Westminster

Westminster is its own home rule city on the north side of the metro, split between western Adams County and northeastern Jefferson County. Arvada sits to the south, Broomfield to the north, Thornton to the northeast, and Northglenn and Federal Heights to the east. It covers about 34 square miles, and US 36 cuts through the middle on its way to Boulder.

From DeSpain Junction to a college town name

Pleasant DeSpain built the first permanent house here in 1870, and the settlement became DeSpain Junction. In 1885 C.J. Harris, a Connecticut developer, bought up the farmland and cut it into small tracts for fruit growers, and the town took his name. Presbyterian Westminster University held classes on the hill from 1908 to 1917, and the post office was renamed Westminster in 1908. The city incorporated in 1911. The school's main building, Westminster Castle, is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Historic Westminster, around 73rd and Lowell

The Bowles House, built in 1881, is now a museum and one of the few buildings left from the original downtown. Harris's own house still stands at 7996 Bradburn Boulevard, and the 1913 Grange Hall became the city's first designated landmark in 2003. At 73rd and Lowell the city created 73L, an open-air event space. Barquentine Brewing is leasing the old Rodeo Market building, Westminster's first supermarket from 1943, and is turning it into a taproom and eatery. It was still under renovation with no opening date.

Woody's Wings & Things, at 6817 Lowell, kept its wing-joint name under new owners and now works from a thick binder of Cambodian, Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese and Lao dishes. It made Westword's 2026 list of Denver's 50 best restaurants. If you're looking at an older house here, ask whether it's a designated landmark. The city's Certified Local Government status opens up state tax incentives for work on historic homes.

How the rest of the city filled in

Most of Westminster arrived through annexation. In 1970 and 1971 the city went from 4.5 to 28 square miles, so the old core is a small slice of what you'll be driving through. A water plant opened in 1956, and the city put a growth moratorium in place in 1977. Expect the housing outside the 73rd and Lowell area to be a lot newer than the landmarks.

The newest piece is Downtown Westminster, 105 acres where the Westminster Mall stood until it was demolished in 2012. It has an Alamo Drafthouse, the Origin Hotel and 18 acres of parks, with about 2,300 homes planned across the district. If you want new construction near a movie theater, start there, and ask about HOA dues on any townhouse or condo.

Standley Lake and the open space

The city owns more than 3,000 acres of open space. Standley Lake Regional Park is a 3,000-acre park centered on a 1,063-acre reservoir that supplies drinking water to Westminster, Thornton and Northglenn, so there's no swimming or wading and no trailered boats. You can paddle from May 1 to September 30 with a pass. Free walk-in lots mean you can hike or bike in without paying for entry. The Big Dry Creek Trail runs about 12 miles.

Getting to Denver and Boulder

US 36 runs through the middle of the city and I-25 crosses the east side. RTD's B Line leaves from Westminster station, just west of Federal and south of 72nd, and reaches Union Station in about 15 minutes, but only once an hour. RTD's 2026 budget work put the line on the table: the proposals would suspend it and close the station, and nothing was final as of this writing. If the train is a big reason you're buying nearby, find out where that landed before you write an offer.

Near the station, Señor Burritos moved to 7195 Federal after 34 years in Denver's Baker neighborhood and is known for its green chile.