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THoRNToN
2025 Agricultural Stewardship Program Report
Prepared for the
Weld County Board of County Commissioners
December 31 , 2025
Co M lA v C o.-{- on s
2026-0251
e�/oct/26
Executive Summary
• Thornton acquired farm land and water rights in Weld County in 1985 and 1986 as
part of a water supply project.
• Since 1986, Thornton has contributed over $22 million to the local Weld and
Larimer County economies through its Agricultural Stewardship operations,
including Voluntary Payments in Lieu of Taxes to Weld and Larimer County
agencies, and the use of local vendors on Thornton's projects and operations.
• Thornton owns 104 farms on approximately 17,161 acres in Weld County.
• In 2025, there were 6,941 acres included in Thornton's Revegetation Program in
Weld County. To date, 6,033 acres have been approved as established self-
sustaining dryland grasses by the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Thornton's 2025 Revegetation Program successfully maintained these self-
sustaining dryland grasses with grazing, weed management, mechanical mowing,
cutting, and baling.
• The remainder of the farms in Weld County will stay in irrigated agriculture until the
water is needed for municipal use in Thornton. It is currently estimated that
additional conversions from irrigated agriculture to self-sustaining dryland grasses
will not be needed until approximately 2030.
• Thornton currently owns 52 farm houses in Weld County, the majority of which
were leased to Weld County residents in 2025.
• Thornton's Farm House Repair Program addresses repair needs on Thornton-
owned houses and outbuildings. Thornton uses local contractors and vendors for
this program to perform anything from re-roof projects, window replacement, new
siding, painting, interior renovations, structural fixes, to septic replacements.
• In 2024, Thornton initiated a capital improvement project to supplement its Farm
House Repair Program. In 2025, Thornton renovated two farm houses and
demolished four farm houses in Weld County through this capital improvement
project. The farm houses that were demolished were no longer suitable for
occupation and did not have renovation potential.
• In 2025, for the seventh year in a row, Thornton utilized the transmountain water
associated with a portion of its Water Supply and Storage Company shares for its
own use.
• In 2025, Thornton continued to expand its grazing program to additional farms.
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• In 2025, the Ault Fire Protection Districts utilized a pond on Farm 80-22 for their
annual ice training program.
• In 2024, Thornton completed the Thornton Northern Properties Stewardship Plan
(TNPSP). The Thornton city council adopted the plan in April of 2024.
Introduction
In 1985 and 1986, Thornton purchased over 20,000 acres of farms and associated water
rights in Weld and Larimer Counties. Thornton purchased the assets for a water supply
project that would be used to meet the demands of the growing city. Since Thornton's
acquisitions of farms and water, Thornton has operated under a good neighbor policy of
working with farmers, residents, businesses, and governmental entities to effectively
manage its properties and provide benefits to the Weld County communities. This annual
report provides a summary of Thornton's 2025 operations and activities in Weld County.
Since 1986, Thornton has operated a local Agricultural Stewardship Office (formerly
known as the Farm Management Office). The office is located on 313 acres of Thornton
owned land that was annexed into the Town of Ault in 2017. The function of the
Agricultural Stewardship Office is to oversee the operation, leasing, management, and
maintenance of Thornton's properties in Weld and Larimer Counties. Thornton cash-
leases its farms to local farmers, and several farmers who originally sold farms to
Thornton continue to lease these farms from the city. Other Thornton farms have been
removed from irrigated agriculture, and Thornton has converted, or is in the process of
converting, these farms to self-sustaining dryland grasses. This conversion of farms from
irrigated agriculture to a non-irrigated use is required by Thornton's Water Court Decree
and must be satisfactorily accomplished before Thornton can deliver water to Thornton
customers.
The Thornton Agricultural Stewardship Office pro-actively manages Thornton's
properties, tenants, vendors, and responds to issues and concerns when they, arise.
Since 1986, Thornton has spent over $22 million on its Agricultural Stewardship
operations, which include activities such as tree trimming, structural repairs, reroofs,
plumbing/heating and electrical repairs, and culvert replacements. In addition, since
1987, Thornton has made voluntary payments in lieu of taxes to taxing authorities in Weld
and Larimer Counties. Since 2010, Thornton has adjusted its voluntary payments to the
counties to reflect changes in property values and the local tax schedule. The 2025
voluntary payment to Weld County taxing authorities was $248,709. Since 1987,
approximately $7,412,501 has been paid to Weld County taxing authorities.
