University Hills
Denver, CO

Southeast Denver’s Best-Kept Secret — Mid-Century Charm With a Modern Pulse

University Hills is a triangular neighborhood in southeast Denver that was built in the post-World War II housing expansion and has spent the seven decades since quietly becoming one of the most livable addresses in the city. Bounded roughly by I-25 to the north and west, South Colorado Boulevard to the east, and the Denver/Englewood border to the south, the neighborhood was originally developed as affordable GI housing surrounding the University Hills Shopping Center, which opened in 1955 as one of Denver’s first open-air retail destinations. That shopping center, now University Hills Plaza, still anchors the Colorado Boulevard corridor and remains the commercial heartbeat of the neighborhood.

The housing stock is primarily 1950s and 1960s ranch homes and bungalows on large, well-landscaped lots with mature trees and wide streets. Many homes have been updated and renovated over time, preserving the mid-century character while modernizing the interiors. On the east side of the neighborhood, the scrape-and-rebuild trend has accelerated in recent years, with aging ranches being replaced by larger contemporary builds that are pushing the price ceiling well above $1 million. That dynamic creates a genuine range within the neighborhood: original mid-century homes in the mid $500s to high $600s alongside new construction exceeding $1.2 million on the same blocks.

5280 Magazine named University Hills one of Denver’s Best Neighborhoods in 2024, citing its charming ranch homes, easy access to I-25, the Colorado Center entertainment complex, Eisenhower Park, and a home-price surge of 10 percent year over year. Median prices in the neighborhood were approximately $765,000 at the time of that recognition. For buyers who want a genuine southeast Denver neighborhood address with character, transit access, and a price point that still leaves room for the rest of life, University Hills is consistently one of the first places worth looking.

Light Rail to Downtown, I-25 at the Corner, and the DTC 10 Minutes South

University Hills’ transit position is one of its most underappreciated advantages. Colorado Station, the RTD light rail stop at I-25 and South Colorado Boulevard, sits at the neighborhood’s northern edge and connects residents to both Union Station in downtown Denver and the Denver Tech Center to the south. For residents who commute to the DTC or downtown, the train genuinely changes the daily math on car usage. By car, downtown Denver is approximately 15 minutes north on I-25 and the Tech Center is roughly 10 minutes south.

The Colorado Boulevard commercial corridor runs along the neighborhood’s eastern boundary and concentrates most of University Hills’ daily retail and dining within a short drive or bike ride. Colorado Center at Colorado Boulevard and I-25 anchors the northern edge with the Regal UA Colorado Center and IMAX theater, Dave & Buster’s, Junction Food & Drink food hall, and additional retail. The University of Denver campus is roughly 3 miles north. Wellshire Golf Course, a public Denver city course, sits directly across Colorado Boulevard in the neighboring Wellshire neighborhood. The High Line Canal Trail connects University Hills to Wellshire and points south through a shaded, tree-lined corridor that functions as the neighborhood’s primary recreational trail.

Eisenhower Park, the High Line Canal, and a Golf Course Across the Street

• Mamie D. Eisenhower Park (rec center, pool, playground)
• Outdoor swimming pool at Eisenhower Rec Center (seasonal)
• Tennis courts at Eisenhower Park
• Soccer and softball fields
• Football field
• Horseshoe pits
• Flower gardens
• Magna Carta Park (soccer fields)
• High Line Canal Trail (runs through the neighborhood)
• Wellshire Golf Course (public — across Colorado Blvd)
• Schlessman Family YMCA (across Colorado Blvd)
• Colorado Station light rail (RTD — north edge)
• Regal UA Colorado Center & IMAX
• University of Denver campus (~3 miles north)

Mamie D. Eisenhower Park is the neighborhood’s central outdoor asset and the reason many University Hills residents chose the neighborhood in the first place. The park includes a recreation center with programming for all ages, a seasonal outdoor pool, tennis courts, soccer and softball fields, a football field, horseshoe pits, a playground, and flower gardens that are maintained well enough to be a genuine neighborhood amenity rather than a decorative afterthought. The High Line Canal Trail enters University Hills from the south and connects through to Wellshire and beyond, providing a shaded, tree-canopied walking and cycling corridor that most residents incorporate into their daily routine. Wellshire Golf Course, one of Denver’s most popular public courses, sits directly across Colorado Boulevard and is accessible from University Hills in under five minutes.

Education in University Hills

University Hills is served by Denver Public Schools. The neighborhood’s standout school is Bradley International School, a National Blue Ribbon School with an IB (International Baccalaureate) program serving kindergarten through 5th grade. Bradley’s IB designation, after-school enrichment programs, and academic recognition make it one of the primary reasons families choose University Hills over comparable southeast Denver neighborhoods. Hamilton Middle School and Thomas Jefferson High School complete the public pipeline. Denver Academy, a respected private school serving grades 2 through 12 with a distinctive partnership model, is also located within the neighborhood.

University Hills is served by Denver Public Schools, an open-choice district. School assignments are not determined solely by address. Always verify current attendance boundaries and school choice options directly with DPS before purchasing.

Where University Hills Residents Eat

University Hills’ dining identity is built along the South Colorado Boulevard corridor, where a genuinely diverse mix of independently owned restaurants has concentrated in the blocks between I-25 and the southern neighborhood boundary. 5280 Magazine specifically called out the corridor’s range, from Salvadoran to Iraqi to Mediterranean to Sicilian. The Junction Food & Drink food hall at Colorado Center adds 10 chef-driven vendors under one roof at the neighborhood’s northern edge. Poppies, the neighborhood’s piano lounge and prime rib institution, has been the default gathering place for University Hills residents longer than most of them have lived here.

Life in University Hills

University Hills residents describe their neighborhood with a consistency that reflects decades of accumulated livability: the morning walk on the High Line Canal under the cottonwood canopy, the summer afternoons at Eisenhower Pool, the light rail ride downtown that makes the car irrelevant, the ranch house on a big lot with a mature tree that cost what a condo costs in Cherry Creek. The neighborhood’s combination of mid-century character, transit access, recreational infrastructure, and a genuine dining corridor along Colorado Boulevard is not something that was designed by a marketing team. It was built by 70 years of people choosing to stay.