Construction crews tearing into Northfield High School's campus have wiped out dozens of on-campus parking spots, forcing students and parents onto the quiet residential streets that ring the school — and neighbors say the overflow has brought speeding cars, blocked alleys and more than a few close calls.
The parking lot hit hardest by the work used to hold 130 spaces, according to Denver Public Schools spokesperson Scott Pribble, as reported by Denver7. The project has eliminated 61 of those spaces so far, part of the fallout from building a new performing arts auditorium and a Denver Health clinic on the Paul Sandoval Campus, which Northfield shares with DSST: Conservatory Green High School.
With nowhere to park, students and parents have been directed to the surrounding neighborhood. Northfield's own transportation page tells families that the school “is currently unable to offer on-campus student parking” and that no student parking is available on campus from 7:45 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Drivers are instead pointed to Dallas Street west of Central Park Boulevard, or to streets south of the school off 53rd Avenue, according to Northfield High School.
Residents Describe Speeding, Crashes and Unsafe Crossings
For people who live near the campus, the shift has turned once-quiet blocks into a daily traffic headache. Resident Bryan Rosino said drivers now park in front of alleys and fire hydrants and routinely blow through 25 to 30 mile-per-hour streets at 40 to 50 miles per hour, according to the same Denver7 report. Neighbor Brian Sucher said he's watched students cross Central Park Boulevard unsafely during morning drop-off, and that he's witnessed a couple of car accidents along with drivers stopping mid-street to let kids cross.
Sucher put the question to DPS directly, asking what the school plans to do to keep students and the neighborhood safe, the outlet's reporting shows. Residents have also reported more trash being left behind on their streets. Susanna Kantor, a neighborhood delegate and board member of the Central Park Master Community Association — a group that promotes parks and other public spaces — said she'd rather see the district act before something worse happens than scramble afterward, telling the outlet that proactive action beats reactive action.
A Partial Fix Already Opened, With More Possibly on the Way
DPS has already moved to ease some of the pressure. The district recently opened 100 parking spaces on campus that had been set aside for construction crews, splitting them with 80 going to Northfield and 20 to Conservatory Green, Pribble told Denver7. The district also looked at shuttling students from an off-campus lot but determined that option wasn't workable, per the outlet's reporting.
The bigger fix hinges on a deal that hasn't closed yet. City and school district officials are discussing turning Denver Parks and Recreation land just southeast of the campus into a parking lot — initially framed as a temporary solution that could end up permanent. Pribble said the district is confident the arrangement will come together, telling the outlet, “We're going to have another 130 (parking spaces) if that deal gets finalized.”
Enrollment Growth Has Outpaced the Original Plan
Part of what's straining the lot is how much bigger Northfield has gotten. Enrollment rose from 1,238 students in the 2020-21 school year to 2,131 in 2024-25, according to DPS figures cited by Denver7. That growth has already blown past the district's own early projections; a 2016 report from Denverite noted the district expected Northfield to serve 1,200 to 1,500 students over time, with enrollment possibly climbing toward 2,000 by 2030.
Northfield sophomore Addyson Frontczak said the scramble for spots has changed students' routines, noting that people now arrive early just to grab a close spot and skip a long walk. The school's own weekly newsletter has acknowledged the strain, telling families the construction “significantly impacts available campus parking spaces” and urging them to walk, bike or carpool when possible, while budgeting an extra 15 minutes to get to campus, as reported by Northfield High School.
What the Finished Campus Is Supposed to Look Like
Design work on the construction project began last September, with building underway since June, Denver7 reported. DPS expects the project to reach substantial completion in September 2027. Once finished, the lot that once held 130 spaces is expected to expand to 175 — a net gain of 45 spaces compared with before construction began, though that's still a long way off for a campus where normally quiet streets now fill with cars on school days.
The payoff, according to the school's newsletter, includes a 570-seat performing arts auditorium for shows and musicals and an on-campus health center run by Denver Health, both funded by a voter-approved 2024 bond and slated to open in fall 2027. Northfield was also ranked the top high school in Colorado this school year, as noted by Denver Public Schools, according to U.S. News and World Report. Parking crunches tied to school construction aren't unique to Denver — officials in Utah have flagged similar concerns, with West Jordan High School construction reducing available parking and raising traffic and safety questions there as well, according to the City of West Jordan.
