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The First Carbon-Positive Hotel in the U.S. and More West Renovation News

Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa

Arizona 

Scottsdale Resort & Spa Pool
The Scottsdale Resort & Spa Pool

The Scottsdale Resort & Spa recently completed a $40 million renovation project, the largest in its 50-year history. Highlights of the renovations include upgrades to the property’s guest rooms, public spaces and meeting and event venues as well as the opening of the Stillman Villas. The villas were converted from an existing building and feature 12 two-story villas that can accommodate up to 14 guests each. The resort also features a 3,200-square-foot spa, 3,000-square-foot fitness center and four new onsite restaurants. 

The Scottsdale Resort & Spa has 45,000 square feet of flexible indoor event space spread across 18 meeting venues, each featuring new lighting, carpeting and furniture. The largest of these venues is the Grand Coronado, measuring 10,000 square feet with the ability to accommodate up to 1,000 attendees in its largest configuration. The resort also has 40,000 square feet of outdoor space spread across six venues including the Sunset Plaza, Garden Court, Welcome Lawn, Bennie’s Courtyard, The Community Lawn and McCormick Lawn by the pool.

[Related: Luxury Property Enhancements and More Elevate Events in Scottsdale, Arizona]

California 

Irvine’s largest full-service hotel, the Hyatt Regency Irvine, recently completed a $55 million renovation of its guest rooms and suites, new indoor and outdoor lounges, expanded fitness offerings and new pool and signature restaurant opening this month. 

Located two miles from John Wayne Airport, the Hyatt Regency Irvine features more than 50,000 square feet of meeting and event space. The Regency Ballroom spans 14,660 square feet, making it the largest ballroom in South Orange County. The ballroom can accommodate groups of up to 2,100 and is adjacent to a prefunction area able to accommodate an additional 650 attendees. 

Other event venue highlights include a 6,000-square-foot Pavilion able to accommodate 480, the 4,500-square-foot open-air Patio able to accommodate 200 and the adjacent 10,000-square-foot lawn able accommodate up to 1,000 attendees.

Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa Courtyard
Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa Courtyard

To celebrate its 20th anniversary, the Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa unveiled its $26 million property-wide renovation, including updates to its 210 guest rooms and suites, meeting and event spaces, new sustainability elements and two new onsite restaurants. The redesigned guest rooms feature new floor tiling, furniture, bathrooms and technology upgrades. The property also unveiled new corporate social responsibility efforts aimed at sustainability, partnering with Alvéole to introduce an apiary to aid with native pollination and create a sustainable source of honey and educational opportunity for guests along with its existing herb and butterfly gardens.

[Related: Game-Changing New and Renovated Properties Across California, Hawaii and Colorado]

Estancia La Jolla also offers nearly 47,000 square feet of event space spread across nine indoor venues and four outdoor venues. The indoor venues include two ballrooms, with the larger La Jolla Ballroom featuring 6,864 square feet of meeting space, able to accommodate up to 766 attendees in its largest configuration, and the Pacifica Ballroom, featuring 3,920 square feet of space and able to accommodate up to 280. The property also has multiple outdoor venues, the largest of which is The Woodlands, with a combined total of more than 12,000 square feet and consisting of over a dozen different spaces. 

Utah

DoubleTree Suites Salt Lake City
DoubleTree Suites Salt Lake City

Located just blocks from downtown Salt Lake City sits the DoubleTree Suites Salt Lake City, a 241-room property that just completed an extensive renovation and redesign. The renovated guest rooms and suites each feature new furniture and updated design elements. The updates to the hotel’s public spaces include renovations to the hotel’s central atrium, featuring new decorative lighting and plush seating areas. The hotel has also completed renovations to its fitness center and onsite lounge and restaurant. 

The DoubleTree Suites Salt Lake City features 4,862 square feet of event space spread across five meeting rooms, the largest of which is a ballroom able to accommodate up to 410 attendees in its largest configuration with 3,666 square feet of event space. Other event venues, including the Ambassador and Atrium rooms, can accommodate up to 40 and 150 attendees, respectively. 

A Carbon-Positive Hotel

Populus Understory, a Flexible Communal Space. Photo Credit: Nephew
Populus Understory, a Flexible Communal Space. Photo Credit: Nephew

The first carbon-positive hotel in the United States, Populus, is set to open its doors in Denver this summer. The hotel is committed to offsetting its carbon footprint through a combination of sustainable design and construction techniques as well as through planting trees in partnership with One Tree Planted and the United States Forest Service. So far, over 70,000 trees have been planted in Gunnison County, Colorado, with more to be planted to offset the hotel’s future carbon emissions and energy usage.

Populus Biophilic Architecture. Photo Credit: Studio Gang
Populus Biophilic Architecture. Photo Credit: Studio Gang

Populus is also committed to the goal of becoming carbon positive, ultimately having a positive impact on climate change. The hotel is also striving for zero-waste meetings and events with the elimination of plastic and paper use, recycling all materials and composting all food waste. 

Along with its commitment to sustainability, Populus also features 265 guest rooms, a signature restaurant and a variety of meeting and event spaces. Totaling 3,135 square feet of event space across six venues, the hotel can accommodate groups between eight and 100 in any of its flexible spaces. Consistent with its focus on sustainability, many of Populus’ event spaces have tree-related names, with one event space, The Hallow’s, designed to mirror the contour of a tree. 

Read this next: Net Zero Carbon Events Launches Guidance and Methodology to Help Events Industry Reduce Carbon Emissions

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About the author
Logan Pratt | Digital Content Coordinator

Logan Pratt joined Meetings Today in May 2023 as digital content coordinator, focusing on digital marketing efforts and covering breaking news stories for the Meetings Today website and newsletters. To send a press release or any information regarding the meetings and events industry please email logan.pratt@meetingstoday.com.