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Fort Collins, Colorado Overview
Population and Education. The current population of Fort Collins is around 130,000 and Larimer County has about 280,000 people. Our population is young. 52% of the population is under the age of 35. Education is a high priority here, the schools are exceptional. The average ACT scores are well above the state and national averages. Poudre R-1 is the school district in Fort Collins. It has experienced a major overall in the past ten years. Several new charter schools have opened which have raised the academic bar for the entire district. Older neighborhood schools have become magnet schools to attract a dwindling population in their immediate area. Generally speaking, the schools have become very innovative. Some have opted to become part of the International Baccalaureate program, others offer bilingual education, and still others have chosen the "Core Curriculum". The newer schools are truly "state of the art". Several new primary schools have opened in the last few years as well as two new high schools making a total of 4 major High Schools + 3 alternative Schools. Fort Collins believes in "school of choice" which means that if a child wishes to attend a school which is outside of the prescribed boundaries they may do so if space permits. Please feel free to check out the pages that deal exclusively with the Fort Collins, Loveland and Windsor school districts. In addition to C.S.U. many students attend Front Range Community College. Some people use it as a lower cost alternative for completing their prerequisites and then move onto CSU for additional studies. As to the surrounding communities, Loveland has received an enormous amount of income from the retail sector in the past couple of years As a result, they are building a lot of housing and the accompanying schools. They are modeling their curricula after Fort Collins, as is Windsor. Aims Community College is located in Loveland. Loveland Schools U.N.C.
Culturally the community has a lot to offer. According to Chip Seiner of the Downtown Development Authority, "Fort Collins has more live stage performances than Boulder and Colorado Springs combined." CSU has many local events including film, theatre including film, theatre, dance and art. The Lincoln Center in Fort Collins has offered such artists as Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, B.B. King, Penn & Teller etc. Other series at this venue include a Dance Series featuring touring companies from Alvin Ailey etc. The Fort Collins Symphony Orchestra performs here as well as Open Stage Theatre Company. Opera Fort Collins did Madame Butterfly recently. Central City is less than two hours away and it, together with Denver, has some world class Opera. Annually the Nutcracker is performed by Canyon Concert Ballet and other troupes. Bas Bleu Theatre offers more avant-garde performances. There are several comedy options available locally. One of my personal favorites is a satirical musical group named "The Mostlies." Loveland has the Rialto Theatre with live music, comedy and drama. There are free outdoor music performances in many locations throughout the spring and summer months. An hour away is the Pepsi Center. where the Rolling Stones performed a few years ago. The Buell Theatre and the Denver Performing Arts Center brings in many Broadway traveling companies as well as the symphony etc. Red Rocks Amphitheatre is a favorite location of acts such as Jimmy Buffet who makes an annual pilgrimage to the site. Mishawaka is an outdoor venue located up the Poudre Canyon which offers primarily Folk & Rock & Roll. The Budweiser Events Center at the Larimer County Fairgrounds (The Ranch) opened in 2003 with Bill Cosby. Swetsville Zoo is a place you may have seen as you headed up the Interstate. This is a wonderfully creative museum where Bill Swets, a retired farmer, has put together a "zoo" of creations he has made out of old farm equipment. His sculptures can also be seen in Old Town today. Additionally we have two libraries, the Fort Collins Museum and several Art Galleries.
Altitude & Climate: Our elevation is about 5,000 ft. You can quickly change that by going up to Estes Park and tackling one of the 14,000 ft. peaks there. There are nearly 300 days of sunshine per year and 14.5 inches of precipitation. We are located by the Cheyenne Ridge. As a result, weather tends to break around us and we get very little snow. Because of our low humidity our cold days rarely feel very cold and our hot days rarely seem very hot.
Recreation: Downhill skiers are only a few hours away from Vail, Breckenridge, Keystone and Copper Mountain. Aspen and Steamboat are a little further. Cross-country is easily accomplished close by. The city has at least one park for every square mile. Two new major parks have been added within the past three years. One is Gateway Park (this is the first non-contiguous City Park) which is located 5 miles up the Poudre Canyon and offers picnic tables, fishing, tubing, hiking and more. The other is Fossil Creek Park which has a dog park, a year round hockey rink, lots of things for children to twist around on and climb. lighted fields etc. Some of the other parks offer Golf Courses, tennis, lighted ball fields, pools, lakes, petting zoos etc. We have wonderful bike trails throughout the city. We recently took a ride and started on the Spring Creek trail where we stopped to look at a major Prairie Dog Colony, then we went on the the Poudre River trail and back. We rode for about 12 miles. It was lovely. Horsetooth Reservoir is 7 miles long and offers a place for speed boats and water skiing. There are private clubs in Windsor for water skiing too. White River Rafting starts in the early part of June up the Poudre. Golf is a major deal here. There are currently 9 golf courses within 15 miles of Fort Collins with a couple more in the works. Tennis is another sport you can do easily here. There are several private gyms. There is an Olympic size pool as well as an ice-skating rink at Epic. There is another skating rink in Windsor. It's popular with all ages. Softball is another passion here for all age ranges.
