News Release: First Tenant Secured at Opus’ Highly Anticipated Sun Empire Industrial Development

AURORA, Colo., August 5, 2025 — Opus today announced that the first tenant at Sun Empire has been secured. Sun Empire is a 169-acre multi-phase master planned industrial development located at 25000 East 56th Avenue in Aurora, Colo. This first phase of construction includes two speculative Class A buildings totaling 828,953 square feet. One user has signed a lease for 150,000 square feet in the smaller of the two buildings.

With Sun Empire, Opus is credited with recognizing the immense potential of owning hundreds of acres of undeveloped land in a fast-growing community just three miles from Denver International Airport, within close proximity to E-470 and Interstate 70, with 34,000 new homes being built and a local workforce of 60,000. The company purchased the site in July 2022 and, after building the development’s infrastructure, began construction on the first two buildings in November of that year. The buildings were completed in November 2024.

“Sun Empire boasts an advantaged location and differentiated building amenities that are in high demand right now,” said Randy Danielson, senior director of real estate development with Opus. “The development as a whole has received a very favorable response from the market with strong and steady interest in these first two buildings. In fact, I’m pleased to share that we’ll have one user moved in and operational by September.”

Building 1A at Sun Empire is 624,094 square feet. The building has a 40-foot clear height, allowing users to have more capacity with less square footage, 110 cross-docked doors, 415 vehicle parking stalls, 85 trailer parking stalls and two transformers with up to 8,000 amps of power – double that of any other similarly sized building in the area. Building 1B is 204,859 square feet. It has a 32-foot clear height, 38 dock doors, 248 vehicle parking stalls, 56 trailer parking stalls and one transformer with up to 3,000 amps of power. To expedite tenant occupancy, both buildings include office suites with four private offices, a conference room, a break room, an IT room and restrooms. The buildings are also Internet-ready.

Opus was the developer, design-builder and architect and structural engineer of record on this project. Todd Witty and Daniel Close of CBRE are marketing the remaining space for lease. Timing for the second phase of construction at Sun Empire has not yet been announced, but it is expected to include an additional 1.2 million square feet across three buildings.

About Opus
Opus is a group of commercial real estate development, design and construction companies headquartered in Minneapolis with offices and projects across the country. Opus operates as a vertically integrated multidisciplinary team with expertise in development, capital markets, finance, project management, construction, architectural design and engineering services. Opus includes Opus Holding and its operating subsidiaries: Opus Development Company, Opus Design Build and Opus AE Group. Specializing in industrial, multifamily residential, office, retail and institutional projects, Opus offers the unique combination of a design-build project delivery approach, driven by a client-centered team of experts and backed by enduring commitment to the community. For more information, visit www.opus-group.com and follow Opus on LinkedIn and Instagram.

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