March 25, 2026

Finding Home at “the Fringe”: Josh Romero’s Looking Glass Story

Some people spend years searching for the right place to land. Josh Romero took a different path — he followed good people, trusted his instincts, and ended up exactly where he was supposed to be.

Josh grew up in rural Wyoming, bounced around the Denver metro for a while, and eventually landed at Looking Glass in Parker — one of the first residents to move in while builders were still framing homes around him. “We were one of the first folks to move into this particular neighborhood,” he says. The pull wasn’t a floor plan or a price point. It was family — specifically, his close friend Brian, who has deep roots in the Parker area. Over time, Josh had woven himself into that circle, and when it came time to put down roots of his own, Parker made sense.

A Town That Feels Like Home

For someone from Wyoming, “quiet” is not a small ask. Josh will tell you Denver has its appeal, but it’s not where he wants to spend his evenings. Parker hits differently. “It feels a little more like home to me,” he says. “I spent plenty of time in the city and decided to get to a place that’s a little more quiet again.”

That said, quiet doesn’t mean boring. Josh has quickly become a regular on the Parker scene — hitting local restaurants, catching events like Parker Days, and exploring everything this fast-growing town keeps adding. He hasn’t made it to the PACE Center yet, but it’s on the list. So is the diner tucked next to the Parker hotel, (which comes highly recommended for breakfast burritos, for what it’s worth).

Trails, Birds, and a Camera That Goes EverywhereJosh

Ask Josh what he does for fun, and the answer comes easy: he goes outside, and he brings his camera.

By day, Josh works in IT support — left-brain stuff, as he puts it. But photography has been a constant companion since his 4-H days, growing quietly alongside a life that has always leaned toward the outdoors. Hiking, walking, trail running — it all just made sense to keep a camera along for the ride. “Every time I’m thinking about going somewhere,” he says, “I’m thinking about what I should bring to take some good photos.”

Parker, it turns out, is a photographer’s playground. The trails threading through the area connect to the Cherry Creek Trail, with easy access to places like Castlewood Canyon State Park just down the road. Josh has found his people here too — meetup groups for trail running, hiking, and even birdwatching. “There’s plenty of places to go, plenty of meetups to meet people,” he says. For someone returning to open spaces after years in the city, it’s been a genuinely good homecoming.

New Place, Fresh Perspective

Something Josh said that stuck: when you grow up in the middle of nowhere, you eventually need a change. But when you come back to wide open spaces later in life, you see them differently. “You can appreciate it a lot more once you come back,” he reflects.

Looking Glass gave him that — the fringe, as he calls it. Close enough to everything, far enough to breathe. A brand-new community where he arrived early, watched the neighborhood fill in around him, and claimed a particular kind of ownership you can’t manufacture. You either get there first, or you don’t.

Be One of the First

Looking Glass is a master-planned community in Parker offering new homes starting in the $600s by Dream Finders Homes and Richmond American single-family and paired homes starting in the $500s. The parks, pickleball courts, a dog park, and pool, plus trail access connecting to some of Colorado’s best outdoor spaces, it’s a place built for people who want to actually live in their neighborhood. Sound like your kind of place? Explore available homes and join the interest list today.