Commerce City

Commerce City is its own home rule city in Adams County, north of Denver. Derby, the old downtown, sits around East 72nd Place and Monaco Street. The newer northern range, home to Reunion, runs up to 112th Avenue, and the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge sits inside the city limits.

Farm towns, a refinery and a 1952 vote

Until the late 1920s this was farm country, with wheat fields, dairies and pig farms. A refinery opened in 1930, and Rocky Mountain Arsenal was founded just to the east in 1942. Derby had started as a Burlington Railroad station back in 1887. When Denver was weighing annexation in 1951, a plan emerged to incorporate southern Adams County instead, and residents voted for Commerce Town in 1952. Ten years later it annexed part of Derby, more than quadrupled its population, and became Commerce City.

Industry still shapes parts of the city. Suncor runs the refinery here, the largest in the Rocky Mountain region. If you're looking at a house near industrial land, drive the surrounding blocks at a few different times of day so you know what sits next door.

Derby, the 1950s downtown

Most of Derby's original buildings went up between the 1950s and the 1970s, and several in the core are googie style, the space-age look that era used for buildings and signs. Design standards here aim to keep that 1950s feel, and the Derby Review Board has to approve changes to buildings and properties in the district.

El Jardin, at 6460 E. 73rd Ave., has been a Commerce City standby for more than 45 years, with burritos, tamales, weekend breakfast and margaritas from its Benito's Cantina. La Casa del Rey, at 7035 E. 72nd Ave., has been run by the Atencio family since 1986 and is known for its green chile, which comes anywhere from mild to extra hot.

Reunion and the metro districts

Reunion is a master-planned community Shea Homes started building in 2001, running roughly from Chambers Road east to E-470 and from 96th Avenue north to 112th. It has a homeowners association that enforces a covenant on things like fencing, so read it before you offer.

Metro districts have driven much of the northern range's growth. A developer sets one up to borrow for roads, sewer lines and drainage, and homeowners pay that debt back through a separate tax on top of their regular property taxes. The sticker price is lower, but the tax bill is higher. Before you make an offer up here, look up the address on the city's special districts map and read that district's service plan and annual financial reports.

Bison, soccer and golf

The wildlife refuge covers about 15,000 acres, one of the largest urban refuges in the country. You can watch its bison herd from the 11-mile Wildlife Drive or walk 20 miles of trails, and getting in is free. The visitor center is at 6550 Gateway Road, reached from I-70's Quebec Street exit.

Dick's Sporting Goods Park, which borders the refuge, has been home to the Colorado Rapids since 2007. Up north, Buffalo Run Golf Course on East 112th Avenue is an 18-hole, par-72 Keith Foster design. The city also keeps 840 acres of parks and open space linked by 25 miles of trail.

Getting to Denver and the airport

The N Line's Commerce City/72nd station is the only RTD rail stop in the city. It opened in September 2020, has a 330-space park-and-ride, and gets you to Union Station in about 12 minutes. The A Line to the airport runs just south and east of the city, and the 88 bus reaches its Central Park station. Drivers have I-70, I-270, I-76, US 85, Highway 2 and the E-470 toll road. If you plan to ride the train to work, homes near 72nd put you closest to the station.