North Aurora

For the people who call it home, North Aurora is much more than a stop along East Colfax Avenue — it’s a living museum showcasing Aurora’s past, present and future. “This is one of Aurora’s oldest communities, and there’s still some original housing in the area,” says Realtor Jason Morris of eXp Realty, host of the Living in Aurora Colorado YouTube channel. “But they’ve also done a lot of development over the last decade, so there’s a nice balance of old and new,” Morris notes.

Within North Aurora’s housing stock, several historic homes remain, although many have been updated with bright paint jobs that show off the architectural trends of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Some, like the Centennial House from the 1890s, have even been turned into museums. The 1950s and 1960s brought a plethora of brick ranch-style homes to the evenly gridded streets, and as the years passed, contemporary Craftsman single-family homes and townhomes were added to the mix. More development isn’t out of the question, either as multiple vacant lots remain on the community’s north end. But whether you’re interested in a home from the past or present, you can expect to find average prices under $500,000, making the area increasingly more affordable than neighboring Denver.

Children living in North Aurora can learn more about their local history at Paris or Montview Elementary School, which both maintain a C- on Niche. Many students will move on to attend North Middle School, which offers an extensive list of exploratory electives in science, visual arts and music. And at Aurora Central High School, which also maintains a grade of C- on Niche and is the city’s oldest school, students have the opportunity to participate in career pathway programs for engineering and sports medicine, among other topics.

After a busy week, relax with a trip to Montview Park, which features a large, tree-themed playground with natural climbing elements. Kids can relive history by searching the river of mulch for gold flecks from the safety of a play canoe, and many residents enjoy a trip across the park’s pedestrian bridge during morning dog walks. If you’re craving a longer walk, you can continue north across Montview Boulevard and follow the Westerly Creek Trail as it swerves beside its namesake waterway. At 5-acre City Park, you’ll find a circular lawn beside a contemporary playscape on colorful and abstract rubber padding, providing a safe landing for climbing children. The park is also home to Dayton Skatepark, a small but mighty concrete basin with ramps, rails and ridges perfect for practicing a new trick. And about a mile north, you’ll find an indoor pool at the Moorhead Recreation Center.

When it comes to food and entertainment, North Aurora has both retro and modern options. Many of these popular spots sit right off East Colfax Avenue, one of the Denver area’s longest east-west corridors. Enjoy a musical performance at the historic Fox Theatre, which now houses the Aurora Fox Arts Center. Right next door, the contemporary glass façade of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Library welcomes readers of all ages and offers plenty of space for reading outdoors on a bench or curled up under a shady tree. If all that reading makes you hungry, you won’t have to go far for Mexican specialties from La Cueva, a local, family owned restaurant with a vibrant interior and flavorful daily specials. And right across the street, you’ll find the popular woman-owned Lady Justice Brewing Company, which uses its space to support local nonprofits that help empower underrepresented communities.

If you’re looking for a one-stop shop with both retail and dining options, North Aurora has that, too: At Stanley Marketplace, you’ll find more than 50 storefronts filling the airy, industrial space. Here, you can grab breakfast from the ever-popular Denver Biscuit Company or cool off in summer with a sprinkle-topped ice cream cone from Sweet Cow. At the rear of the building, patio seating overlooks the creek to the west, making Stanley Marketplace a well-loved weekend and outdoor dining destination for North Aurora’s residents. And if the weekend doesn’t go as planned, you can rest assured that the caring staff at the nearby Anschutz Medical Campus will take care of you. Woven with the roots of Aurora’s history, North Aurora invites homebuyers to protect the past while they enjoy the present and prepare for the future.

Written By

Cort Mays

Photography Contributed By

Karl Brewick

Video By

Kyle Keyes