Meet the OZ Leaders: Rob Rydel

What sparked your interest in architecture?
The process of design and iteration that leads to built form always caught my attention. I remember my father, a structural engineer, engaging and interacting with many architects over carefully drawn plans and perspectives, which sparked my interest in drawing and art at a young age. This interest later translated to advanced art and freehand drawing classes during high school.

Tell us about your career journey and what led you to specialize in your practice area.
Growing up in Poland, my early memories of imposing castles during school field trips left me with a permanent appreciation for beautiful and memorable buildings. Then, in college, I was further inspired by learning Italian and visiting “cradles of architecture” destinations with my sketchbook to memorize everyday vignettes and iconic architectural marvels. My drive to explore brought me to the U.S. and, in time, to Denver and OZ in 1998, where I met Tom Obermeier, one of the firm’s two founders.

At OZ, my first project was GSA Building 25, and my next wave of projects were with the Resorts + Hospitality Practice Area­­­­—from small cabins in Gypsum, Colorado, to lodges in Montana and Winter Park, Colorado—and the hospitality asks were incredibly engaging.

In 2000, as part of the Resorts + Hospitality­­­­ team, we expanded across the US, alongside national developers, with ski, beach, and golf destination developments in places like Orlando and Palm Coast, Florida, Galveston, Texas, and Henderson, Nevada.

The 2010s marked another expansion in our team’s Resorts + Hospitality coverage: the beginning of our international pursuits of resort work in China and the United Arab Emirates. In China’s Jilin province, we designed massive ski resorts to look like they were teleported directly from Colorado. Concurrently, I began to win assignments in the Urban Living Practice Area, including multifamily projects with new clients looking to develop mid-size, second-home resort communities.

I was also engaged by the non-profit Housing Colorado, growing an arm of Affordable Housing clients—beginning an essential and fulfilling part of my practice that continues today.

Finally, the engagement with the Urban Land Institute and Sustainable Development Council spotlighted sustainable development, enabling me to lead the design of a residential high-rise in Montana in 2023. We designed OZ’s first mass timber multifamily high-rise in Denver with Sun Valley Block 2.

What’s something people might not know about your practice area?
Resort work, both hospitality and housing, can reward with jewel opportunities like the Silverthorne Performing Arts Center—a small, community-rooted project in Silverthorne, which was catalytic, sparking a new cultural node in the mountain town.

How would you describe your design approach?
I enjoy creative “live” discussions on every project, regardless of the scale. With the volume of “architectural lines” generated during creative workflow comes ease of visual communication as my base tool. The engaging charrette process of working in front of a group became the key client engagement method. I believe in and practice this collaborative approach by leading the design process and decision-making while recognizing the contextual site requirements and programmatic needs. It has become a most rewarding way of spending time with any owner.

What is the most difficult part of your job? What is your favorite part of the job?
My favorite parts of my job outweigh any difficulties, but if I had to choose one challenge, it is ensuring that any late design changes have been coordinated fully with all trades. My favorite parts include trusting the process and value of evolving design ideation—like that of the annual optometrist’s exam enabling perfect vision—and having the privilege and opportunity to connect with clients in a transformative and deeply fulfilling architectural dialogue. Adding value to every hour spent with clients is vital so they walk away inspired and look forward to another session. I am honored to impact the many clients, consultants, fellow architects, and end users by sharing knowledge, listening, and applying creative individual fingerprints to the process.

What are some of the most interesting projects you’ve worked on recently or are currently working on?
I have recently enjoyed my work on projects including The Four Seasons in Telluride, Colorado; Block 2 of the Sun Valley redevelopment in Denver; the Kingsbarn Hotel on North Lake Tahoe; and the renovation of the Denver Dry Goods building.

What are three personal things about you that people might be interested to learn?
I believe in decoding everyone’s potential and “watering”—investing in the development of—my team of architects. I come from a tennis family rooted in learning more from losses than wins. Lucky enough to be married to my classmate and fellow architect, Izabela, we continue to “water” our three children, Julia, Claudia, and Adam, whom we have taken across the world. They are pursuing their journeys and tools to make an impact. I have dedicated time to parenting and supporting them in their sports (tennis, volleyball), sitting on bleachers with other fellow parents. I favor Spain and its cities and towns over many places for the architectural gems you can find, debate, and weave into family conversations.

As you forecast, what does the future hold for your practice area?
Sustainable development will become the basis of design as the Earth’s resources are limited. The concept of sourcing materials and building components anywhere has changed the scale of global trading. Human interaction is an essential aspect of our profession that we will continue to design for and impacts all practices.