Boulder’s newest neighborhood featuring Energy Star® homes, duplexes, row houses, town homes and condo lofts near trails, shops and restaurants. Learn more at NorthfieldCommonsBoulder.com.

Colorado’s natural beauty – blue sky, sunshine, mountain vistas – is the backdrop for Northfield Commons.

Located just 25 miles north of Denver, Erie is the new Colorado Front Range – vibrant, diverse, and one of the most buzzed about exurbs in the western United States. Outdoor buffs, young professionals, growing families and active seniors are drawn to our expansive mountain views, scenic trails, and 340 days of sunshine per year. And with the Erie Community Center and Erie Community Library now open, Erie's quality of life keeps getting even better.

The small but quickly growing town of Erie straddles Boulder and Weld counties. The Weld County side of town, generally more agricultural, has seen slower growth and a lower median household income than the Boulder County side. In 1990, 14 people lived on the Boulder County side of Erie. By 2000, the number had surged to 4,000. Now Erie's population is close to 9,000 — split almost evenly between the two counties. Erie's 1999 Revised Comprehensive Plan says the town could eventually reach a population of 38,000.

In the late 1990s, Erie's population quadrupled, making it one of the fastest-growing Colorado towns during that time. The building frenzy has slowed in the past few years: In 2000, Erie issued almost 500 residential building permits, compared to fewer than 300 in 2001. Instead of focusing on building more homes, town officials say they are trying to work with commercial developers to build the town's tax base. Town leaders are looking at an annexation plan near Interstate 25 that would secure the land for development and bring in badly needed sales-tax revenue. In addition, the town continues to promote development in its downtown area.

Erie was established in 1871 by the Boulder Valley Coal Co., following the opening of the Briggs Mine and completion of a spur of the Union Pacific Railroad from Brighton through Erie to the northern Colorado coal fields to the west. The town was settled around 1867 by the Rev. Richard Van Valkenburg, a Methodist pastor who named the town after his hometown in Erie, Pa.

Erie is governed by the mayor and a board of six trustees, who serve staggered four-year terms, with one member serving a two-year term.

Name derived from: The Rev. Richard Van Valkenburg, a Methodist pastor, named the town after his hometown, Erie, Pa.

Population: About 9,000

Year incorporated: 1874

Elevation: 6,020 feet

Size: about 7 square miles

Did you know … ? A dog named Jake ran for mayor in Erie in the early 1990s. He actually got some votes.

The longest paved runway at Erie's Tri-County Airport extends 4,700 feet.

Erie's town hall is a former school building.

• Candlelight Ridge
• Erie Commons
• Erie Village
• Vista Ridge

• Downtown
• Erie Commons
• Hwy 7

• Erie Community Center

Population: 6,291

Population density: 655.3/sq mi

Median Household Income: $77,114

Avg. household size: 2.89

Age distribution:

• 20.3% are under 10
• 12.1% between 10-19
• 11.7% in their 20s
• 26.1% in their 30s
• 17.7% in their 40s
• 8% in their 50s
• 2.3% in their 60s
• 1.8% are over 70

Median age: 30

Relationship status:

• 71.5% married
• 17.8% single
• 8.3% divorced
• 2.4% widowed

Percent single: 9.8% of population are single males, 8% of population are single females

Homes with children: 45.2% have kids

Home Type:

• 91.6% single-family
• 6.8% condo
• 1.6% other

Owners v. Renters: 89.9% own; 10.1% rent

Avg. single-family home value:

• 1 BD – $171,000
• 2 BD – $271,000
• 3 BD – $295,000
• 4BD – $367,000

Avg. condo value:

• 1 BD – N/A
• 2 BD – $192,000
• 3 BD – $289,000
• 4BD – $431,000

Home size in Sq. Ft.:

• 1,000 or less – 5.5%
• 1,000-1,400 – 12.2%
• 1,400-1,800 – 19.8%
• 2,300-2,800 – 28.8%
• 2,800-3,600 – 27.6%
• more than 3,600 – 6.1%

Median home size: 2,019 sq. ft.

Year built:

• 2000-present – 56.4%
• 1980-1999 – 32.3%
• 1960-1979 – 6.3%
• 1940-1959 – 1.1%
• 1920-1939 – 1.9%
• 1900-1919 – 0.7%
• before 1900 – 1.3%

Avg. year built: 2000

Commute time:

• 4% – 10 min. or less
• 23.6% – 10-20 min.
• 37.2% – 20-30 min.
• 19% – 30-45 min.
• 12.6% – 45-60 min.
• 3.6% – more than 60 min.

Avg. Commute time: 27.88 min.

