Nice place to live -Colorado Springs - 4/19/2011

Very beautiful place to live and raise family...I love it...

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Colorado Springs advice for those looking to move - 3/3/2011

The up front, bottom line, don't. I bought into the idea 3 years ago that Colorado Springs would be a good place for military veterans with a security clearance and an IT background. I figured with the three air force bases and sizable army base, getting a job would not be difficult. I couldn't be more wrong. Colorado Springs offers good schools, low violent crime, and reasonable real estate. It's close to Denver. The downtown could be better, but it's not bad considering how conservative the area is. Manitou Springs and Colorado City are great little towns situated in the same area. There are lots of outdoor activity opportunities as well. Weather is pleasant, even in the winter, where snow usually quickly melts due to lots of sun and mild temperatures. The good stuff pretty much ends there. As soon as I moved here, the economy had started shedding jobs at an alarming rate there long before the great recession. The 7 percent unemployment claimed for the pike's peak region is less than accurate, simply because there are plenty of long term unemployed there that have long since gave up looking for work, or had their benefits expire. This also likely explains the disproportionally large amount of homeless (many of those include veterans) in the area considering the size of the city. The job market here is is saturated with veterans who are getting out or retiring here based on long outdated notions (There are still some internet job sites claiming that Colorado Springs has a vibrant job market, which is unfortunate and hasn't been that way since the early to mid 2000s) that Colorado Springs is a good place for transitioning veterans. Again, it is not. It is a terrible place for veterans or anyone else for that matter looking for work. This saturation of too many people and not enough jobs has spilled over into nearby Denver as well. So good luck finding anything there as well. The civilian tech companies (Microsoft, Sun, HP, etc) have long since bailed from the pikes peak region. Government jobs? I have been told by veterans transition counselors in many occasions that there are upwards of 80 people applying to each federal job opening in the state (this was over 3 years ago) and this was at the height of the time when the government was actually trying to hire more people, and even then many of those jobs were in other parts of Colorado. I had 8 years of IT experience through the army, 2 more years experience in the civilian world, a secret security clearance, and bachelors degree. I found work on an air force defense contract that lost funding after a little over a year. Out of work for a month, I applied for 40-50 jobs a day in the area, and the most I got in terms as replies was a single temp contracting job that lasted all of one month, that had ridiculous requirements and low pay. After this, I simply gave up looking for work in the area. Well, I applied for 5 jobs in the DC metro area, and low-and-behold, three of them got back to me the same day, and within two days after that, the three companies all offered me IT jobs ranging between 100-120K a year, one of which I took. 1 month of looking for work in Colorado Springs to the tune of 40-50 applications a day, and getting next to nothing, vs a single day looking for work across the country with three different offers within the same week. You do the math. Even more disturbing, through linkedin and other people I tried to help find work there; Some of them had more experience than I did, more certifications, had a top secret clearance, and also could not find work in that area. I kept hearing horror story after horror story through friends and knowing myself directly, who all knew someone that was a veteran that was unemployed for several months to over a year. What makes the economic situation worse there? The job market is very political. Even more-so than in other areas. The "good old boy" system is alive and well there, as well as an overly conservative culture which of course, spills over into the economy. In other words, if you are a veteran, got out as an 0-5 (Lieutenant Colonel) or above, and belong to the "focus on the family" local evangelical mafia or any of the other many mega-churches there, the job search is slightly easier for you. For everyone else, to include veterans and non-veterans with plenty of job experience? Well, sucks to be you. Even thorough networking is not enough to find anything decent here, believe me, I tried, and so have many, many others. Even the lower paying service jobs are hard to get, because many of the veterans out of work have spouses and family (and or members of the aforementioned "focus on the family mafia") which typically fill those jobs, and the companies with those jobs will often write you off as overqualified. And one final point. I mentioned linkedin before. Out of the 7 people that randomly asked me for advice for them getting a job in the Springs: You know how many actually found work? All of them. In other parts of the country... Colorado Springs becoming a dying town full of religious fanatics, homeless veterans, long term unemployed, and very low paying service jobs. The lovely scenery there hides the fact that this is an awful place to try to find work. Avoid this city at all costs if you hope to find any sort of stable employment. Save yourself the heartache, stress, and frustration and look else-ware if you want to settle down.

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Weather - 2/27/2011

Great weather. Its always sunny.

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Climate in colorado springs - 2/6/2011

If you enjoy the outdoors, and all 4 seasons (sometimes in the same day), you will love colorado springs.lots of sunshine, hiking, biking, fishing, golf.and it's dry.stand under a shade tree in the middle of a hot day, and you actually cool off! Great place to be active, year-round.

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A great city to live in - 2/4/2011

Moved here 2 1/2 years ago and expected long, cold and snowy winters. I have found that if and when it snows, the snow is gone quickly. It is unbearably cold less than 5 days a season and the summers are fantastic.

