About Salida
The Creative District program is designed to assist Certified Districts in continuing to grow, expand and support the arts and creative industries in their communities, in an effort to create economic sustainability.
Salida, located on the banks of the Arkansas River and with 12 nearby peaks over 14,000 feet in elevation, is known for its skiing, hiking, biking, whitewater rafting, kayaking, fly-fishing, camping, horseback riding, tennis and golf. The area was originally settled by the Ute Indians who favored the area’s natural hot springs. The City of Salida was founded by the Denver & Rio Grande railroads in 1880. The usual mix of industries: mining, quarrying, smelting, agriculture and retail trade—along with the usual “related” saloons, gambling and prostitution—existed at various times and magnitudes.
Home to a lively historic downtown, Salida celebrates its wonderful examples of turn-of-the-last-century commercial structures. In 2012, Colorado’s Governor John Hickenlooper designated Salida as a “Certified Creative District” for its dozens of artist-owned studios and galleries, entrepreneurs, restaurants, unique shops, breweries and distilleries. Being an “unpretentious, bike friendly town” led to Salida’s designation as a “Top 10 2009 Best Small Towns” in Outside Magazine. The New York Times featured Salida as a “haven,” describing it as “the outdoor life, with no attitude.”