Moving to Centennial: Pros, Cons & What to Know
Moving to Centennial means moving to a genuinely young city with an unusually well-documented origin story: incorporated February 7, 2001 (following a September 12, 2000 vote approved by 77% of participating voters), formed from unincorporated Arapahoe County territory including the former Castlewood and Southglenn areas -- cited as the largest incorporation of its kind in US history.
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Learn moreA real, defensive incorporation motive, not an arbitrary founding
Centennial incorporated largely to head off further annexation of its unincorporated territory by the neighboring City of Greenwood Village, which was seeking to expand its own tax base; Colorado House Bill 1099 prioritized large-scale incorporations over competing annexation efforts and cleared the legal path. A real, specific, well-documented motive worth knowing -- this is a genuinely different civic origin story than an organically-grown suburb.
Entirely within a single county, unlike Arvada or Westminster
Centennial sits entirely within Arapahoe County -- a real structural simplicity compared to Arvada's small Adams County sliver or Westminster's much larger two-county split, both documented elsewhere in this dataset.
Colorado real estate closings run through a title company, not a required attorney
As with every Colorado market in this dataset, Colorado does not require a licensed attorney at closing -- title companies handle the process, per Amitree and Colorado Division of Real Estate guidance.
Confirm school-district assignment given the real east/west split
Centennial's school-district assignment genuinely splits by geography: Cherry Creek School District No. 5 serves the eastern part of the city, while Littleton Public Schools serves the western part -- confirm which applies before assuming a uniform district.
Key takeaways
- Centennial incorporated February 7, 2001, largely to prevent Greenwood Village annexation -- cited as the largest incorporation of its kind in US history.
- The city sits entirely within a single county (Arapahoe), a real structural simplicity versus Arvada and Westminster.
- Colorado real estate closings run through a title company, not a required attorney -- a real, practical fact consistent across every Colorado market in this dataset.
- Confirm whether an address falls under Cherry Creek School District (east) or Littleton Public Schools (west) before assuming a uniform district.
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