Greenwood Village

Greenwood Village is its own city in Arapahoe County, immediately south of Denver. Cherry Hills Village and Denver sit to the north, Littleton and Englewood to the west, and Centennial to the south and east. The residential areas run from about Clarkson Street on the west to Havana and Peoria Streets on the east, and on the west side Belleview Avenue is the north edge. I-25 cuts through the middle, and which side of it you're on changes almost everything about the house you'll buy.

Orchards, a ranch and a 74 to 64 vote

By the early 1900s this was orchard country: cherry, apple, apricot, plum and pear. The Greenwood Ranch, run by Cyrus G. Richardson, gave the place its name.

In 1950, with Denver's growth creeping south, neighbors proposed a town of their own. Incorporation passed on September 8, 1950, by a vote of 74 to 64. The Denver Technological Center set off fast growth in the 1970s, and when the 1974 Poundstone Amendment froze Denver's boundaries, Greenwood Village annexed land along I-25 instead.

West of I-25: big lots, gravel lanes and horse pastures

Between University and Colorado Boulevards, from Belleview down to Orchard Road, houses average one per 2.5 acres. The roads are mostly gravel, and the land is horse pastures and big trees. Some properties there aren't on municipal water or sewer and run on wells and private septic. If you're looking at acreage on this side, ask early whether the house has a well and septic, since that changes what you'll be maintaining.

Farther west, toward Clarkson, lots average about an acre on paved streets with drainage ditches. The Preserve, between Colorado Boulevard and Holly Street, is a master planned neighborhood platted from 1990 to 2000, with curbs, winding streets and roughly an acre per house. Greenwood Hills, from Holly east to Quebec, has lots from just under an acre up to 2.5, with grass ditches and wetlands.

East of I-25: tighter lots and townhomes

The east side was annexed in pieces starting in 1975, and it's denser. East of Yosemite Street and north of Berry Avenue, the Cherry Creek area averages three to five houses an acre, with bigger lots to the south and smaller ones to the north, next to Cherry Creek State Park. Sundance and Orchard Hills mix single-family streets with multi-family buildings around drainage ways and parks. Cottonwood Grove is a small pocket of townhomes and houses at eight to 12 per acre on narrow roads. Parts of Sundance and Orchard Hills sit inside metro districts, so read the tax bill along with any HOA paperwork.

The High Line Canal and horse country

The High Line Canal Trail runs 5.47 miles through the west side. The 59-acre Marjorie Perry Nature Preserve sits along it south of Belleview, set aside as wildlife habitat. For riders, the city has Rollin D. Barnard Equestrian Park on East Orchard Road, Alexander Lane Equestrian Park, a trail reached from the Orchard Road trailhead, and horse crossings over Little Dry Creek and Greenwood Gulch. Westlands Park on South Quebec and Silo Park on East Orchard have playgrounds and reservable pavilions.

The Tech Center, Fiddler's Green and dinner on Holly

Part of the Denver Tech Center falls inside the city, along with the Greenwood Plaza offices. Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre, the big outdoor concert venue next to the Arapahoe at Village Center station, has been hosting shows since 1988. Over on South Holly Street, Venice Ristorante has been serving Italian food since 2002, with a wine cellar of more than 3,000 bottles. The cappellacci di zucca, a pumpkin-filled pasta, is the one to order.

Getting to Denver

I-25 runs north to downtown, and I-225 meets it at the Tech Center. Two light rail stations serve the city, both opened in 2006: Arapahoe at Village Center, by Fiddler's Green, and Orchard. Both are on the E Line, which runs north to Union Station. Arapahoe at Village Center keeps its parking across I-25, reached by a pedestrian bridge. Orchard has only 48 spaces, so plan on a drop-off there.