550 E. 97th Avenue & 9650 Grant Street
Aldi’s Colorado expansion is picking up speed, with Thornton now the latest city slated to join the grocer’s first wave of Front Range locations.
Pre-application plans filed with the City of Thornton propose a 20,436-square-foot Aldi on approximately 2.85 acres at 550 E. 97th Avenue and 9650 Grant Street, just east of I-25. The project includes beer and wine sales, 87 standard parking spaces, 4 accessible spaces, and is expected to employ 18-20 people. The currently vacant site sits across Grant Street from Sam’s Club and near Golden Corral in one of Thornton’s busiest retail corridors.
The proposal follows recently announced Aldi locations in Denver’s Central Park neighborhood at 9111 E. 40th Avenue and Link56 near 57th Avenue and Tower Road, signaling the retailer is rapidly building out its first Colorado footprint.
Aldi plans to open more than 50 stores across the Denver and Colorado Springs markets in the coming years, supported by a new regional distribution center planned for Aurora as part of the company’s $9 billion nationwide expansion. The chain currently operates more than 2,600 stores across the U.S. and is known for its smaller-format stores, private-label products and low prices.
While the Thornton location remains in the early planning stages, it’s another clear sign that Aldi’s long-awaited arrival in Colorado is moving from announcement to reality.