It’s scarcely news that the greater Pikes Peak region is home to scores of beautiful historic and contemporary neighborhoods. Visitors are often first drawn here by the region’s extraordinary recreational and scenic amenities and then think about living here. If such thoughts cross your mind, here are some of our favorite neighborhoods. It’s an eclectic mix, ranging from Colorado’s largest Victorian Era neighborhood on the Westside of Colorado Springs to a seven-house street in Pueblo known as the Pitkin Place Historic District. It’s a story that we couldn’t write if we were real estate professionals because we could be accused of “steering” our readers. That’s not our intention—we’re not selling anything. Space and reader attention spans permitting, we would have featured many more areas.
So consider this a purely idiosyncratic list. Some of our faves are relatively inexpensive and some aren’t. One dates from the 1890s, one from the 2010s and the rest are somewhere in between.
Colorado Springs
The Westside is the best side!
At least, that’s what residents and business owners believe about this vast and eclectic assortment of homes and commercial buildings that date from the 1870s to the present day.
Old Colorado City, the National Register-listed commercial hub of the Westside, was incorporated as Colorado City in 1859. The Westside is home to turn of the century neighborhoods. Thousands of homes were built between 1880 and 1910, including 500 in 1899 alone. Most still stand, a consequence of a long period of economic stagnation and decline that ended in the 1970s.
The slow renaissance of the Westside has accelerated in recent years, but it’s still one of the most affordable large neighborhoods in Colorado Springs. On any given block, you’ll find 600-square-foot shotgun cottages, substantial brick and stone homes, and graceful three-story corner residences. Many once-dilapidated houses have been carefully restored, and enterprising builders have erected new houses on the vacant lots that once dotted the area.
Stop in at the Old Colorado City History Center, located in the former Bethany Baptist Church at 24th and Pikes Peak Ave. to find out more about Westside history. Pick up a copy of Cathleen Norman’s “In and Around Old Colorado City—A Walking Tour,” or just wander the neighborhood.
TIP: For an interactive experience, download the OLD COLORADO CITY app from the iTunes Store! Watch the website for events happening in OCC: ShopOldColoradoCity.com
In the early 1890s, Pueblo was the largest and arguably the most prosperous city in Colorado, nicknamed “The Pittsburgh of the Rockies.” Thousands worked in the steel mills of Colorado Fuel & Iron and in the immense rail yards that bordered the Arkansas River.
Workers, company executives, and capitalists all needed housing. Entire neighborhoods were created in a few years. By 1900, city boosters called Pueblo “The Prosperous City with a Lasting Legacy,” and set to work building neighborhood parks, grand municipal buildings and fine, harmonious commercial districts.
Their legacy remains in dozens of interesting, diverse, and egalitarian neighborhoods, where modest cottages are sometimes found next to soaring 19th-century palaces.
The seven houses in the Pitkin Place Historic District in Pueblo are elegant and beautiful. They’re not imposing mansions, but warm, open, and inviting middle-class family residences. They’re all very different, so much so that it’s hard to believe that the same architect designed all but one. Built in the early 1890s by the architect-contractor team of George Roe and E.W. Shutt to house the managers of the Colorado Fuel & Iron Company, this gorgeous linear neighborhood hasn’t changed much since. The saplings that the developers planted 125 years ago are now towering trees and the once isolated subdivision is now surrounded by other neighborhoods. Yet it’s still a highly desirable single-family street, a tranquil oasis that was put on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The houses are located on the south side of Pitkin Avenue in the 300 block.
This city of more than 15,000 inhabitants is bigger and more varied than you’d imagine. Downtown Cañon City is a few steps away from walkable, historic neighborhoods, while spacious modern homes and acreages dot the surrounding countryside. It’s a western city with a Midwestern feel—unpretentious, friendly, and still reasonably affordable. It’s an easy commute from Pueblo or Colorado Springs, and winters are mild and relatively dry.
The real estate market is strong, but not as overheated as in Colorado Springs, Manitou, and Salida. So if you’re on the way to the Royal Gorge or any one of the city’s many attractions, take a moment and venture off U.S. 50. You won’t be disappointed and you might even want to stay.
Our favorite neighborhood in Salida? That would be Salida’s historic heart, the modestly scaled neighborhoods that circle the Arkansas Valley town that began life in 1880 as a division point of Denver & the Rio Grande railroad. Salida grew and prospered in subsequent decades, becoming the seat of Chaffee County and benefitting from a regional economy centered on agriculture and mining. As these sectors waned in the 20th century, the visitor industry and automobile tourism helped support the economy.
