The best parking spots around Memorial Stadium already have been taken – and kickoff for Kansas University’s football season opener is still a day away.

Those spots are claimed, of course, by construction on the new Anderson Family Football Complex and accompanying practice fields. But in order to accommodate the approximately 40,000 fans expected to attend Saturday’s game against Central Michigan, several additional lots have been designated for tailgating. A free shuttle will run between these lots and the stadium, starting at 4 p.m., two hours before the 6 p.m. kickoff.

Associate athletic director Jim Marchiony said tailgating, including cooking and consuming alcoholic beverages, would be allowed in the newly designated lots.

The lots stretch from adjacent to the stadium to Allen Fieldhouse.

The construction has, however, forced the suspension of at least one football-related activity.

The children’s fun zone will be canceled through this year, according to a letter to fans from athletic director Lew Perkins. The fun zone had been set up on one of the team’s two under-construction practice fields.

Also, public toll parking for home football games will no longer be available on Memorial Drive or in the Mississippi Street garage. KU will sell a limited number of parking spaces in the lot between Allen Fieldhouse and the Burge Union, while free parking will be available in the lot between the fieldhouse and the Student Recreation Center.

The construction and new tailgating lots also have led to new plans for traffic.

Four streets – Maine, Alabama, Illinois and Mississippi – after the game will be designated one-way north from the stadium to Ninth Street, until traffic has dissipated. Stretches of West Campus Road, Naismith Drive, Memorial Drive and Sunflower Road will be one-way south, between the stadium and Sunnyside Road.

While tailgating on the hill will be limited, some spots are still available.

“KU Public Safety will establish a boundary line to designate where tailgating is allowed on the hill,” Perkins wrote.

The Lawrence Police Department also will be actively pursuing underage drinkers. The department also reminds fans that allowing underage drinking is a crime and could result in criminal charges.

Though the construction has changed the view from Campanile Hill, it’s still possible to catch part of the game. From the top part of the hill, fans can see most of the field. As fans get closer to the stadium, the field is obscured by tents, dirt and the scoreboard.

The best spot for a free look at the game is the top of the hill along the west sidewalk.