Unwrapping of retail center planned for 2018 holiday season

Groundbreaking takes place for Denver Premium Outlets, which will be at East 136th Avenue and I-25

By the holiday shopping season next year, Thornton will be home to 80 new outlet stores offering discount, namebrand merchandise.

That’s the timeline for Denver Premium Outlets, a 330,000-square-foot retail center that celebrated its groundbreaking Thursday at the northeast corner of East 136th Avenue and Interstate 25.

Simon Premium Outlets, a division of Simon Property Group, is the owner/developer behind the project that local officials expect to draw shoppers from across the north metro area when shops open next fall.

“This is going to give us a whole new option, not only for our city but all the cities around here,” Thornton Mayor Heidi Williams said. “It’s really going to be a regional project. It’s super exciting.”

Simon executives said the property attracted the company — also owner of the Colorado Mills and Denver West Village mall in Lakewood — because it has access and visibility from I-25 and scenic views to the west. John Villapiano, senior director of development, said the center will have a village-style layout designed to complement its natural surroundings.

“We’re going to raise the bar for the new outlet shopping experience,” Villapiano said Thursday.

Work has already begun. The sound of heavy machinery punctuated the speeches delivered at the groundbreaking event.

No stores have been announced, although Simon officials said they plan to bring in retailers that fit with Colorado’s active lifestyle.

The Thornton City Council approved a sales-tax rebate package for the project in 2015 good for up to $25 million.

The incentive will go toward building roads and other public infrastructure during construction of the outlet mall’s 330,000-square-foot first phase and an anticipated 100,000-square-foot second phase or sunset in 2040, whichever happens first.

Simon owns about 90 acres of land at the busy crossroads. The company declined to say how much Denver Premium Outlets will cost to build.