Look west during your Denver CO real estate search and you will discover homes in the distinctive City of Lakewood, Colorado. With the Colorado Rocky Mountains to the west, picturesque foothills throughout the city, and great views of skyline real estate in Denver, the 145,000 residents cherish the advantages of owning Lakewood CO homes in a beautiful environment close amenities in the big city as well as in Jefferson County.
To consolidate utilities and governance, Lakewood incorporated in 1969 from the urban/suburban development founded in 1889. It was originally a 13-block plat along Colfax Avenue developed by Charles Welch and W.A.H. Loveland, the former president of the Colorado Central Railroad. The city is now 42.5 square miles in area. Having no downtown, the ingenious Town Council created plans to demolish an old declining mall, Villa Italia Mall, and to replace it with a modern downtown area called Belmar. The site of community events and activities, the popular Belmar includes a diverse mix of residential, retail, and cultural establishments.
The Town Council is not the only group of residents with a creative yen. Within the community are a large number of talented artists and several thriving cultural and heritage organizations who offer a broad scope of year-round events, activities, classes, and displays. There are live performances at the Lakewood Cultural Center, the Sounds Exciting Summer Concert Series, Community festivals, classes and workshops featuring art, crafts, pottery, galleries, art in the parks, and more. The Division for Heritage, Culture & the Arts comes up with ingenious, hands-on courses and activities.
There are great JeffCo schools including an International Baccalaureate high school ranked number one in the State by Newsweek. In addition, several colleges, universities, and trade schools are located in the surrounding areas.
The government is the largest employer of the otherwise diverse economy. The Denver Federal Center, the largest government employer outside of the nation's capital, employs 6,200 people and the school system 3,930. A medical devices manufacturer is the next largest employer at 1,654. The median household income is $48,109.
As a Home Rule Municipality, the city is the fourth most populous in the state. Having started with 90,000 a few decades ago, the growth indicates the popularity of the region. At the time of incorporation, it was one of the largest populations to incorporate in the history of the United States.
The city lies in the Mountain Time Zone, uses 303 and 720 for its area codes, 08-43000 for an FIPS code, and 0181620 GNIS feature ID. The zip codes are Denver's 80214-80215, 80226-80228, 80232, and 80235-80236; Golden's 80401; and Littleton's 80123. For information on real estate or mortgages for this area, contact Kelly Oberbillig of Paragon Real Estate Group LLC at Kelly@Paragon4Home.com or call (303) 946-3745.
