The local bookstore where I work is located in Denver's Congress Park neighborhood, and it is filled with old Victorians. Many are still divided up into apartments, but many more have been restored, and the neighborhood is now a model of gentrification. In the past, the area had a bit of a seedy reputation, at least the part close to Colfax Avenue, but those days are long gone. People snap up these houses whenever they come on the market, and pay top dollar, although much less than, for example, a Victorian in San Francisco. Which probably explains all the Californians living here now.
Some people still have a negative image of the area, however. When I mention to someone that in the summer I sometimes walk from the store to the Light Rail Train at Union Station, they often ask how safe it is. Perfectly safe unless a gang of yuppies decides to attack you so they can pay their bill at Whole Foods. And by the way, I once stayed in a Victorian house here in Denver overnight. It was cold as hell, and the tub was in the center of the bathroom, surrounded by a circular shower curtain, with a hose you held to wash yourself off. So I say to hell with charm. Give me a condo to live in with all the conveniences any day.
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