• July is on average the warmest month, with an average high temperature of 89 degrees.
• January is on average the coldest month, with an average high temperature of 42 degrees, and an average low of 14 degrees.
• May is on average the wettest month, with an average of about 2.4 inches of precipitation.
• The highest temperature on record was 106°F in 1973 .
• The lowest temperature on record was -36°F in 1951.

• Town of Erie
• Erie Economic Development Council
• Erie Chamber of Commerce

More Erie, Colorado Links

Heatherwood is a neighborhood in northern Boulder County. The neighborhood is in the Gunbarrel area, south of Lookout Road and east of 75th Street.

Residents enjoy easy access to eastern Boulder County, Longmont and the Diagonal Highway.

Shopping is available at the Gunbarrel Shopping Center. Students attend Boulder County schools, including a local elementary school, Heatherwood Elementary School.

The neighborhood is almost completely surrounded by open space and has a community park.

• Boulder
• Gunbarrel

• Heatherwood neighborhood homepage
• Boulder County

Formed in 1963 as a 668-home subdivision close to IBM's new plant near 63rd Street and the Diagonal Highway in northern Boulder County, Gunbarrel has grown from a bedroom community into something else — not quite a town but more than a neighborhood. Gunbarrel real estate includes single family homes, apartments and condominiums and a country club community. Its residents have worked to create a cohesive sense of community in the bifurcated and sometimes forgotten part of the county.

Gunbarrel is home to industry such as Micro Motion, defense company Lockheed Martin, a lumber yard and the Celestial Seasons tea company.

Name derived from: Different stories have evolved telling the origin of the name Gunbarrel. Some say the name came from the fact that Volney Tenny traded a gun for a farm he started in the area. Others say mailman Edward Viele named the area, remarking that a road in the area was "as straight as a gunbarrel." Another tale says the community was named for the straightness with which farmer Alonzo Allen plowed his furrows.

Year incorporated: 1963

Elevation: 5,145

Size: 1,470 acres

Did you know … ? Cobra and Shelby American car lovers across the country know Gunbarrel as the home of the Shelby American Collection, a museum dedicated to the rare muscle cars and related memorabilia. The museum, tucked away off Spine Road at 5020 Chaparral Court, is open to the public on Saturdays.

Celestial Seasonings, one of the highest-profile businesses in Gunbarrel, started in a barn on the edge of Boulder. The nationally known tea company was formed in 1969 by Mo Siegel when he and some friends hand-picked herbs and bagged them for tea.

Residents of unincorporated Gunbarrel taxed themselves to buy open space and fire department services from the Boulder Rural Fire Department.

• Heatherwood

The Gunbarrel shopping center includes a King Soopers grocery store, gas station, liquor store, dry cleaners, day care, Burger King, Subway, Quizno's, Dairy Queen, Blackjack Pizza and more

Eaton Park, Red Fox Hills Park, Twin Lakes

Population: 9,435

Population density: 1,471.9/sq mi

Median Household Income: $74,588

Avg. household size: 2.323

Age distribution:

• 12.2% are under 10
• 13.1% between 10-19
• 10.7% in their 20s
• 17.1% in their 30s
• 20.6% in their 40s
• 14.1% in their 50s
• 7.6% in their 60s
• 4.7% are over 70

Median age: 36

Relationship status:

• 58.7% married
• 27.1% single
• 11.4% divorced
• 2.7% widowed

Percent single: 15.2% of population are single males, 11.9% of population are single females

Homes with children: 27.2% have kids

Home Type:

• 65.7% single-family
• 33.2% condo
• 1.2% other

Owners v. Renters: 76.5% own; 23.5% rent

Avg. single-family home value:

• 1 BD – $441,000
• 2 BD – $344,000
• 3 BD – $372,000
• 4BD – $470,000

Avg. condo value:

• 1 BD – $154,000
• 2 BD – $171,000
• 3 BD – $210,000
• 4BD – $386,000

Home size in Sq. Ft.:

• 1,000 or less – 25.3%
• 1,000-1,400 – 12.2%
• 1,400-1,800 – 12.5%
• 2,300-2,800 – 23.3%
• 2,800-3,600 – 21.5%
• more than 3,600 – 5.2%

Median home size: 1,802 sq. ft.

Year built:

• 2000-present – 0.4%
• 1980-1999 – 56.7%
• 1690-1979 – 42.9%

Avg. year built: 1983

Commute time:

• 14.5% – 10 min. or less
• 45% – 10-20 min.
• 21.2 – 20-30 min.
• 7% – 30-45 %
• 5.9% – 45-60 min.
• 6.4% – more than 60 min.

Avg. Commute time: 22.338 min.

