Thornton's First and Only Dispensaries Will Have Familiar Faces

The city of Thornton has only allowed one dispensary for each of the city's four geographical quadrants, setting the stage for open recreational dispensaries as early as late summer. Although Thornton city officials say none of the stores are close to finishing construction, the locations and licensees are set, and they're all familiar brands to consumers used to buying cannabis in Denver or Aurora.

By Thomas Mitchell

June 26, 2017

Image: Sweet Leaf's Thornton location will be its eleventh store.

Sweet Leaf's Thornton location will be its eleventh store. Scott Letnz

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Initially content with viewing the commercial cannabis experiment from the sidelines, the City of Thornton banned dispensaries back in 2010. That all changed last August, though, when the Thornton City Council lifted the ban and began considering applications for recreational pot shops.

A town of more than 136,000 people, according to U.S. Census estimates, Thornton has approached its burgeoning cannabis sector with more trepidation than Denver did, allowing just one dispensary in each of the city's four geographical quadrants. The council approved its fourth and final applicant in April, setting the stage for open recreational dispensaries as early as late summer.

Although Thornton officials say that none of the stores are close to finishing construction, the locations and licensees are set, and they're all familiar brands to consumers used to buying cannabis in Denver or Aurora.

Curious about what part of town they'll be in? Keep reading to see where Thornton's pot shops will be going, and what they might look like based on similar locations in nearby cities.

click to enlarge

Green Dragon's Quincy Avenue location in Aurora.

greendragoncolorado.com

Green Dragon
5823 East 128th Avenue, Thornton
Eleven current locations

click to enlarge

Medicine Man's Aurora locaton.

Scott Letnz

Medicine Man
130 West 84th Avenue, Thornton
Two current locations

click to enlarge

Rocky Road's Aurora location.

Scott Letnz

Rocky Road
3901 East 112th Avenue,Thornton
Five current location

click to enlarge

Sweet Leaf's East Evans Avenue location in south Denver.

Scott Lentz

Sweet Leaf
2551 East 120th Avenue, Thornton
Ten current locations

Thomas Mitchell has been the news editor of Westword since February 2024. He's been with the publication since 2017 and was formerly its cannabis editor. He’s earned numerous awards and accolades for his work, including placing second for the Marijuana Enterprise Reporting Award from the Colorado Society of Professional Journalists in 2018; being named a Top Cannabis Journalist by Leafbuyer in 2020; and placing first for the College Sports Writing Award from the Arizona Press Club in 2014. His prior work experience includes Arizona Republic, Inman News and Fox Sports.

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