Over the years, Thornton has partnered with local governmental entities and businesses
to enhance their operations. For example, Thornton sold land and the associated mineral
rights to the Weld County RE-9 School District for expansion of the school campus in Ault
and construction of a new station for the Ault/Pierce Fire District. The city has also worked
with local agricultural producers to acquire land to improve their operations. Fagerberg
Produce expanded their onion processing facility onto land acquired from Thornton and
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Longs Peak Dairy has acquired three Thornton farms to improve their operation. In
addition, the City was able to contribute to the purchase of a new stock trailer and to
student fundraisers for Highland High School's FFA program.
Since 2003, Thornton has leased approximately 90,829 acre-feet of water to the Central
Colorado Water Conservancy District (Groundwater Management Sub-district and Well
Augmentation Sub-district) for operation of an augmentation plan for irrigation wells in
Weld County.
The North Weld County Water District (North Weld) approached Thornton in early 2020
about the need to secure additional back-up water supplies while the Soldier Canyon
Outlet at Horsetooth Reservoir was shutdown for repairs. Thornton and North Weld
entered into an Intergovernmental Agreement where Thornton would lease up to 800
acre-feet of Thornton's transmountain water to North Weld during the repair project. The
repair project was completed ahead of schedule and North Weld ultimately did not need
to take delivery of Thornton's water.
Since 2020, the Ault Fire Protection District has utilized ponds on various Thornton's
properties for their annual ice training program.
Thornton looks forward to its continued contribution to and cooperation with the Weld
County community.
Thornton's 2025 Agricultural Stewardship Operations
Reveqetation Project
Thornton currently owns 104 farms on approximately 17,161 acres in Weld County. To
date, a total of 6,941 acres in Weld County have been taken out of irrigated agricultural
production and have been, or are in the process of being, revegetated to self-sustaining
dryland grasses. Total approved revegetated acres by the Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) are 6,033 acres. An additional 788 acres of land in Larimer
County are currently in Thornton's revegetation program. Thornton implements its
revegetation program in Weld and Larimer Counties with contractors and vendors that
are selected through a competitive bid process that is advertised locally. Since 2006, all
revegetation contractors and vendors have been from the local Weld and Larimer County
communities. Since 2006, Thornton has spent approximately$5,000,000 with these local
vendors on its revegetation project. Attached is a current map of the Thornton properties
located in Weld County.
Thornton's revegetation program has resulted in the successful establishment of a self-
sustaining, dry-land cover on the farms that have been removed from irrigated agricultural
production. Each farm is unique, and the revegetation process is highly dependent on
natural moisture. Thornton evaluates and adjusts its revegetation methods on a yearly
and farm-by-farm basis.
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In 2025, Thornton continued to expand its grazing program. Farms 14, 30, 38, 60-8, 61-
26, 61-27, 78-8, and 107 were added to the program in 2025 and successfully grazed by
local grazing operators in coordination with the NRCS. Thornton works with the NRCS
to develop a rotational grazing plan for each Farm on a yearly basis. Rotational grazing
is used to prevent overgrazing and improve grassland health. Additionally, the perimeter,
fence for Farms 19 and 30 was upgraded. Thornton does not allow horse grazing on its
properties because this activity has led to erosion issues in the past.
The dryland grasses on the other farms that have been revegetated may be cut and baled
by local vendors when natural moisture has been enough to produce a harvestable stand
of grass. This procedure maintains the health of the dryland grass. No Farms were cut
and baled in 2025.
Thornton's current plans are to complete revegetation and obtain NRCS approval on a
total of 6,941 acres in Weld County by 2030. The remainder of the farms in Weld County
will stay in irrigated agriculture until the water is needed for municipal use in Thornton. It
is currently estimated that additional conversions from irrigated agriculture to self-
sustaining dryland grasses will not be needed until after 2030. This timeline is a planning
estimate and is subject to change to meet Thornton's water supply needs.
A significant portion of the Water Supply and Storage Company (WSSC) water that was
used to irrigate Thornton's revegetated farms continues to be used within the WSSC
irrigation system on farms that are still in irrigated agriculture. Tenants of Thornton-owned
farms have priority in renting this surplus water. After those requests have been fulfilled,
most of the remaining water is rented to other farmers throughout the WSSC system on
a first come, first serve basis.