Sometime in the 1980s, Salida became cool—a place where adventurous, artistic and entrepreneurial young folks wanted to stay, not flee. It’s kind of a time capsule, with a lively downtown full of locally owned shops, galleries, restaurants, and bars surrounded by walkable neighborhoods. You’ll be enchanted by this riverfront city, but it’s no longer the “Bargain on the Arkansas.” Is it overpriced? That depends upon your point of view. Compared to crowded mountain ski towns like Aspen, Vail, and Breckenridge, real estate in Salida and Chaffee County is insanely cheap. Compared to other cities in the greater Pikes Peak Region, it’s somewhat expensive.
Cripple Creek and Victor
If you’re looking for underpriced and undiscovered, look to Victor, an intact Colorado mining town with a fascinating history and hundreds of 19th-century homes. There’s also an intact Victorian downtown, a couple of great bars and a vibrant arts scene. You can still pick up a serviceable little cottage for less than $60,000!
There’s just one catch. Victor is still home to the gigantic Cresson Mine. It’s just over the hill from downtown Victor, operating 24/7/365. Even though the mine workings cover several square miles, they’re not visible from town.
For folks used to picturesque resorts unburdened with actual industrial activity, Victor is an acquired taste. But if you like toughness, authenticity, and lack of pretension, Victor’s your town.
Cripple Creek, where casino gambling was legalized in 1991, has a lot in common with Victor. It’s somewhat more expensive, but still eminently affordable. Houses and lots in the surrounding countryside vary wildly in price, depending on access, utility availability, views, and (of course!) location. Cripple Creek is still a working person’s town, whose residents may commute to the Victor mine or work a shift at one of the Bennett Avenue casinos. It’s amazingly friendly and picturesque, with interesting year-round visitor-related activities. Outside the city, off the two-lane highways that lead to Divide and Florissant, you’ll see scores of substantial mountain homes with great views and country solitude. And if you get tired of all that beauty and tranquility, the casinos are only a short drive away.
Manitou Springs and its neighbors
What’s not to like about Manitou? Nothing, if you’re drawn to historic mountain towns with liberal politics, a strong business community, great bars and restaurants, beautiful hillside neighborhoods, and an amazing local arts scene. Founded in 1872 as a health spa/resort for wealthy easterners, Manitou soon became a center of the local visitor industry. Entrepreneurial residents created tourist attractions such as the Cog Railway (currently closed indefinitely), the Cliff Dwellings, and the Cave of the Winds, while businesses along Manitou Avenue catered to summer visitors. Unlikely neighborhoods were carved out of the surrounding foothills, some connected to downtown via winding stone staircases.
Manitou has long been a refuge for freethinking souls who may have felt stifled by the conservative culture of neighboring Colorado Springs. The city voted overwhelmingly to legalize retail marijuana, becoming the only jurisdiction in El Paso County to do so. Manitou Springs (pop. 4,700) thereby secured a monopoly in the county (pop. 685,000), bringing a tax bonanza to city coffers. That’s allowed the city to make major infrastructure upgrades, and further enhance its appeal to visitors and new residents. Once less expensive than Colorado Springs, Manitou has become fairly pricey. The housing stock is diverse, with everything from tiny cottages to 19th-century mansions, but there isn’t much availability. Our suggestion: If you can’t find what you’re looking for in Manitou, consider heading a few miles west to Green Mountain Falls, Cascade, and Woodland Park. You’ll love the small town feeling, the lack of pretension, and the beautiful surroundings. Or, you can go a few blocks east from downtown Manitou to the Pleasant Valley neighborhood, a modernist development just south of the Garden of the Gods. Modest 1950s and 1960s ranchers line the quiet streets of this lovely subdivision, one that’s popular with millennial and GenX families. It’s within the boundaries of Colorado Springs, but happily infected with the lively spirit of Manitou and the Westside.
FINDING THE RIGHT HOME CAN BE TOUGH!
HERE’S SOME RECOMMENDATIONS FOR REALTORS THAT CAN HELP!
SHARANNE ROTHENBUCHER BROKER ASSOCIATE
Keller Williams Performance Realty
CAÑON CITY
901 Main Street
(C) 719-406-1141
(O) 719-269-7355×304
EMAIL: Sharanne@kw.com
SHARANNE1.KW.COM
TONY GREER
BROKER
Keller Williams Performance Realty
PUEBLO
1528 Fortino Blvd. 719-583-1100
PUEBLO WEST
356 S. McCulloch Blvd. 719-647-7252
CAÑON CITY
901 Main St. 719-269-7355
SALIDA
203 F St. 719-539-2512
EMAIL: Tony@TonyGreer.com
TONYGREER.COM
JACKIE HARLOW BROKER ASSOCIATE
Colorado Home Realty
Serving Denver Metro, Colorado Springs, and surrounding areas.
DENVER METRO: 720-261-5387
COLORADO SPRINGS: 719-650-4242
EMAIL: JackieHomeRealty@gmail.com
COLORADOHOMEREALTY.COM
