In the Hood? On the Hill? PART II: 2-4

Western Edge:

9^th Street is the western soft edge of The Hill. While driving west on College Avenue towards 9^th Street, there were many run-down looking houses, all so close to each other. Not-so-luxurious cars were parked along the streets, packed bumper-to-bumper. The idea of space on The Hill seemed very limited in the sense that there were barely any backyards, front yards, or space for parking, and all the buildings seemed to be arm’s length apart. But past 9^th Street, things seemed different. The houses, for one, looked more suitable for families and not college students. The houses appeared to be fully loaded, armed with basketball hoops, pretty flowers, clean doormats, patio furniture, and spacious driveways. The streets seemed more lit on the eastern side of 9^th Street. This may be because there are more people who occupy that side of the street.

9th Street and College Avenue

A Densely Packed Street with Cars

9^th Street is a soft edge for several reasons. Even though there was a clear divide on College Avenue, when headed down south on 9^th Street, the houses along the western side of 9^th Street were obviously occupied by college students. The houses looked more presentable and cleaner but it was obvious college students lived there. When you went a little more west on 9^th street, the houses gradually became more luxurious, and it was obvious college kids were not living there. The Columbia Cemetery at 9^th Street also served as a soft edge. There was some debate over whether the cemetery would be a hard or soft edge but ultimately, we decided it to be a soft edge because it was only a couple blocks long; to the north and south of the cemetery, it seemed like characteristics of The Hill were still very visible. The changes of scenery from the eastern side of 9th Street to the western side were very subtle. There was a moment in time when you had to think to yourself, “Wait, are we still on The Hill?”

Residential Home at 7th Street and College Avenue

Residential Home at 6th Street and College Avenue

At a certain point while driving west on College Ave, after 9^th street, we hit a “No Outlet” sign and that was a clear sign that we hit a hard edge. The sign was dividing “The Hill,” even though it wasn’t really The Hill in the sense of the occupants surrounding the area, from the Flat Irons.

Columbia Cemetery

Jay Street and College Avenue

Southern Edge:

From the quintessential Hill house on 12^th Street and College Avenue, the group headed south on 12^th street. Like College Avenue, many things were very similar: the streets were heavily packed with parked cars and there seemed to be no space between buildings, but the presence of sororities fraternizes, and apartments were overwhelming. Slowly but surely, houses became more prominent on 12^th street once we hit Euclid Avenue. East of 12^th Street, on Euclid Avenue, there was a cute little museum and the Beach Park. Families, as well as students, visit this park often probably because of the lack of yards. After driving a couple more blocks, we realized there were nicer houses that families could occupy, but there was still a nice mix of college houses. Then it happened, we hit Baseline Road. 

Beach Park at 12th and Euclid Avenue

There was a drastic difference between the north side of Baseline and the south side of Baseline, whether you were on 9^th, 12^th or 15^th Street. The houses on the south end of Baseline were clearly worth at least a million dollars that occupied only families. Every house had a driveway with a car that showed the family had money, and each house seemed to be gated off from the rest of the world. One house in particular had a black metal gate that fenced off the whole house from everyone, and it looked magically. There wasn’t a house on The Hill where we thought, “Oh my god, can we live here? I want this to be our house, this is my dream house”. On the northern side of Baseline, there were some nice houses but also there were houses that were clearly occupied by college students. The paint was chipping off the doors, CU Boulder Flags were hung, and it literally looked like some of the houses were on the verge of falling apart. This hard edge was very obvious because of the clear divide between who lived where. The southern end of Baseline Road occupied wealthy families, who lived in the Chautauqua district, where as the northern end of Baseline had college students, with not-so-nice houses and driveways. There was it was apparent that south of Baseline, street park was non-existent.

Apartments on 12th Street

Mercedes G-Series south of Baseline Road

Even though The Hill becomes lower Chautauqua, then Chautauqua, the crossing into lower Chautauqua is hard to see because of the intermixing of families with actual residential housing and college students who are renting run down houses. The presence of fewer cars on the side of the streets was also another indication of entering into lower Chautauqua and the more expensive cars but then occasionally you would see a car that looked like it had been produced in the 50s.

Fewer Cars Present

Houses right next to each other: D House and Residential Home

In terms of The Hill, the different types of people occupying the housing and the actual housing itself are a clear indication of an edge. The clear divide between the millionaire dollar houses, and the run-down houses was an example of a hard edge. The subtle and gradual changes that occurred between the mixing of nice houses and run down houses are an example of a soft edge.

Beautiful Gated House south of Baseline Road

Landmark:

Lynch loosely defines that a landmark is an element within a city that is used as a point reference. He says that occupants of the city only observer and do not normally pass through these landmarks.

The Fox Theater on 13^th Street has been around since 1926, so anyone that has lived in Boulder knows where The Fox Theater is even if they have not physically been inside the theater. Stores around The Fox Theater have been replaced by different stores over time, but The Fox has stayed constant. Many Hill residents use The Fox as a reference point for directions to other destinations. The sign in front says “Fox” in black letters against a white headboard, very clearly visible for the public to see. 

The Fox Theater

The Hill on Wikipedia with The Fox Theater picture for main representation of The Hill