Reality check - Overrated and unfriendly
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9/6/2006
Here is a little reality for those who might be think Fort Collins is the promised land, and no doubt this will ruffle feathers. We tried out Fort Collins for two months. Coming from California, we wanted a more affordable, more natural and more laid-back place. Everything we read made Fort Collins glow, so we drove out and rented a furnished apartment for two months. The first advice I got when arriving (from a non-native who'd been there for years) was, "Change your license plates as soon as possible. They don't give Californians a break." I applied for about 20 jobs in and around Fort Collins, many of which were right up my alley, and heard from only one person. (When we returned to California I got a job in a week.)
We soon discovered that Fort Collins natives are not friendly at all. They are distinctly withdrawn, almost grumpy, yet I detected in them a sort of smug pride in their "culture" which is obviously changing before their eyes. It could be that this is the cultural style in general this far north in the USA. My wife and I both met many people at parks, the mall, stores and church, and without exception the only friendly ones were transplants from other states (even countries). It's almost as if the natives are barely tolerating other humans. There is none of the "howdy neighbor" culture there, at least among the natives, and our realtor told me as much. No doubt you could find it among the planned communities of transplants, but not in general. It also gets very hot and cold there, though it is very beautiful near the mountains and the weather is more dramatic. Otherwise you are in the empty high plains and a lot of allergy causing cottonwood trees. There is also a lot of traffic probably due to the college. We got the sense that things have really been changing there and the place is having growing pains. And don't forget this is a college town, and you're sharing the place with about 20,000 future adults, and the college punk attitude is very prevalent, and recent graduates grab up a lot of jobs. Honestly, now that I've been back a couple of months, I think the problem with Fort Collins is that they are in shock over progress and growing pains. Housing is still very affordable there, but Colorado has the highest forclosure rate in the country so maybe that explains something.
Check out nearby Louisville if you have some equity and a job, but don't expect more friendliness.
Jason | Coto de Caza, CA