What is Colorado Springs like?

Hi all, currently stationed on the east coast but might get orders out there to Colorado Springs. I’m from the south, never lived out west, but Colorado seems like a great time.

Just curious from people who live there what you think of it, what’s good, what’s bad, etc.

 

Its a whole different animal than the East Coast (I am from NY). Its absolutely beautiful and you will feel the altitude change for a bit. Colorado Springs is a busy city, but for the most part people are friendly. A lot of outdoors things to do. Great off-roading trails and camping. Ive been here 8 years and love it, met my wife here and no desire to go back to the east coast. No humididty. When it snows, its snow, not ice and usually melts the same day.
There is a decent homeless population that are around and crime is present like any where. Cost of living is not the cheapest due to all the military bases. Weather does produce summer hail storms. Weather is not consistent like the east coast due to the mountain ranges.

 

My daughter moved there for school about 5 years ago, she seems to really enjoy it there, like previously mentioned lots of outdoor activities, also close to Denver which offers a lot as well.

 

It’s not the Colorado you’re imagining in your head. Colorado Springs is a big, dirty city in the plains. The good parts of Colorado are another 30 minute or more drive west. There are definitely worse places the military can send you though.

 

Yeah I read about the hail storms. That would certainly be something new to me. I think I’ve seen one in my lifetime in the south.

Housing definitely seems expensive out there and would probably be my biggest reservation.

 

What do you mean by big dirty city?

 

It’s 600k people in one big sprawling suburban strip mall. There’s really no nice “city” part of it. As with anywhere you have this many people it’s just dirty. Trash, rundown areas, homeless camps, etc. The downtown area is fairly nice but that’s not where most people spend their time. Some decent bars, restaurants, historic buildings and a brand new minor league soccer stadium. Admittedly I’m a country guy and grew up in the middle of nowhere so my bias shows here.


It’s also expensive to live here compared to a lot of the country. Rent for a standard suburb cookie cutter neighborhood 3-4 bedroom house runs $2-3k. Cost to buy that house runs $450k-600k. Most people will have to pay out of pocket above their BAH.

 

yeah I’m not super interested in living in the city itself. I’ve had enough of the city life with Atlanta. More of a suburban/rural guy myself. Any nice towns on the outskirts?

the hosing market is definitely tough out there. I’d definitely be spending above my BAH unfortunately :/

any input on the quality of schools in that area?

 

Cold, really laid back, a bit depressing and grey

 

No kids so I can’t help you with schools, sorry.

If you don’t mind driving furthering and dealing with traffic on the way to work Cascade, Green Mountain Falls or Woodland Park are nice areas. Penrose is also well out of the city and is a 30-45 minute drive but with basically no traffic. If you want convenience at the expense of a more crowded area there are good housing developments in Fountain that fit the bill.

 

Colorado Springs is no comparison to Atlanta. A lot better.
Yes, its a lot of people- but that is due to the military/ military contract consuming 85% of the population. The rest are native.
The off-roading culture is amazing and endless trails to venture out on. It would be an experience unlike anything the east coast can offer, minus beaches and seafood haha.

Look in the Fountain area if you are Army going to Fort Carson, I'd say Peyton/Falcon if you are Air/Space Force.
For a nice house- you wont be below 350k-400k. Better to buy if you can, as the rent market is too high.
Fountain school district is very good from what I've heard from neighbors with kids.

 

I don’t have orders yet, so not sure if I’d be attached to USSF, USAF, or USA, but I’ll take a look at those areas. I’m used to a little commute and would definitely prefer it to save money.

I’m not at all interested in living within the city limits. Just commuting distance. Does that change anyone’s recommendations?

 

As someone who used to visit CO springs every summer as a kid in the 80s, I am filled with sadness at what it has become, but then that can be said of most of Colorado. The front range is almost as bad as SoCal and the Bay Area, and it continues to get worse.

It's still better than a lot of places in the US though, for the time being.

 

What does this even mean?

 

A lot will depend on the base you get assigned.

 

There is a ton of outdoors there. The air is dry so it typically doesn't ever feel super cold or hot. I used to live on the east coast. My wife and I talk almost daily about how much more we like living here than the east coast.

There is almost nothing I don't like about CS. There are some bad sides of town with crime and everything that comes with it. I also wish there was a big lake that wasn't a 1.5 hour drive away.

Two more things to check out.

• Facebook group called "Colorado Springs Tacomas"
• https://reddit.com/r/ColoradoSprings

 

I pay about $200/month for a 2018 TRD pro and a Tesla model y