy. Also, unless you're living in one of the uber-affluent resort areas, the public schools pretty much suck.

I grew up on the Western Slope. I rarely ever go back to my hometown even though my mom and 3 of my siblings still live there.

Agree with the Western Slope details except for much of Ouray and San Miguel County.

[fallstreak]

Originally Posted by bluescreen73

You have a lot of incongruent wants.

The Western Slope ticks a lot of your boxes, but a) it's not ethnically diverse (most counties are 75-90% NHW), and b) it's very tribal. The resort areas tend to be more liberal, and pretty much everything that's left is super Trumpy. Also, unless you're living in one of the uber-affluent resort areas, the public schools pretty much suck.

I grew up on the Western Slope. I rarely ever go back to my hometown even though my mom and 3 of my siblings still live there.

Yeah I guess I don't know a ton about CO mountain towns, but at least in the areas of California that I know (Santa Cruz Mtns, Tahoe area) and mountain areas of Washington, there is this niche of people that are libertarian and super independent mountain folk but aren't full on Trumpers. I guess that's what I'm looking for as opposed to "liberal" per se, I'm definitely not a fain of Aspen or Boulder type liberalism as far as I have experienced it if that makes sense. But if my kid were trans or gay I would certainly want them to feel safe and welcomed in our town.

[bluescreen73]

Originally Posted by fallstreak

Yeah I guess I don't know a ton about CO mountain towns, but at least in the areas of California that I know (Santa Cruz Mtns, Tahoe area) and mountain areas of Washington, there is this niche of people that are libertarian and super independent mountain folk but aren't full on Trumpers. I guess that's what I'm looking for as opposed to "liberal" per se, I'm definitely not a fain of Aspen or Boulder type liberalism as far as I have experienced it if that makes sense. But if my kid were trans or gay I would certainly want them to feel safe and welcomed in our town.

There are, unfortunately, a lot of places in rural Colorado where you'll run into bigotry. Growing up in Craig everybody knew who was openly-gay, and it wasn't at all uncommon for people (kids and adults) to make fun of them behind their backs. I wouldn't want to subject my child to that, personally. Other areas of the Western Slope YMMV.

[brightdoglover]

Didn't OP say there weren't any kids yet? By the time there is a kid or kids and they're in school, it'd be kind of later on that they'd know if they were gay or trans. While I wouldn't want to live in a place full of loudly intolerant thinking, they're talking about a lot of years down the road. OP could always move if warranted for kids' safety and well being. Seems kind of far in the future to be concerned.

[fallstreak]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

Didn't OP say there weren't any kids yet? By the time there is a kid or kids and they're in school, it'd be kind of later on that they'd know if they were gay or trans. While I wouldn't want to live in a place full of loudly intolerant thinking, they're talking about a lot of years down the road. OP could always move if warranted for kids' safety and well being. Seems kind of far in the future to be concerned.

We are looking for a place that feels like *home* to us. I am bisexual, we have many LGBT friends, etc, a place wouldn't be home to us if our family couldn't feel safe there. Having to move because the community we chose to move to was unaccepting of our kid or myself would really suck, no matter how far down the line.

Beyond that, even if my kids don't turn out to be gay or trans, the people you grow up with and the jokes they make shape so much of your thinking for life. For the same reason I don't want my daughter growing up and going to Palo Alto schools where everyone's parents are Facebook VPs pushing them to get into Harvard, I don't want her growing up with a bunch of homophobes who don't believe in evolution. This is why we ruled out Utah.

[pikabike]

Rent for a couple of years before buying in any new area. You have Goldilocks Syndrome, so any suggestions are likely to be too this or not enough that.

Not confident that even metro Denver or Boulder would fit the bill, and those are the most likely candidates.

For someplace to feel like home right away is asking for disillusionment later. The surface might be very appealing until you get to know what’s underneath. And then there will almost certainly be some people and things you really like and others the exact opposite. Just like anywhere else.

P.S.
Your painting the entire population of UT as homophobic anti-evolution-theory is in itself extremely prejudiced.

[brightdoglover]

Originally Posted by fallstreak

We are looking for a place that feels like *home* to us. I am bisexual, we have many LGBT friends, etc, a place wouldn't be home to us if our family couldn't feel safe there. Having to move because the community we chose to move to was unaccepting of our kid or myself would really suck, no matter how far down the line.

Beyond that, even if my kids don't turn out to be gay or trans, the people you grow up with and the jokes they make shape so much of your thinking for life. For the same reason I don't want my daughter growing up and going to Palo Alto schools where everyone's parents are Facebook VPs pushing them to get into Harvard, I don't want her growing up with a bunch of homophobes who don't believe in evolution. This is why we ruled out Utah.

Thank you for clarifying. I hope you find a suitable place. I do think, in Colorado, any place that isn't Faux News crazed/ruby red is going to be more on the side of hyper competitive schools, etc.

[hikernut]

Originally Posted by fallstreak

I love Boulder Creek but we had to evacuate from the CZU fire in 2020 and it was pretty traumatic.

Any forested location in Colorado has significant wildfire risk. For example, the town of Estes Park was evacuated this past year because of a threatening wildfire. The canyons above Boulder have seen a number of fires over the years.

I'll toss out Salida as a possibility. I've never lived there, so I have no idea what the schools are like, nor do I have any firsthand knowledge of the residents' political/cultural leanings. It is a good area for outdoor enthusiasts. Of course this means a lot of tourist traffic in the summer, but honestly that's unavoidable in any town that has good mountain access. It's about three hours from Denver International Airport, and about two hours to the airport in Colorado Springs.