• July is on average the warmest month, with an average high temperature of 87 degrees.
• December and January are on average the coldest months, with average high temperatures 46 degrees, and average lows at 21 and 19 degrees, respectively.
• April and May are on average the wettest months, with an average of about three inches of precipitation.
• The highest temperature on record was 104°F in 1954.
• The lowest temperature on record was -24°F in 1990.

In the early 1900s, Superior was a coal mining town with 400 residents, a school, church, livery stable, three saloons, two pool halls, a general store, a barbershop and two boarding houses. But with the closure of the town's lifeblood Industrial Mine in 1945, Superior suffered, shrinking to about 250 residents.

It wasn't until the 1990s that it recovered. Richmond Homes struck a deal with Superior's residents: In exchange for permission to develop 1,570 acres, builders would fund a water-treatment plant to supplant their drying wells. Construction of the Rock Creek neighborhood began in January 1987.

Today, 98 percent of Superior's population lives in Rock Creek. With its residential base largely in place and with Boulder and Boulder County open space limiting options for further residential growth, the town has turned its attention to retail development.

The Superior Marketplace is the town's major retail attraction. Since it opened in 1998, the SuperTarget- and Costco Wholesale-anchored shopping center has been a boon to Superior's coffers, generating millions in additional sales-tax revenue.

With the addition of Wild Oats Markets' flagship store, a Gart Sports and a Chuck-E-Cheese restaurant, the marketplace now boasts 650,000 square feet of retail space. Town leaders hope this will help reduce property taxes.

Within a decade, town leaders hope to create a pedestrian-friendly downtown area located east of McCaslin, across from town hall.

Name derived from: The quality of coal found in the area

Population: 12,000 (town hall estimate)

Year incorporated: 1904

Elevation: 5,510 feet

Size: 7 square miles

Did you know … ? Superior is a town without its own post office — the town has a Louisville postal code. It once had a post office of its own, but it became another Original Town residence at 211 W. William St.

Since 1990, Superior has grown from 250 residents to an estimated 12,000 in 2003. Superior was the fourth-fastest growing town in America during the 1990s.

Superior was settled in 1861 by farmer William C. Hake, originally of Wisconsin. He arrived with two children in a covered wagon and, discovering coal on his property, declared there was "no superior in the state."

The town has its own skateboard park — at the corner of Huron Peak Avenue and Cobalt Way in the Rock Creek neighborhood.

Thousands of people once lived in the mining town of Gold Hill, eager to quench their thirst for gold. The rustic town now has just more than 200 people, many living in log cabins and tin-roofed shacks. In Gold Hill, 12 miles northwest of Boulder, the roads are unpaved — and residents say they like it that way.

Gold was first discovered in Gold Hill in 1859. Miners washed thousands of dollars worth of gold from the stream they named Gold Run. Newspapers at the time claimed that the gold discovered in the first year was valued at more than $100,000. In June 1860, David Horsfal discovered what was named the Horsfal Mine, Gold Hill's most famous and productive early property.

In 1989, 47 buildings — including Gold Hill General Store and Gold Hill Inn — were formed into the Gold Hill Historic District and placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Because of the rural character and minimal changes to many of its original buildings, Gold Hill is considered one of the best intact representations of Boulder County's mining communities.

Boulder County acquired 705 acres of open space around Gold Hill and Ward in March as a result of a three-way land swap involving the U.S. Forest Service and the federal Bureau of Land Management. The county is working with Gold Hill residents to set up new biking and hiking trails there.

Although the town's population has dwindled, people from all over come to Gold Hill for its rural coziness and entertainment.

Name derived from: Gold was found here in 1859.

Population: 210

Year incorporated: Gold Hill has never been incorporated. The area was settled in 1859.

Elevation: 8,296 feet

Size: Less than one-half square mile

Did you know … ? Gold Hill has the oldest mountain school building in continuous use in Boulder County, dating back to 1873. Middle and high school students are bused to Boulder, but 33 elementary students continue to walk to school just as the 30 original students did 130 years ago.

When Gold Hill was first founded, it was Mountain District No. 1, part of the Nebraska Territory.

In 1920, Gold Hill had an indoor roller rink.

• Boulder

• Gold Hill Store and Cafe
• Gold Hill Inn

Lafayette, Colorado, is one of Boulder County's more ethnically diverse communities. The city, which is 16 percent Hispanic or Latino and 3 percent Asian, has a dual immersion bilingual school, Pioneer Bilingual Elementary School. The city also features a homemade tortilla shop and many Mexican and Chinese restaurants along its main street, Public Road, and an Indian grocery story off Baseline Road.

