Reader: Cities With Lower Rent Than Denver Are F*cking Boring Places to Live

An open letter to angry Colorado natives from a transplant who thinks they sound dumb generated a big response from readers. Some homegrown folks weren't happy with the author's take. But there was plenty of agreement from others who weren't born in Colorado, but who (to quote a popular bumper sticker)...

By Michael Roberts

June 1, 2016

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An open letter to angry Colorado natives from a transplant who thinks they sound dumb generated a big response from readers.

Some homegrown folks weren't happy with the author's take.

But there was plenty of agreement from others who weren't born in Colorado but who (to quote a popular bumpersticker) got here as fast as they could.

The following post is a twist on the latter theme. It suggests that transplants may have changed Denver in ways not everyone likes, but the results have made the city more interesting.

Nate Mulder writes:

I finally figured out why the natives are so pissed. Apparently, y'all had yourselves a quiet cowpoke town until just a couple years ago, when suddenly you began to join the rest of the country with high rent and lots of traffic. Find me a city with the population of Denver that has significantly lower rent, and I'll show you a really fucking boring place to live. While I get that it's a little hard on people, you really need to realize this is the norm most everywhere else and up til now you were the exceptions.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

Contact: Michael Roberts

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