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Looking for a great place to raise a family. Just - 1/24/2011

20 Years of army and air force and now we are ready to retire. We are looking for ideas on great places to raise a family. We have an 11 year old autistic son and we are looking for a diverse place to work and go to school any ideas. we go to church, like meeting new people, but not the party types, we enjoy every type of music. I am african american my husband is biracial. We love to go to coffee shops and restaurants. We love theatres, them parks, to have dinner parties, nothing extravagant just a few close friends, etc. any good ideas

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Housing rentals - 1/20/2011

We are trying rent out our house here in the Springs and would like to rent to a nice Army family. I think there are lots of nice families out there that would be a nice fit for our house....

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Thinking of moving to this area... :) - 12/22/2010

Hello! I was wondering if anyone could tell me what the community offers for families with children in as many aspects as you can think of...Also, how are the neighborhoods and schools? How much do utility deposits cost? And what is the rent price range for 2-3 bdrm places? What is the weather like? And how are the race tracks around there? Are there good restaurants in town? Any info would be greatly appreciated!!!

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Looking into moving to this area... - 12/21/2010

Hello! I was wondering if I can get an honest description of life in the CO Springs area...what does the community offer for families with children (mine are 6 and 9)? How is the weather? How are the neighborhoods and schools? Are the locals friendly and welcoming? Any info is appreciated! Thank you!

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Great town, changing for the good - 10/9/2010

Springs was once known as a conservative, right-wing Christian mecca, but due to some recent events people and the town politics have become much more moderate. Not tons of music venues or loads of amazing restaurants, but the climate and access to nature more than make up for it. A+.

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Hard times in a once fine city - 8/30/2010

I moved my faimily here 4 years ago in the hopes of setting down long term roots. As mentioned in other reviews this is a very secnic place to live. Great outdoor activities and a very healthy population. When we first arrived in 2006 the city was expanding at a fantastic rate. New homes and buisness's popping up everywhere..then the economy tanked. at the end of summer 2008 mass lay-offs started in just about every corner of the city. By last year large cuts in city budgets meant that city parks were closing pools and activities and not watering the grass. The city has suffered and continues an uphill battle to retain buisness as well as attract new "blood" to maintain a healthy economy. It's extremely hard to find a "good" job. cost of living is higher than it should be..is the view really worth it? Ethnical, and cultural diversity is low. Do not move here if you are young and single, this is really more of a faimily oriented town and you will be left out in the cold. My family and I have enjoyed our time here, but were never able to "put down roots." I am looking to return to school to futher my career, unfortunatly I cannot do this here because "the springs" does not offer a large variety of educational oppurtunities. Unfortunatly once we move we won't be comming back. Life is too short to live in just one area, especially one that has very conservitive government and population. Great place to visit, very difficult and challenging to live here.

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Outdoors - 7/27/2010

IF you are an avid out door, nature type of person, this place is for you. I love being indoors, coming outside every now and again to enjoy the park, but COlorado Springs, CO has hiking trails, bike trails, water stuff, nature parks, outdoorsy things for outdoorsy people.

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Fantastic Climate!! - 6/13/2010

If low humidity, cool summer nights and virtually no bugs suits your tastes, you'll love Colorado Springs. All summer you can leave not only your windows open at night, but you don't need screens on the windows. The summers here are wonderful. "The Springs" is located just east of Pikes Peak, one of the US's most beatiful mountains. Snow stays on the mountain often through June and sometimes until the end of July!!! Excellent hiking, mountain biking and camping are within one hour's drive. In addition, excellent winter spots locations are as close as 2 to 3 hours drive.

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Religion - 3/7/2010

Having Focus On The Family here, although less influential these days, provides an abundance of practicing Christians that force their views and make for a more right wing atmosphere.

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Beautiful Snows...Great Sunshine - 2/10/2010

Colorado Springs, adjacent the eastern Front Range of the Rockies, has an exceptional climate, great year-round! At an altitude of over 6,000 feet, Colorado Springs has four genuine seasons. Spring comes with a rush in April or May, with cool nights and an occasional brief snow. Summer is warm, not hot, with cool nights. Fall can begin early. Winter brings contrasts, sunny or snowy, chilly or warm. Snows come and go quickly, typically followed by spectacular sunny weather. Precipitation is light throughout the year. Most homes do not use air conditioning!

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Colorado - 1/17/2010

Colorado is known for it's winter sports. It is home of the Olympic Team and has a very strong military community in the Springs.

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Cold winters and beautiful summers - 11/18/2009

We have cold winters but the sun shines most of the time. The summers are very beautiful. The spring and fall are both unpredictable. We enjoy so many wonderful days all year with only a few that keep you inside. I love that the sun shines even when we have snow.

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weather - 11/7/2009

nice weather

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Awesome place to live!! - 11/3/2009

I previously lived in southern California for 12 years and I have lived in Colorado Springs for 12 years now and there's no comparison, Colorado Springs is a much better place to live. These people that say the crime is bad in Colorado Springs are ridiculous, it's very safe here. The culture is very outdoorsy and the camping, hunting, fishing, four-wheeling, etc. is amazing! If you love a variety of weather, you like the outdoors (sports, biking, fishing, etc.), and you want a gorgeous place to raise your family, Colorado Springs is the place to be!!

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Colorado Springs Population Boom - 10/5/2009

I moved to the Springs for a job about 14 years ago. Since then the population has doubled. I guess it's true what the Eagles said about paradise...

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