Woodland Park Colorado is one of the most unique communities within the State of Colorado. Geographically, it is located at the base of the North Slope of Pikes Peak. Pikes Peak is “ America’s Mountain,” and was made famous during the gold rush days of Cripple Creek. Woodland Park is 18 scenic miles west of downtown Colorado Springs, a metro plex of over 600,000 people. Highway 24 is a four-lane highway that leads west from the “Springs” to Woodland Park and beyond. This highway is separated by Fountain Creek most of the way to Woodland Park as you drive through a beautiful canyon that rises up to the valley that Woodland Park sits in. This over 2,000-foot rise in elevation from Colorado Springs to Woodland Park is the reason Woodland Park is called “The City Above The Clouds.” From late October through April, it is common to have periods of heavy cloud cover, if not rain or snow in Colorado Springs, while Woodland Park enjoys full sunshine because of the elevation difference. From many vantage points in the community, one can look east “Down The Pass,” toward the “Springs” and see for miles above the silver and white clouds. Woodland Park has mountains that surround its natural setting, with the predominant mountain being Pikes Peak.

Woodland Park is a master planned community that is completely surrounded by the 1.1 million acre Pike National Forest. Due to this physical limitation as well as the finite resource of water, this community of 7700 people can only grow to a maximum of 11,500 residents at build-out. Historically, Woodland Park was a stop on the line of the Midland Railroad and served the mining districts of Cripple Creek and Victor with the thousands of timbers needed to build the mining industry. More recently, the community has evolved into a stand-alone city that preserved its mountain charm enjoys all of the small town values one would expect, has direct access to metropolitan America only 20 minutes away.

The neighborhoods of Woodland Park are unique in the fact that there has never been large-scale residential construction in the history of the community. Homes here are built one at a time, and the end result is esthetically pleasing neighborhoods of homes that are all different from one another. Lot sizes in the City limits range from 1/3 acre to over 2 acres, and are all served by water, sewer, gas, cable, police, and fire protection. There are no neighborhoods within the city limits that one can’t walk or ride their bike to access into the National Forest. Fish, hike, golf, horseback, snowshoe, rock climb, mountain bike, four wheel, gamble, the list goes on and on. They are all within minutes of your front door here.

Woodland Park is currently experiencing substantial investment in community projects like the recently completed regional library, the recently completed dinosaur museum, the new Wal-Mart, the full-service hospital that is poised to open, the upcoming recreation center, the state-of-the-art equestrian center and saddle club that will begin in late 2007, and the multi-million-dollar Woodland Station village being built in the downtown centered around an international theatre for the arts. All of these projects are well past concept phase and with the financial help of the recently formed Downtown Development Authority, they will be opening for business starting in late 2007. The access to the Colorado Springs airport, which is only 30 minutes from Woodland Park, has been identified as one of the primary reasons for people to invest in these types of projects, as well as the recent increase in business professionals choosing the live here while doing business all over the world.

Is it the weather, the beauty of seeing Pikes Peak every day, the recreation, or the lifestyle? Maybe it is the sense of place the Ute Indians that inhabited the region for centuries describe. One thing is for sure: it is not the same for anyone that lives here.

Welcome Home!