Thornton City Council unanimously approved an incentive agreement with Corinthian Colleges Inc. that paves the way for more than 500 new jobs in the city.

The 8-0 vote came during council’s May 14 regular meeting. Ward 4 Councilman Eric Tade was absent.

Corinthian Colleges has signed a lease to occupy space at the North Valley Tech Center for a customer service, marketing and financial support operation, and the city will rebate the company half the use taxes (1.875 percent) for building materials, furniture, fixtures, equipment and operating expenses purchased over a five-year period.

Adam Krueger, the city’s manager of business attraction, said although there is no monetary cap on the incentive, staff estimates the cost to be $58,000. Staff also estimated what the city would get in return.

“Estimated Thornton revenues are approximately $1.9 million over five years, that takes into account property tax, mill levy, permits and earnings spent on taxable retail from employees,” he said.

Corinthian Colleges will hire between 500 to 700 new employees, making it the second largest primary employer in the city, Krueger added.

Krueger said the average salary for a Corinthian College employee is $38,450 plus benefits.

“They’re occupying 82,000 square feet at the North Valley Tech Center, they’re filling the entire space that was vacated by T-Mobile customer service center less than a year ago,” he said.

The college has signed a 10-year lease at the tech center and will fill more than 22 percent of vacant space at the facility. Krueger said officials hope to have a grand opening in the fall.

Corinthian Colleges operates 128 campuses in the U.S., Canada and online, including Everest, WyoTech and Heald colleges.