Castle Rock vs. Parker? (Denver, Colorado Springs: buying a home, neighborhood, buying)

[CAMom]

We're considering a relocation from Los Angeles, CA to Denver. We've been strongly considering Parker but I'm now wondering what Caste Rock would be like. I'm a Stay-at-home mom and my husband is self-employeed with our own construction business. We hope to visit the area in the next 2 months.

Can someone with experience compare the two.

Were we live now I have Target, Grocery Stores and lots of other small stores within 5+ miles or so. I'd like to have the same surrounding.

Thank you.

[almost heaven]

I am a Bay area construction manager with family in Parker and friends in Castle rock. I am hoping to move to Parker some day so I can relax a bit and not have the California stress. Have you lookid at the web sites for Parker and Castle Rock? If not type in town of parker, then go to the videos and take a look.

[2bindenver]

Both cities have grocery stores and walmart or target and Castle Rock has the outlet stores.

The are neighboring towns 15 minutes from the center of one to the other.

[Beana29]

Castle Rock feels more like a small town, we love it. Has a lot to offer. Downtown Castle is really cute. Great town! We used to live in Seal Beach, CA. I think you would love Castle Rock vs Parker much better.

[Beana29]

The commute to Denver Tech Center is much better. It usally takes me only 20 min. I have friends that commute from Parker and that = at least 45 min.

[reginhild]

Castle Rock is a place worth visiting if you do not live there with a nice old downtown and interesting scenery. Parker is a town that is more like a suburb.

[Sheridan1962]

We recently moved here and looked at houses in both Parker and Castle Rock before we decided we didn't want to live in the Douglas County School District.

We found Parker to be about equal to Castle Rock in terms of affordability (we were looking in the $300-450K range). We found Parker to be more of a "bedroom" community, with Castle Rock being more of a separate town instead of just a suburb. The scenery is Castle Rock is also superior to Parker, IMHO. And, you are closer to Colorado Springs, which has even more spectacular scenery and a TON of attractions/family activities (we drive there for day trips a lot). Now, if using Denver RTD (public transportation system, including light rail) is important to you, Castle Rock is not in the RTD district which mean you will pay to use the park and rides at most of the light rail stations and some park and rides. All the subdivisions we looked at in Parker were within the RTD area, so no extra fees for daily parking. As another poster mentioned, you will have equal shopping opportunities in both Castle Rock and Parker. But a downside to Castle Rock (in my opinion) is that traffic on I-25 in rush hour can be very bad, especially if the weather is bad.

But again, we ended up buying a home in Centennial because we felt the Cherry Creek School District was far superior.

[steveco.]

If your looking at it from a traffic perspective Parker road is far worse than I 25. Parker I believe is a bit larger however both towns are growing quickly. Castle rock is closer to the foothills and is very hilly itself. I'd pick castle rock all the stores that you would need are convieniently close to one another and access to denver is much easier

[salliekim]

Originally Posted by Sheridan1962

We recently moved here and looked at houses in both Parker and Castle Rock before we decided we didn't want to live in the Douglas County School District.

We found Parker to be about equal to Castle Rock in terms of affordability (we were looking in the $300-450K range). We found Parker to be more of a "bedroom" community, with Castle Rock being more of a separate town instead of just a suburb. The scenery is Castle Rock is also superior to Parker, IMHO. And, you are closer to Colorado Springs, which has even more spectacular scenery and a TON of attractions/family activities (we drive there for day trips a lot). Now, if using Denver RTD (public transportation system, including light rail) is important to you, Castle Rock is not in the RTD district which mean you will pay to use the park and rides at most of the light rail stations and some park and rides. All the subdivisions we looked at in Parker were within the RTD area, so no extra fees for daily parking. As another poster mentioned, you will have equal shopping opportunities in both Castle Rock and Parker. But a downside to Castle Rock (in my opinion) is that traffic on I-25 in rush hour can be very bad, especially if the weather is bad.

But again, we ended up buying a home in Centennial because we felt the Cherry Creek School District was far superior.

What is better about the Cherry Creek school district, vs Douglas County. Pros/Cons

[Wardendresden]

Originally Posted by CAMom

We're considering a relocation from Los Angeles, CA to Denver. We've been strongly considering Parker but I'm now wondering what Caste Rock would be like. I'm a Stay-at-home mom and my husband is self-employeed with our own construction business. We hope to visit the area in the next 2 months.

Can someone with experience compare the two.

Were we live now I have Target, Grocery Stores and lots of other small stores within 5+ miles or so. I'd like to have the same surrounding.

Thank you.

The stupidest thing I ever did was sell my home in CR when we left. Wished I would have rented it. We lived there six years when the commute to Denver was still reasonable. CR has grown a lot but does sit right on I-25 for trips up and down the corridor. And overall may be more scenic. The outlet malls are pretty packed with shoppers.

Parker, where our son just moved from north Denver, also has it's own charm. He graduated DCHS which we thought was a great school in the early 90's (not familiar with it now), and Ponderosa H.S. in Parker had a good reputation as well. I think two or three more schools may now have opened up.

Parker, IMO as just a visitor now, has more of the chain stores and some much better eating establishments. The drive downtown on Parker Road isn't as bad as one poster makes out as my daughter-in-law ultimately chose it over driving 3-4 miles west to I-25, and she works near Rose Hospital (google maps for locations for perceptions of where things are. And if you are going up I-25 for any reason, I was more a fan of light rail anyway.

As for scenery, overall you won't get quite the view that you will in most CR spots, but my son's home (the cheapest in his neighborhood) and in that $350-$400k range, has a view off the back porch from Pike's Peak to Devil's Head to downtown Denver. I told him I thought the land was worth more than the house! He moved to Parker from Denver for the better school system.

I dont know anything about how construction work goes, but if your husband needs a building of some sort, I think I would let that choice dictate between the two towns. Either way, I think you'll find Colorado more appealing than California---IF you can handle weather changes and dry air well. I lived in both SD and Vacaville for short periods of time, so have some familiarity with the state.

Best of luck in your move.