What does this mean? Can I now unlock my doors at night? Probably not but it does confirm what I have always believed about our city. This is a great place to live all around! I feel safe going downtown to a restaurant with friends. Of course I don’t stay out that late and don’t frequent the downtown nightclubs that seem to have weekly incidents involving police. The places that I go, day or night seem to be safe and well lit.

The key here is to look at all of the factors that made up this safety study. Our air quality is excellent. We get the best water in the whole world cold and tasty right out of the tap. As for life expectancy, my grandfather was a Colorado Springs native (b.1900) and he lived to be nearly 99! Our clean living and penchant for fitness makes it easy to live a long time here.

The large military presence in this city gives financial stability to the region. Job losses are less than other cities due to our guaranteed military payroll every two weeks. We never boomed as much as other cities during the past ten years so our job losses have been much less than other areas similar to Colorado Springs.

Housing areas can be safe in most area of the city. Even in lower price ranges, a good safe home can be found. It all depends on who is assisting you in your search. I am a lifetime native of Colorado Springs. I know the areas that are most popular with buyers based on typical needs such as safety, convenience, schools etc. If you are considering a move to the area, feel free to contact me. I would love to assist you!

I made my monthly trip to the commissary this weekend and yes, it was worth it! For you who are civilians and reading this, you might want to just skip to the next post. This will not mean anything to you but for military people who are moving to Colorado Springs, this could have some meaning.

I do admit that I split my shopping between the King Soopers in my neighborhood and the USAFA commissary. I think that most people do that unless they happen to live on base. I don’t have time to drive up to the Academy if I am out of milk but definitely use the store for my big shopping.

As commissaries go this one at USAFA rates a 6 on a scale of 1-10. My dream store would have a much bigger selection and of course be just like my neighborhood grocery store. The store at Peterson AFB is much larger and nearly new but still has that “commissary” feel to it.

Things I like about the USAFA commissary:

Close to my house (I live in Flying Horse Ranch near the North Gate of USAFA).

Small and usually not crowded

Good selection of the basics that I like to stock up on

Things that I hate about the USAFA commissary:

The produce department is terrible! I just skip it other than maybe buying potatoes.

Holiday displays make this small store too crowded.

Not enough selection of certain items. This is typical of all commissaries so it’s not that big of a deal.

All in all, this store is a good one. When I was an active duty spouse, my first thing to locate when we made a PCS move was the commissary. Having a decent place to shop has always been important to me.  The store at USAFA certainly does meet my needs. If you plan to live in the northern part of Colorado Springs, this is the closest facility. The store at Peterson AFB is new and mega big but it is located on the far east part of the base and is about 40 minutes from my home. Just not worth it for me but for you it could very well be great.