The Northern Properties Stewardship Plan (NPSP) is developing a vision for the management and future land use of 18,000 acres owned by Thornton in Weld and Larimer Counties.
The NPSP is informed by the communities' and counties' long-term plans, regional and local stakeholders' economic and social interests, and youth and young farmer engagement. It is also informed by data-driven analysis of land use, productivity, quality, and value.
The Plan will combine community interests and land analysis findings to develop a vision for managing Thornton's properties between 2025 and 2065.
Vision Statement
Thornton aims to be an engaged landowner, respecting the needs and interests of the northern communities as it works to secure its decreed water rights. Through a community-driven land use planning effort and a future-oriented lens, Thornton will seek its properties' highest and best land uses to ensure a positive impact on the Northern Communities.
Additional Resources
The Agricultural Stewardship Office website to learn more about Thornton's northern properties' current operations and present-day stewardship.
The City of Thornton acquired approximately 21,000 acres of agricultural land and associated water rights in the mid-1980s, intending to transfer the agricultural water rights to municipal use. As Thornton grows, it needs to secure water for its future population. In the 1990s, the transfer decree was secured.
Thornton still owns about 18,000 acres of land, primarily in Weld County, with additional acreage in Larimer County, which it has leased for agricultural use since the acquisitions. In 2027, Thornton expects to have met the prerequisites established by the decree to initiate water transfers, which will bring that water to the City of Thornton. These transfers will scale up between 2027 and 2065.
Because Thornton purchased water and land in Weld and Larimer counties, the NPSP is a roadmap for Thornton to responsibly manage that land once the water is transferred to municipal use.
The Stewardship Plan is a vision for managing and future land use of 18,000 acres—an integral amount of property for the local communities, including Ault, Pierce, Windsor, Severance, Greeley, and Timnath—within the parameters of Thornton's water decree, which includes re-vegetation, dryland farming, and/or suitable non-agricultural uses.
Growth and change are rapidly shaping northeastern Colorado. The region can holistically and collectively guide community, municipal, county, and regional planning efforts by developing a vision. By creating that vision together, growth can reflect the region's imagined future.
The project approach will focus on several activities:
Thoughtfully and intentionally engage communities and stakeholders throughout the project.
Compile preexisting plans in the region to define the baseline for the vision, growth, and local goals.
Work collaboratively to define what the future of the region should look like.
Identify challenges and opportunities to address as a region.
Identify innovative and practical approaches for the agriculture-to-municipal water transfers over the next several decades.
Based upon the engagement and input, identify the best long-term uses for Thornton's properties.
The development of the Stewardship Plan happens within the parameters of the Water Court decree.
The project will take a couple of years. At this time, we expect the planning work to be completed before 2024.
We are engaging a diverse range of individuals and groups who represent Weld and Larimer Counties. These include farmers and ranchers, college and high school students, Spanish speakers and English speakers, home and land owners and tenants, urban and rural dwellers, water owners and water users, suburban communities, county and municipality staff, land managers, hunters and anglers, outdoor enthusiasts, scientists and agricultural experts, and many more.
Thank you to our partners:the Colorado Water Conservation Board, the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, and the Bureau of Reclamation.