Group14 earns first LEED v5 Gold Certification for Denver office

DENVER — Group14 Engineering‘s Denver office has become the first project in the world to receive LEED v5 Interior Design + Construction Gold certification, according to the company.

The 11,555-square-foot office at 1278 Lincoln St. earned 63 points under the new LEED v5 rating system, exceeding the threshold for Gold certification. The office is located in Denver’s Capitol Hill neighborhood.

LEED v5 is the latest version of the building certification framework developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. The updated system places greater emphasis on building performance, decarbonization, occupant well-being and conservation.

Group14 relocated to the office in January 2026 following a period of growth. The project incorporates features including continuous indoor air quality monitoring, a walkable location and the adaptive reuse of a building originally constructed in 1919.

“Being our own client gave us the opportunity to experience LEED v5 from a completely different perspective,” said Madi Gore, sustainability project manager at Group14. “We worked through the same decisions, tradeoffs and implementation challenges our clients face.”

The office serves as a pilot project for LEED v5 implementation, allowing the company to evaluate building performance and sustainability strategies that may be applied to future projects.

“LEED v5 represents a significant shift in how we think about high-performance buildings,” said Laura Charlier, sustainability director at Group14. “Pursuing LEED v5 for our own office allowed us to explore those concepts firsthand and gain insights that will help our clients navigate the next generation of sustainable building standards.”

The office is located in a building owned by the Colorado State Land Board. Lease revenue from the property supports K-12 public education in Colorado.

Project partners included Tenant Planning Services, Provident Construction Co., MEP Engineering and Group14’s sustainability, energy and commissioning teams.