Buckeye's long-awaited retail boom is finally arriving, with major national chains opening their doors and new shopping centers emerging across the city as leaders work to transform the fast-growing community into a regional shopping destination.
At the center of that transformation is Verrado Marketplace, a 500,000-square-foot retail center that city officials view as a game-changer for Buckeye's economy.
The first phase of the development opened in May, bringing major retailers, including Target, HomeGoods, Marshalls and Ulta Beauty to one of the fastest-growing corridors in the West Valley.
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Vice Mayor Clay Goodman called it “a new standard for Buckeye.”
“By having a powerhouse like Target here in Verrado Marketplace, we’re sending a clear signal to the rest of the state: Buckeye is open for business, and we are ready for that business to come,” said Buckeye Vice Mayor Clay Goodman.
Buckeye Mayor Eric Orsborn said the project represents more than new shopping options for residents. It is expected to generate close to 1,000 jobs while creating a significant new source of sales tax revenue that can help fund city services and future infrastructure improvements.
"For years, residents have had to leave Buckeye for many of their shopping needs," Orsborn said during his May State of the City presentation. "Now we're beginning to bring those retailers here."
In mid-June, the city celebrated the opening of a new Home Depot in the Buckeye Commons Shopping Center near Costco.
With the opening, the City of Buckeye closed a 20-year gap that began when the original construction was abandoned during the Great Recession that began in 2007. Securing the long-awaited retailer is a signal of Buckeye’s viable growth market, city officials said.
The new location also brought in 147 employees, with more than 80% net-new hires drawn directly from the local community.
Buckeye's civic leadership said the ribbon cutting represented vindication of a long-standing argument: that the city's residential growth trajectory would eventually compel major retailers to follow.
“We are no longer a community that has to leave town to meet its basic needs,” Orsborn said.
The city’s retail surge extends well beyond the Verrado interchange. Fry’s Food Store opened on Miller Road in mid-2025, a McDonald’s restaurant opened in June, and city officials are continuing to plan future retail growth corridors along Roosevelt Street and Sun Valley Parkway.
That growth ultimately means Buckeye has a better chance at keeping shopping dollars — and coveted sales tax revenue — within city limits.
Retail momentum building across the city
The city’s retail surge extends well beyond the Verrado interchange.
A recently opened Fry's Food Stores location on Miller Road is already attracting additional commercial investment, while city officials are planning future retail growth corridors along Roosevelt Street and Sun Valley Parkway to serve rapidly expanding master-planned communities.
A McDonald’s restaurant opened in June marking the most recent retail expansion that reflects a broader shift in Buckeye's development pattern that traditionally focused on residential growth.
Once viewed primarily as a bedroom community, the city is increasingly attracting commercial projects designed to keep shopping dollars within Buckeye rather than sending residents to neighboring cities.
Economic development officials have long identified retail recruitment as a priority because sales taxes provide one of the most important revenue streams for Arizona municipalities.
Downtown seeks local flavor
While national retailers are driving growth on the city's north side, Buckeye is simultaneously investing in a different type of retail experience in Historic Downtown.
The city's Downtown Specific Area Plan focuses on attracting locally- owned businesses, restaurants and specialty shops that create a unique identity distinct from larger shopping centers. Businesses such as The Heritage at Old Town, Viet Table and Good Roots are helping establish a growing commercial core centered on walkability, community events, arts and culture.
City leaders see the dual-track strategy — national retailers in growth corridors and local businesses downtown — as essential to creating a balanced economy.
Retail growth depends on transportation
As commercial development accelerates, city officials say transportation improvements will be critical to sustaining momentum.
The most significant project remains the planned widening of Interstate 10 between Citrus Road and Verrado Way. The project is designed to accommodate increasing traffic generated by developments such as Verrado Marketplace.
According to Orsborn, the freeway widening has already been designed, and a contractor selected by the Arizona Department of Transportation.
Funding for the project has been approved by the state legislature’s budget proposal, which had support of Gov. Katie Hobbs.
Shopping destination emerging
The combination of new retailers, grocery stores, restaurants and mixed-use commercial centers is helping reshape Buckeye's economic landscape.
For decades, residents often traveled to Goodyear, Avondale or Glendale for major shopping trips. Today, city officials believe Buckeye is reaching a tipping point where it can become a retail destination in its own right.
With new stores opening this summer, additional commercial projects in the pipeline and thousands of new residents arriving each year, Buckeye's retail sector appears poised for its most significant period of expansion in the city's history.
Building reel anticipation
One of the most anticipated openings still to come is the Harkins BackLot theater complex at Verrado Marketplace.
While an opening date has yet to be announced, Harkins has stated that it will bring a 75,000-square-foot space with a luxury movie theater, a full-service restaurant and bar, a state-of-the-art sport viewing area, arcade games, a bowling alley, and private areas for events. It will be the first new build of the “BackLot” concept in Arizona.
“It’s about opportunity for our residence,” said Tennille Hiller, project manager with Buckeye Economic Development. Verrado Marketplace itself is going to have 750 jobs, that’s huge.
“That’s a great opportunity, but it’s not just that,” Hiller said. “Large developments like this strengthen our tax base, and when you strengthen our tax base, we can reimburse the community with road infrastructure [and] public safety.
InBuckeye Magazine July/August 2026