Lafayette, 11 miles east of Boulder, also boasts several shopping centers and industrial and business parks, a recreation center, a public library, a $170 million hospital and the Indian Peaks Golf Course, annually ranked as one of the state's top public courses.

In the 1990s, Lafayette was the state's seventh-fastest-growing community. Its population has grown from 3,000 people nearly two decades ago to more than 23,000 people today. The city is trying to balance its rapid growth with its small-town charm. The Lafayette Historical Society has preserved many historical neighborhoods and buildings, including churches and stagecoach stations.

The city was named after Lafayette Miller, who, with his wife, Mary, bought a 240-acre farm in the area that is now Lafayette. They dug two mine shafts on their property, which produced 1,000 tons of coal a day. When the town was formed in 1890, it was the largest coal-mining center in Boulder County.

Year incorporated: 1889

Elevation: 5,236 feet

Size: 8.2 square miles

Did you know … ? The Lafayette Parks and Recreation Department received the National Gold Medal Award for cities of less than 25,000 residents in 2002. The national award recognizes excellence in park and recreation administration and programs.

You can rent a garden plot at the Wilson Community Garden at West Emma and Miller streets. For more information, call (303) 665-4206.

Lafayette's Outdoor Classroom, which houses plants and animals, is run entirely by volunteers.

The Lewis Home, 108 E. Simpson St., was built in the 1890s for miners. It is now the Lafayette Miners Museum.

Two historic stagecoach stations are in the Lafayette area.

• Hawk Ridge
• Indian Peaks
• Midtown in Old Town

• Old Town

• Indian Peaks Golf Course
• Bob L. Burger Recreation Center
• Waneka Lake Park

Population: 23,884

Population density: 2,577.4/sq mi

Median Household Income: $56,376

Avg. household size: 2.63

Age distribution:

• 16.5% are under 10
• 13.6% between 10-19
• 12.7% in their 20s
• 20.8% in their 30s
• 18.8% in their 40s
• 9.8% in their 50s
• 4.3% in their 60s
• 3.5% are over 70

Median age: 32

Relationship status:

• 59.1% married
• 26.3% single
• 11.5% divorced
• 3.1% widowed

Percent single: 14.7% of population are single males, 11.6% of population are single females

Homes with children: 35.2% have kids

Home Type:

• 99.8% single-family
• 0% condo
• 0.2% other

Owners v. Renters: 76.1% own; 23.9% rent

Avg. single-family home value:

• 1 BD – $234,000
• 2 BD – $221,000
• 3 BD – $262,000
• 4BD – $419,000

Avg. condo value:

• 1 BD – $122,000
• 2 BD – $185,000
• 3 BD – $173,000
• 4BD – $256,000

Home size in Sq. Ft.:

• 1,000 or less – 14.8%
• 1,000-1,400 – 28.9%
• 1,400-1,800 – 18.6%
• 2,300-2,800 – 18.4%
• 2,800-3,600 – 14.6%
• more than 3,600 – 4.5%

Median home size: 1,536 sq. ft.

Year built:

• 2000-present – 11.3%
• 1980-1999 – 55.6%
• 1960-1979 – 25.4%
• 1940-1959 – 2.7%
• 1920-1939 – 1.4%
• 1900-1919 – 3.6%
• before 1900 – 0.1%

Avg. year built: 1984

Commute time:

• 10.7% – 10 min. or less
• 28.5% – 10-20 min.
• 28.9% – 20-30 min.
• 15.6% – 30-45 min.
• 10.6% – 45-60 min.
• 5.6% – more than 60 min.

Avg. Commute time: 26.213 min.

• July is on average the warmest month, with an average high temperature of 88 degrees.
• January is on average the coldest month, with an average high temperature of 44 degrees, and an average low of 16 degrees.
• May is on average the wettest month, with an average of about 2.25 inches of precipitation.
• The highest temperature on record was 108°F in 2005.
• The lowest temperature on record was -24°F in 1990.

• City of Lafayette

Louisville, Colorado, ranked by Money magazine and others as one of the best places in the nation to live, is located at 5,350 feet above sea level and is ideally situated along the Denver-Boulder Turnpike and northwest of the Northwest Parkway.

The former mining town, incorporated 1882 and named for landowner Louis Nawatny, saw its population grew to 3,200 at the height of the 1900-1910 coal-mining boom before dropping off to about 1,200. The town didn’t grow back to 3,200 residents until the 1970s. Louisville began growing rapidly in the 1980s and ‘90s, with its population growing to about 19,000 today.

