Applewood

Applewood is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Jefferson County, about 10 miles west of downtown Denver. It has no city government of its own: the county runs it, and the mail goes through the Golden post office under ZIP 80401. Fairmount sits to the north, Wheat Ridge to the northeast, Lakewood to the southeast and West Pleasant View to the southwest, with South Table Mountain on the west.

Orchards along the old Middle Golden Road

West 32nd Avenue started out as a territorial road between Golden and Denver, called Middle Golden Road, and farms and orchards lined it all the way north to Clear Creek. A few of those farmhouses still stand along 32nd. Very little got built here until after World War II, when subdivisions were platted between 32nd Avenue and the base of South Table Mountain, Applewood among them. The census first drew Applewood as a place for 1970, and it got smaller in 2000 when part of it became West Pleasant View.

Ranch houses on a Golden address

After 1950, subdivisions of ranch-style houses went up fast here, and that's still the main house type you'll tour. Schools and parks sit in between the residential streets. Keep in mind that a Golden mailing address doesn't put a house inside the City of Golden. Jefferson County handles planning and zoning here, so the county's Central Plains Area Plan is the document to read if you're wondering what could get built next door.

South Table Mountain behind the houses

South Table Mountain tops out at 6,338 feet, and its flat top is two lava flows roughly 62 to 64 million years old. Most of the mesa is Jefferson County Open Space, about 1,484 acres of it managed by the county, with a growing network of signed trails. The Lava Loop closes seasonally to protect nesting raptors. Castle Rock, the butte at the northwest end, is on private land and off-limits. The mesa came close to looking very different. In 1957, developers proposed a theme park called Magic Mountain at the mesa's northeast corner. Neighbors protested and it got built elsewhere.

Two golf courses and the park district

Applewood Golf Course dates to around 1960 and covers about 146 acres with views of the Table Mountains. Molson Coors owned it, and a developer planned 454 homes on the land until neighbors opposed the rezoning. The Prospect Recreation and Park District bought the course in late 2016 for $13.5 million, partly with a tax local voters approved. Rolling Hills Country Club has its own course in Applewood too.

The same district runs Applewood Park and the newer Applewood Trail. Part of its property tax levy, 2.6 of its 6.6 mills, pays the bonds from the golf course purchase. When you look at a house here, check the tax bill for the district line so the number doesn't surprise you.

Down 38th Avenue in Wheat Ridge

Applewood's own streets are nearly all houses. For food and a drink, people head a short drive north and east to West 38th Avenue in Wheat Ridge. Vinnola's Italian Market, at 7750 W. 38th, is a deli, bakery and market known for its Italian sausage sandwich. Clancy's Irish Pub, at 7000 W. 38th, is billed as Colorado's oldest operating Irish pub and throws a St. Patrick's Day festival on the avenue. Rolling Smoke BBQ, at 7100 W. 38th, smokes brisket and ribs and books live music. For breakfast, Mr. Biscuits Bakery at 7176 W. 38th is a family-run take-out shop for scratch biscuits and cinnamon rolls, and GetRight's at 6985 W. 38th bakes natural-yeast bread and pastries and sells pizza by the slice.

I-70, 32nd Avenue and the W Line

I-70 is close, with interchanges at 32nd Avenue and Youngfield Street and at US 6. West 32nd Avenue still connects you west into Golden, and the county wants its multi-use trail extended that way. For the train, RTD's W Line light rail starts at the Jefferson County Government Center-Golden station, which has parking, and runs 12.1 miles to Union Station. It opened in April 2013. Without a station inside Applewood, plan on driving to a park-and-ride if you commute by rail.