The junction of E-470 & I-25 forms a convenient transportation confluence where residents from area sub-markets will gravitate to regional retail/ commercial projects. Thornton commercial development sites benefit from already in-place infrastructure improvements and an abundance of property with no need for flood plain mitigation.

Adams County (in which Thornton is located) and adjacent Broomfield and Weld Counties all were in the top 50 of the nation for rapid growth between 2000 and 2002, according to the US Census Bureau.

The Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) forecasts Thornton's Regional Marketing Area as "The New Growth Capital of Metro Denver." The 2020 Regional Forecast includes the growth of more than 60,000 jobs along E-470 thereby "creating a fourth major economic area within the Denver region."

DRCOG goes on to state that development of new residential areas in this corridor "will likely experience the level of residential development that occurred in the western and southern portions of the region in the 1970s through 1990s."

Of cities with 100,000 or more people in 2004, Thornton was the 12th-fastest-growing city in the nation since 2000, according to a recent report from the US Census Bureau. It was also the fastest-growing city in Colorado with a population over 100,000.

Over the next few years, more than 50,000 already approved and/or under construction housing units will be built within the Thornton Regional Marketing Area. With a conservative estimate of three consumers per housing unit, that would mean that more than 150,000 new consumers will look to Thornton businesses to meet their commercial needs.