The downtown area is well into a revival with Main Street boasting a vibrant restaurant scene, offering everything from the Italian cuisine of the Blue Parrot, regional American cuisine at the Empire, self-described “funky country” at the Huckleberry and traditional Irish fare at the Old Louisville Inn. The Steinbaugh Pavilion downtown, home to the Louisville Street Faire, Winter Skate and other events, is named after the Steinbaugh family, whose patriarch John Jacob Steinbaugh set up as a blacksmith in Louisville in 1892. The Steinbaughs ran a hardware store in town until 1997.

Louisville is home to major retailers, such as Home Depot, Lowes, Kohl’s and Sam’s Club, as well as grocers King Soopers, Safeway and Albertsons. Among the most notable major commercial businesses in town is ConocoPhilips, which recently purchased the former Sun and Storage Technology Corp. that it plans to develop into a major research and training center.

Despite its growth and development, Louisville maintains its small town charm through events such as the annual Taste of Louisville, Fourth of July Community Picnic and fireworks, Labor Day Parade and Fall Festival.

• Old Town
• Enclave
• Harper Lake
• Dutch Creek

• McCaslin/US 36 area
• Main Street/Downtown

• Louisville Recreation Center
• Memory Square Pool
• Coal Creek Golf Course

Population: 18,937

Population density: 2,223.6/sq mi

Median Household Income: $69,945

Avg. household size: 2.62

Age distribution:

• 15.4% are under 10
• 15% between 10-19
• 11.2% in their 20s
• 18.1% in their 30s
• 22.7% in their 40s
• 9.6% in their 50s
• 4.3% in their 60s
• 3.8% are over 70

Median age: 33

Relationship status:

• 59.9% married
• 26.6% single
• 9.9% divorced
• 3.6% widowed

Percent single: 14.6% of population are single males, 11.9% of population are single females

Homes with children: 37.4% have kids

Home Type:

• 89% single-family
• 8.6% condo
• 2.4% other

Owners v. Renters: 76.1% own; 23.9% rent

Avg. single-family home value:

• 1 BD – $277,000
• 2 BD – $279,000
• 3 BD – $332,000
• 4BD – $411,000

Avg. condo value:

• 1 BD – $150,000
• 2 BD – $184,000
• 3 BD – $178,000
• 4BD – N/A

Home size in Sq. Ft.:

• 1,000 or less – 13.2%
• 1,000-1,400 – 23.4%
• 1,400-1,800 – 20.8%
• 2,300-2,800 – 25%
• 2,800-3,600 – 14.3%
• more than 3,600 – 3.2%

Median home size: 1,684 sq. ft.

Year built:

• 2000-present – 2.3%
• 1980-1999 – 68.9%
• 1960-1979 – 19.7%
• 1940-1959 – 2.4%
• 1920-1939 – 1.6%
• 1900-1919 – 4.6%
• before 1900 – 0.5%

Avg. year built: 1984

Commute time:

• 12.1% – 10 min. or less
• 36% – 10-20 min.
• 28.1% – 20-30 min.
• 10.9% – 30-45 min.
• 8.9% – 45-60 min.
• 4% – more than 60 min.

Avg. Commute time: 23.598 min.

• July is on average the warmest month, with an average high temperature of 88 degrees.
• January is on average the coldest month, with an average high temperature of 44 degrees, and an average low of 16 degrees.
• May is on average the wettest month, with an average of about 2.25 inches of precipitation.
• The highest temperature on record was 108°F in 2005.
• The lowest temperature on record was -24°F in 1990.

• City of Louisville
• Louisville Chamber of Commerce

Mining was the lifeblood that brought Pinecliffe into being in the 1870s. Later the mountain community, nestled in upper Coal Creek Canyon, was better known as a resort town, where vacationers fished, picnicked and panned for gold in the mid-1900s. Today, Pinecliffe, elevation 7,920 feet, is a haven for secluded mountain living that offers the convenience of having a city nearby. The town, well known to area train enthusiasts as one of the most scenic and photographed stops along the mountain railroad, is just southeast of Nederland and straddles South Boulder Creek.

Pinecliffe has no formal government of its own, so it is governed by the Boulder County commissioners. A post office built in 1909 remains the town's only governmental office.

Emily Griffith, founder of the Opportunity School in Denver, drew attention to the town when she was shot to death at the age of 67 along with her sister Florence in their Pinecliffe cabin. Emily Griffith's vision was to provide education regardless of age, race or income. The case of the death of the teacher and humanitarian was never solved.

Most residences are in Boulder County, but some people go to Gilpin County for voter and vehicle registration. Many Pinecliffe residents commute to jobs in Boulder or other nearby cities. Children are bused to Boulder County schools. The High Country Volunteer Fire Department serves the community.

• Boulder
• Nederland