Populus Hotel

Populus opened in downtown Denver in October 2024 as the first hotel in the country to claim carbon-positive status, its aspen-inspired facade designed by Studio Gang anchoring the corner of Civic Center Park. The 265-room property pairs an eye-catching exterior with a genuinely sustainability-driven operating model, from a biodigester to a no-parking policy.

The place

Populus stands at 240 14th Street in downtown Denver, at the crossroads of Civic Center Park and the city's 5280 Trail, within walking distance of the Denver Art Museum and the Performing Arts District.

The concept

Designed by AD100 firm Studio Gang and built on a formerly vacant surface parking lot, Populus takes its name and silhouette from the aspen tree: window openings shaped like the eye-like markings on aspen bark puncture the building's sculpted facade, sized and angled to control light and shade rather than for decoration alone. The 265-room hotel opened in October 2024 billing itself as the first carbon-positive hotel in the United States, meaning its developers claim the building will sequester more carbon over its lifecycle than it emitted to build and operate.

Beyond the sustainability pitch, Populus reads as a design-forward lifestyle hotel: no guest parking (a first for a hotel this size in Denver), a tree planted for every stay in partnership with the National Forest Foundation, and interiors by Wildman Chalmers Design that lean into natural materials and a muted, nature-forward palette echoing the exterior's aspen-grove concept.

Dining & wellness

The hotel operates two restaurants: Pasque, an all-day dining room, and Stellar Jay, a rooftop restaurant and bar with skyline and mountain views. The property also runs an on-site biodigester for food waste and directs a share of restaurant sales to regenerative farming partners.