The Kip-Dell parking lot used to be the pinnacle of coolness for Broughton drivers. This year, a high fence enclosed the 60-plus spaces, ending the parking option.

  Kip-Dell parkers were proud of the lot; it was a family tradition to pass down the spots.  

  Roy McMillan, 2015 graduate, and his older siblings rented one spot over a span of 10 years.

  “We had spot #3 for 10 years…effectively making the McMillan fam Broughton legends,” said McMillan

  The sudden closure of the lot brought on many rumors.

  Some of these included it was being turned into a parking lot for the apartments along the strip, it was going to be sold to Wake County to have space for two more Broughton pods, and the most exciting, it was going to be turned into a Cook-Out.

  None of these are true.

  Instead, Kip-Dell Homes, the real estate firm that has owned the lot since 1977, said it is no longer financially feasible to operate the lot.

  Kip-Dell Homes originally used the lot as additional parking for the Raleigh Apartments.   It began when a nephew of Kip Young, the current owner, was a Broughton student and thought the lot could be used for student parking. The next year, it was a student parking lot and that nephew was granted a free spots for the rest of his Broughton years as a thank you for such a great idea.

  Kip-Dell Homes started selling off all of their rental lots, with the only exception being Broughton. In 1998 the firm turned to third-party management and focused of multi-family community living. This change made keeping the Broughton lot a hassle.

  “Having sold our other lots and detached homes, it was not feasible for a management company to take over the management of this single remaining lot.  We did not sell the Broughton lot because it is an integral part of our overall investment in the apartments that share that site.  This led us to the situation you have observed.  We have property we want to keep, but it is no longer practical to operate it as a parking lot,” Young said. Young is the current owner of Kip-Dell Homes.

  When asked about the high fence that now surrounds the lot, Young said, “Good fences make good neighbors.”

  Kip-Dell homes has no plans to reopen this lot for student parking and Young said that he is not at the liberty to disclose any future plans at this time.