Development Focus Areas

This industrial corridor running along I-70 contains 40 million square feet of product with more under construction. It’s a hub for e-commerce, cold storage, logistics, and light manufacturing with highway and rail access plus close proximity to Denver International Airport. Companies like Amazon, Shamrock, Home Depot, Kroger, Wayfair, Hibbert, GM, UPS, Subaru, Safilo, Medline, and Whirlpool have footprints in this focus area.

This area includes a world-renowned bioscience and healthcare campus: Anschutz Medical Campus and Fitzsimons Innovation Community, which represents a $7 billion annual economic impact and about 30,000 employees. It comprises three hospitals, a medical university, a cancer center, and an innovation hub. An additional facility to the south is the state’s only cardiac center along a light rail line with clinical services.

This area includes Buckley Space Force Base, Centretech, and Gateway Park. The industry is anchored by the military operations and supported by defense contractors. Small and mid-size businesses providing additional technology-, space-, and cyber-related systems are located here as well, making up a quarter of the state’s cluster. Companies like Raytheon Technologies and Northrup Grumman call this area home.

This nearly 10-mile transit corridor runs along I-225 and RTD’s R Line light rail with 11 light rail stations and major bus routes connecting to the Metro area. Transit-oriented development (TOD) opportunities and momentum characterize the corridor with retail, residential, and commercial development. It provides access to the metro area’s amenities and employment centers. There are 100 acres of available infill sites.

E-470 is a major catalyst around the Metro area which created direct access to heavily-populated suburban communities, regional malls and amenities, Denver International Airport, and spurred commercial development. There are thousands of acres of master-planned sites primed for business parks, advanced manufacturers, data centers, corporate campuses, and entertainment facilities in this focus area.

E-470 runs as an outer ring around the Metro area with direct access to heavily populated suburban communities, the Southlands, and Denver International Airport. More than 2,000 acres of developable land are primed for business parks, data centers, corporate campuses, and entertainment facilities in this focus area.

East 64th Avenue is a key arterial road and offers the most direct access from Denver International Airport to the Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center. Named the “Golden Mile” because of its immense development opportunity and momentum, we expect industrial employment centers, master-planned residential, and future commercial development here.

This area is anchored by the Colorado Air and Space Port, one of only 11 spaceports in the United States. It will be the future hub for commercial space transportation and research and development related to the industry. Several companies are already located here and are working on testing. There is significant available space for other payload delivery companies. This is adjacent to heavy rail and a major industrial park.

JAG Logistics Center @ DEN and AEROS Logistics Center

JAGreen Development, based in Aurora, is developing two projects with unique capabilities and features to accommodate a variety of industrial users. JAG Logistics Center @ DEN has nearly 700,000 sq. ft. of warehouse and mezzanine built with another 2,000,000 sq. ft. planned. AEROS Logistics Center is a 157-acre site that’s fully entitled and ready to go for a large data center or could be customized as a campus for a variety of companies on smaller lots. Both properties have strategic advantages and are located in the path of growth in Aurora.

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Aurora’s Economic Incentive Zones

Enterprise Zones (EZs) are areas designated by the state to promote a business-friendly environment and encourage investment and job creation. Aurora sits within the Adams County EZ bordering Denver International Airport to the north and Colfax Ave. to the south.

Enterprise Zone Benefits
Companies located within an EZ may be able to take advantage of state income tax credits for investments, job creation, employee benefits and training, research and development, certain contributions to enterprise zone activities, and more. In certain cases, the City of Aurora may package incentives equivalent to or greater than those in an EZ for sites outside the zone boundaries.

Foreign Trade Zones (FTZs) The Foreign-Trade Zone program expedites and encourages foreign commerce by lowering the costs of U.S.-based operations engaged in international trade thus providing a secure, efficient, and profitable way to compete effectively in domestic and global markets. Foreign Trade Zones were established to help businesses offset tariffs on foreign manufacturing materials with the opportunity to minimize, defer, or eliminate Customs Tariffs and fees along with potential cash flow improvements. The City of Aurora, Adams County, and Arapahoe County are located in FTZ 123, with neighboring DEN serving as the designated port. The zone is currently being reorganized to operate under the Alternative Site Framework model, creating more flexibility for local companies to take advantage of it.

Foreign Trade Zone Benefits
FTZs provide special customs procedures to companies engaged in international trade activity. Items that are processed and re-exported get duty-free treatment and duty payment is deferred until they leave the FTZ for sale in the United States. This helps offset customs advantages available to overseas producers who compete with domestic companies. Companies in an FTZ may have certain tariffs on imported parts, supplies, and exported products deferred, reduced, or eliminated.

Opportunity Zones (OZs) are census tracts designated by the federal government to spur investment and development. The program is effectively a tax incentive for reinvested capital gains by deferring and forgiving tax on incremental capital gains. Aurora has five census tracts designated as OZs split between Adams and Arapahoe Counties. The largest OZ is strategically located next to Denver International Airport.

Opportunity Zone Benefits
Tax benefits range from deferring capital gains taxes from untapped assets to eliminating the gains on any subsequent appreciation made possible by this investment of capital.

City & County Development Resources

City of Aurora Development Center City of Aurora Permit Fee Calculator City of Aurora Development Handbook Adams County Development Services Arapahoe County Planning and Development

Development Opportunities and Information

Business Parks & Buildings

Infrastructure and Utilities

Land and Maps

Development Services

Aurora Has So Much to Offer

Living and working in Aurora and the surrounding region has much to offer private citizens and business owners. Learn about our thriving culture and top employers, and see what makes this area so rife with potential.

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