Pursuant to Thornton's Water Court Decree, Thornton has initiated a recharge program
to help maintain the ground water levels in the alluvial aquifer around the Ault area for
well users. This program develops and implements recharge facilities that replicate
historic Thornton farm groundwater return flows that accrued to the alluvial aquifer by
utilizing recharge ponds to infiltrate water back to the aquifer. In 2022, Thornton
constructed their first recharge facility on Farm 61-27. East Larimer County Water District
currently leases this facility from Thornton for their decree requirements. In 2023,
Thornton constructed its second recharge facility on Farm 78-8.
The following are pictures of Farms in Weld County, as well as a map of Thornton's Weld
County Farms.
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Farm 78-8—Located on the north side of County Road 94 between County Road 39
and County Road 41. Farm 78-8 was added to the grazing program in 2025.
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Thornton Agricultural Stewardship Office Active Revegetation Passive Revegetation IV Sold
Revegetation Map — Weld County 411 NRCSEstablished Other Irrigated Acres H
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lamer Ces y Acreage Status for Weld County Farms.
Canal l'0'4 Weld County NRCS Established Acreage 6,033
SeveranceWeld County Total Acreage in Revegetation Program.6,941
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Thornton's Irrigated Farms
The Thornton farms that remain in irrigated agricultural production in Weld County are
leased to local farmers on a cash-lease basis at market rates. Water from ditch company
shares or wells is provided with the leases for irrigated land. Thornton generally provides
three-year leases to allow farmers to adequately plan their operations. These farms had
the following approximate crop distribution in 2025:
Crop Percent
Shell Corn 10%
Silage Corn 40%
Wheat 5%
Alfalfa 35%
Sugar Beets 5%
Onions 5%
Thornton's Residential Houses
In 2025, of the 52 houses owned by Thornton in Weld County, most of them were leased.
These houses are leased on an annual basis. Thornton's houses provide affordable
housing options for residents in Weld County. Thornton's house tenants take pride in
their homes, and generally stay in the houses for over five years. The city has tenants
who have been leasing houses from Thornton since 1986, as well as long-term tenants
who have moved from one Thornton farm house to another to meet their space needs.
In 2024, Thorton initiated a capital improvement project to supplement its Farm House
Repair program. This is a 10-year project in which Thornton plans to renovate two to four
farm houses per year and demolish one to two farm houses that are no longer suitable
for occupation per year and do not have renovation potential. In 2025, Thornton
renovated two farm houses and demolished four farm houses in Weld County through the
capital improvement project. Since project initiation, Thornton has renovated four farm
houses and demolished four farm houses in Weld County.
Sale of Thornton Houses
In 2013, Thornton began the process of selling some of the houses it owns in Weld and
Larimer Counties. To date, 20 houses have been sold. Thornton is not currently
marketing any additional houses but may do so in the future.
Oil and Gas Leasing
Following the 2022 partial mineral rights sale, Thornton retained approximately 5,000
mineral acres, 4,900 of which are in Weld County. In Weld County Thornton currently
has six leases with Petroleum Development Corporation (including PDC's acquisition of
Great Western Oil and Gas), 15 leases with Bayswater Petroleum, three leases with
Civitas Resources (formerly Extraction Oil and Gas), two leases with Edge Energy, and
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one lease with Enerplus Resources. These operators have a total of approximately 130
active wells in Weld County under Thornton leases.
Agricultural Stewardship Office
Thornton's Agricultural Stewardship Office is located on 313 acres of its land that is
annexed into the Town of Ault. The annexed land is on the northern edge of town: south
of WCR 84, between WCR 33 and WCR 35. Thornton's three permanent, full-time
Agricultural Stewardship employees moved into the new office in late November of 2018.
There are three other buildings on the property that have been upgraded and used to
house the City's pickups as well as other city equipment used to manage the properties
in the area. The barn and the garage located on this property were re-roofed in 2019. In
2020, the pole barn received a new roof and garage doors. The garage received structural
repairs to the roof and concrete masonry unit walls. The garage had new windows and
doors installed and the structure was also painted. Upgrades to the barn included new
windows, door and siding repairs. In 2021, the pole barn and garage received updated
electrical and garage door operators. The barn received new paint and doors to keep the
elements and birds out of the building.
Thornton Northern Properties Stewardship Plan
In 2024, the city finalized the report on the Thornton Northern Properties Stewardship
Plan (TNPSP). The report is titled "Future Land Use Analysis and Water Optimization
Study Market Feasibility Report". The report was presented to and adopted by Thornton
City Council in April 2024. Since adoption, city staff have utilized the report to develop the
steps and decision support tools necessary to implement the plan.
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