United Airlines just scored a major win at the Denver City Council, setting the stage for a sprawling flight training campus next to Denver International Airport. After rezoning roughly 114 acres along East 64th Avenue, the city has effectively opened the runway for a long-term expansion of United’s training footprint, with plans for dozens of full-flight simulators, plus office, amenity, and support buildings that could steadily transform the stretch west of Tower Road over the next decade.
The rezoning, which covers property officially listed at 17671–17675 East 64th Avenue, passed with unanimous council support and clears the local zoning hurdle for a Planned Unit Development tailored to a corporate-style campus. As reported by Denverite, the vote replaces older chapter 59 zoning and hands United a more flexible PUD framework it can use for phased buildout.
What United Proposes
According to filings with the city, United’s first phase calls for up to 60 full-flight simulator bays spread across as many as four buildings, along with offices, meeting space, an energy center, and structured parking. The rezoning application also includes the company’s growth forecast, pointing to roughly 700 new aircraft by 2033, and notes that United’s more than 18,000 pilots must return to Denver for recurrent training about every nine months, creating a reliable stream of trainees headed for the city. Those details are laid out in the filing with the City and County of Denver.
Land, Scale and Speculation
United paid roughly $33 million for the parcels in 2023, a purchase local observers quickly pegged as part of the airline’s broader Denver expansion strategy, according to BusinessDen. Earlier master-plan materials and editorial coverage have suggested the site could accommodate more than 1 million square feet of buildings and room for several thousand office jobs, with some filings and commentary estimating capacity for as many as 6,000 employees at full build-out, per the Denver Gazette.
Timeline and Next Steps
With the land now rezoned, United plans to move into detailed site and building design. The airline “anticipates groundbreaking on the expanded Flight Training Center to begin sometime in 2027 with the facility expected to be operational around 2030,” spokesperson Russell Carlton wrote in an email to Denverite. Before any cranes show up, United and city staff still have to work through a Large Development Review, an Infrastructure Master Plan and specific site development plans.
Open Space, Design and Traffic
Under the PUD, roughly 10% of the property must be set aside as publicly accessible open space and tied into nearby streets and trails. City materials show much of that green space landing on the west side of Telluride Way and along Dogwood Gulch, according to the city staff report and presentation. Project documents also lay out transportation studies and possible mitigation moves, including shuttle service, parking plans and transportation demand management strategies aimed at handling the steady flow of trainees and staff into the airport corridor.
What Neighbors Should Expect
The rezoning itself is an enabling step, not a green light to start pouring concrete. It gives United room to phase the campus over time, while leaving details like final building footprints, early hiring assumptions, and the ultimate simulator count to the upcoming review process. City staff and the airline say community outreach will continue as the Large Development Review and site plans come forward, so nearby residents can expect more public meetings and fresh project materials in the months ahead.
