Most mornings, you'll find neighbors out walking their dogs on the old golf course paths. The course closed years ago, the land sat behind a fence for most of that time, and today it's just open — dog walkers, runners, neighbors cutting through on their way somewhere else. It's still bare bones. But it's theirs to walk on, and that's new.
If you live near the old Park Hill Golf Course, or you're thinking about buying in North or Northeast Park Hill, this matters more than it might seem. The park's future just got a lot more certain, and that changes what this land means for the neighborhood around it.
Last November, Denver voters approved the Vibrant Denver bond package, and with it, $70 million dedicated to building out Park Hill Park — the first phase of construction on the 155 acres that used to be the golf course. It's the largest single item in the parks portion of the bond, and once complete, this will be Denver's fourth-largest park. The land opened to the public informally last fall, but this funding is what turns "open field with paths" into an actual, designed park.
The design itself is still being worked out. City planners held an open house at Smith Elementary earlier this year to walk neighbors through a near-final framework for the space — before that, staff had spent months collecting close to 6,000 public comments on what people want here. Ideas on the table include event spaces, a playground, a pool, and art honoring the history of North Park Hill's Black community. Some of the finer details, like how many basketball or tennis courts to include, are still being worked out. But the shape of the park is largely set, and on-site construction is expected to start within the next two years.
For homeowners near the site, this is worth watching closely. A large, well-funded regional park tends to raise interest in the surrounding blocks — new buyers, new foot traffic, sometimes new businesses filling in nearby. That's mostly good news if you own here already. It's also something city planners are aware can push rents and prices up fast enough to squeeze out longtime residents, which is part of why officials have talked about property tax relief and land trust options for the immediate area. If you're a longtime owner near the park, it's worth knowing those conversations are happening, even if the details aren't finalized.
If you're house hunting in Park Hill right now, the park is a real reason to look closely at homes near the site. Proximity to a 155-acre park with $70 million behind it is the kind of thing that tends to matter more in five years than it does today.
If any of this has you thinking about buying near the park, or wondering what it might mean for your home's value if you already live close by, I'm happy to pull the numbers and walk through it with you. Let's connect!
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