Buena Vista, Colorado

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Coordinates: 38°50′20″N 106°7′58″W / 38.83889, -106.13278
Town of Buena Vista, Colorado
Location in Chaffee County and the State of Colorado
Country	United States
State	State of Colorado
County	Chaffee County^[1]
Incorporated	November 8, 1879^[2]
Government
- Type	Statutory Town^[1]
Area
- Total	3.4 sq mi (8.9 km²)
- Land	3.4 sq mi (8.9 km²)
- Water	0 sq mi (0 km²)
Elevation	7,965 ft (2,428 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	2,195
- Density	645.6/sq mi (246.6/km²)
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
- Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP code	81211^[3]
Area code(s)	719
FIPS code	08-10105
GNIS feature ID	0189268
Website: Town of Buena Vista

Buena Vista at the foot of the Collegiate Mountains

The historic Town of Buena Vista is a Statutory Town located in Chaffee County, Colorado, United States.

Buena Vista is located in central Colorado roughly midway between Salida and Leadville in the Upper Arkansas River Valley at an elevation of 7,965 feet (2,428 m). The area between Buena Vista and Salida is often referred to as the "Banana Belt," due to its relatively mild winters. The term "Banana Belt" actually refers to the fact that Buena Vista lies in a wide valley and is a high mountain desert with milder temperatures than nearby communities such as those on the I-70 corridor. The town lies at the base of the 14,000+ peaks of the Collegiate Peaks, Mt. Princeton, Mt. Yale, Mt. Columbia, and Mt. Harvard, of the Sawatch Range. In summer, Buena Vista is a popular access point for world-class whitewater rafting, kayaking, and fly fishing on the Arkansas River, and mountain climbing and backpacking on local 14ers and the Colorado Trail. Sizable elk and deer herds attract hunters in the winter months, and bighorn sheep, mountain goats, and antelope are also indigenous to the area.

Buena Vista incorporated in 1879 and grew as a railroad town serving the local silver, gold, and lead mining industry, with three rail lines including the Denver & Rio Grande, South Park & Pacific, and Colorado Midland railroads. Many of the existing buildings of Buena Vista date back to this era, and were built in the 1880s and 1890s.

In 2005, Outside Magazine named Buena Vista one of "The Best Towns in the U.S." and a "New American Dream Town," due in part to the new South Main development, part of the New Urbanism movement which advocates a mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly development framed by architecture and landscape design that celebrate local history, climate, ecology, and building practice, with a village square surrounded by a retail hub, here incorporating a kayaking water park and riverside park with bike paths and beaches.

Note: The name "Buena Vista," Spanish for "Beautiful View," can often be heard pronounced locally as "Byoona Vista." This Americanized pronunciation was specified by Alsina Dearheimer, who chose this name for the town, which was officially selected over other names (Cottonwood, Mahonville) on the occasion of the town's incorporation. Alternate pronunciations include the more linguistically correct "Bweynah Veesta" and simply "Byoonie." To avoid controversy many residents simply refer to the town as "BV."

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Buena Vista is located at 38°50′20″N, 106°7′58″W (38.838790, -106.132886).^[4]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.4 square miles (8.9 km²), all of it land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[5] of 2000, there were 2,195 people, 978 households, and 622 families residing in the town. The population density was 638.6 people per square mile (246.4/km²). There were 1,124 housing units at an average density of 327.0/sq mi (126.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.81% White, 0.09% African American, 0.64% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.73% from other races, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.74% of the population.

There were 978 households out of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.2% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.3% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.83.

In the town the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $34,800, and the median income for a family was $40,455. Males had a median income of $32,841 versus $25,486 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,920. About 9.4% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.1% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.