January 20, 2010

• Determination in the The Mile High City

  Where do I begin?

  When you first think about Colorado, what comes to mind? Snow? Cold weather? Maybe even cowboys? Be honest. That’s what you thought, right? Before the trip, I spoke to several people who’ve either lived or visited there before, and they only had good things to say about the place. I was excited to see this great state they were all talking about, a state I thought I would never have even thought of visiting.

  Before I go into detail about my trip, I need to give you a little history lesson on Denver.  I only read about the history after I got back from my trip, but it makes Denver more appealing to me now. This history comes from Denver’s official tourism website. In 1858, a group from Georgia were crossing the great plains heading west until they realized they found gold at the bottom of the Rocky Mountains. They set up camp there, and more and more people from all over the country started settling in the area seeking fortune. There was so much land that people just came in, claimed land, and actually sold it to those who came in after them. A guy named General William H. Larimer claimed a bunch of land and laid out the city. He hoped that he would gain political power and named the city after Kansas governor James Denver. By 1859, just when the city was bustling, gold was discovered in a nearby town in the mountains and people quickly left Denver leaving the city practically deserted. However, people returned because they couldn’t handle the weather conditions in the mountains and decided that they were going to figure out other ways to make money. They soon realized that Denver’s climate was pretty mild throughout the year and helped grow the city. As the city grew, Denver experienced a lot of challenges. During the Civil War, a Confederate army from Texas seized the gold areas.  A volunteer army in Denver was quickly put together and even though they weren’t really trained and outnumbered, they still beat the Confederates. In 1863, a fire burned much of Denver’s business district down, the year after that, a flash flood swept through a part of Denver that killed many people and caused a million dollars in damage, and after that, an Indian war broke out which left Denver with very little food. Something positive came out of all of this though. Because of these hardships, the citizens of Denver only became more determined to keep the city alive. For example, when the railroads were built, Colorado wasn’t included on its route.  Denver raised $300,000 and built their own railroad to connect to the transcontinental railroad in Wyoming. Soon after, during the construction, there was the discovery of silver and Denver became bustling again.

  The determination the Denver citizens experienced back in the 19th century is the same feeling I get from Denverites and the city today. According to the Denver Office of Economic Development, Metro Denver has a population of 2.7 million. It has a growth rate that has beat the national rate every decade since the 1930s. They say that by 2030, Metro Denver’s population will grow to 3.9 million with 800,000 new jobs being created. Colorado even has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country (about 7%). Before we visited, NPR was doing a bit about how Colorado was flying airplanes over California to attract big companies to move there. Driving around the Denver areas, Roger and I noticed a lot of new developments – retail/office spaces, condos, housing. Although this city is not as bustling as say Boston, New York, or San Francisco, you can tell this city is determined to thrive.  It’s actually exciting to imagine getting into Denver now knowing what the future may look like for the city. Think: Way more affordable and new opportunities! When we talked to people there about us moving, they were genuinely interested in why we were thinking Colorado and encouraging us that this is the state to be in.  They were all so passionate about what they do and where they live that it was a bit contagious.

  So, I apologize, but this isn’t the blog entry where I tell you all about my trip to the Mile High City.  Think of this as the introduction!

  • 5:35 pm
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