Employment & Income: Our major employers are the University, the School District, Hewlett Packard, Poudre Valley Health Systems, Eastman Kodak, the Government, Agilent, Avago, LSI Logic, Advanced Energy, Anheuser-Busch, Woodward Governor and Waterpik. What's notable from this list is that the City has obviously tried to promote clean industries and has for the most part succeeded. Some of companies have come out of the University. CSU is a major research institution and companies like Water Pik and Vipont got their start there. The city and the University have formed a partnership called UNIVERCITY. Part of the mission of that organization is to help foster green industries here that can have an impact internationally. Wind energy, solar and others are being explored and supported here. Some of the interesting businesses located here include the Center for Disease Control. Their primary facility is in Atlanta, but Fort Collins is home to the next most important. We also have the National Seed Bank here. This is a government facility which houses enough species to reforest the planet in the event of a global catastrophe. The average median family income is about $66,400 per year. Fort Collins Chamber of Commerce
Retail: The most upscale shopping is located in South Denver. But, we do have Chicos, Talbots, REI, Gap & Gap Kids, Home Depot, Sams Club, Pier 1, Barnes & Noble, B. Dalton, Old Navy, Limited Too, Bed Bath & Beyond, Kohls, Macys, Wal-Mart Super Centers, Office Depot and Officemax and more. We are supposed to be getting a Borders in the not too distant future and Dillards. We have an outlet mall at the corner of I-25 and 34. Centerra, an outdoor mall featuring a skating rink, has opened with Dicks Sporting Goods, Macys, Victoria's Secret and many other stores.
Organic Foods: Whole Foods is here together with Sunflower Market. There are other organic choices as well. The major supermarkets here are Safeway, Albertsons and King Soopers.
Stuff for Kids: This is a very family friendly town. The programs offered are too numerous to list. But, I'll tell you some of the things my child has been involved in:
Philomusica. (One of many private music programs offered here)
The Mountain Center and G.K. Gymnastics for gymnastics and dance. Additionally we have Canyon Concert Ballet, the Westin Academy and more.llet is well thought of too.
Flying Colors Art School
Skating and swimming lessons at EPIC.
Fort Collins Soccer League
Debut Theatre and others
Stars Softball and Baseball
CSU Sports Camp
Enrichment in the Fort
Odyssey of the Mind
Lego Robotics
Lots of Places to Bounce
Horseback Riding Lessons
Pottery Classes
Private Summer Camps
Lee Martinez Park for horticulture and working with animals
Health: We now have a north and south campus to Poudre Valley Hospital. It is a fabulous facility with a very highly thought of trauma center and nursing staff among other things. This is the place to be if you must get sick. McKee Medical Center in Loveland is another well thought of hospital. The Orthopedic Center of the Rockies is here to help when you need a new knee from all of the sports you participated in while you were here. The Medical Center of the Rockies has opened to rave reviews. Among other things, it houses a cardiac care center and oncology facilities that are the envy of the entire region.
Seniors: The Senior Center in Fort Collins is about 10 years old. They are thinking about renaming it The Center because it serves such diverse age groups. It has exercise facilities including an indoor pool and running track. Fort Collins has been on the top ten list (the top 1 or 2 often) of places to retire for several years. The quality of life offered here is superior to most and housing although not cheap is still more affordable than some of the other communities one might choose. The University is a contributing factor to making this a desirable place for Seniors to live.
Real Estate and Housing: Fort Collins Real Estate is much more affordable than Denver or Boulder. The rental market is great for someone looking to live here. We experienced less than one percent vacancy for many years. But, several new units have been built in the last two-three years bringing the rate to around 9% although it has already begun to drop again. The first quarter statistics for 2008 have brought the numbers back down to 5%. (I received a minimum of 10 calls a day this spring for one property alone) The average home price for Fort Collins/Wellington in 2006 was approximately $248,000, Loveland's market showed a gain of 4% last year in the prices of homes to an average of $248,251. We have had approximately 8 percent appreciation annually for over 10 years. This dropped off considerably after 9/11. This spring has brought a renewed vitality to the housing market. Prices are rising fairly quickly and homes are selling. We have about two thirds of the inventory we had at this time last year. It is a very solid market. I have a system which allows me to e-mail listings to you on Properties that meet your criteria as soon as they come on the market. Please contact me and I'll set up this free service for you. It advises you as soon as something new hits the computer. It's free and it puts you in complete control.
Dining and Movie Theatres: Fort Collins has two multi-plex first run theatres. We also have a second run theatre which shows movies at a discounted price and a drive-in. Loveland has a new Multi-plex theatre as well. The University offers free foreign films. Dining is varied. Locals tend to eat out a lot. We have choices ranging from Mongolian Barbecues to Sushi with everything in between. There is both elegant dining in the Old Town area and South: Jays, The Chop House on Canyon, and The Savoy Brasserieto to name a few. The unfortunate side effect of an increased population is that every fast food chain known to man is here too. The shops at Centerra has P.F. Changs, Biaggis and more. Downtown Loveland features fine dining at O'Henrys and the Chop House. A new upscale restaurant named Chimney Park has opened in WIndsor.
Taxes: Corporate and personal Income Tax 4.63% of Adjusted Federal Taxable Income
Property Taxes: Approximately 1% of the actual value of the real estate (2% for non-residential)
Sales Tax: State of Colorado 1.9% + City of Fort Collins 3% + Larimer County +.8%
Annual Events: Annual events in Fort Collins include the Homecoming Parade, St. Patrick's Day Parade, Two Marathons, First Night, Cinco de Mayo Festival, Poudre River Festival, Colorado Brewers Fest, Fourth of July Celebration, Larimer County Fair and New West Fest.
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