Most Recent News at RTA

We are happy to announce that we have welcomed seven new staff members over the last few months to our Architectural, Interior Design, Construction Administration, Technical Support, and Marketing teams. Our new Architectural team members include Architect Joey Bahnsen, AIA, NCARB and Emerging Professionals Mark Bila and Victor Gonzalez. Other new team members include Construction Administrator Sean Martin, RA, NCARB; Interior Designer Danielle Snell; Marketing Coordinator Ashley Polito; and Technical Support team member Arnell Jimenez. Welcome!!

“Painting is a bridge; it allows me to participate physically with my imagination.” - Greg Johnson

RTA’s Interior designer Greg Johnson has a gallery show featuring his acrylic paintings on Friday November 5 from 5-9 pm at G44 located at 121 E. Boulder Street in Colorado Springs. Here’s what G44 has to say about Greg and his unique painting style, “Allowing his paint to flow freely gives the paint its freedom to contribute to the overall expressions on the canvas…Viewed up close and from a distance, Greg’s paintings involve the viewer on multiple levels. Up close one is enveloped in detail, texture, and a microcosm of abstract woven color. From a distance these gestural dribbles coalesce as a united expression.” Come meet Greg and his incredible talent this Friday at G44 Gallery and see the mastery for yourself!

Design and construction of the new Pikes Peak Summit Visitor Center went to unprecedented lengths to incorporate materials that avoided Red List chemicals, included locally-sourced and salvaged materials, and reduced and recycled materials that came as a byproduct of construction; no small feat considering that over 4,000 man-hours went into the entire effort of vetting materials and advocating for green product practices on this already incredibly complex project.

Learn how the new Visitor Center will advocate for how our society evaluates everything that we put into our buildings for generations to come and about the sixth petal of the Living Building Challenge... Materials.

Mike Riggs brought a festive spirit to this week’s Friday meeting. RTA wants to wish everyone a safe and happy Halloween! 

In honor of Women in Architecture month, we are showcasing the many amazing and creative women who work at RTA. They push the boundaries of design, provide incredible service to our clients, and support the entire RTA team every single day.. We feel very fortunate that they have all chosen RTA to call home!

In honor of Women In Architecture month, we recognize Jane Silverstein Ries, also known as Julia Jane Silverstein, who was the first woman licensed in Colorado as a professional landscape architect.  She spent much of her career doing slightly formal yet intimate gardens alongside her efforts to preserve and restore historical sites. She was the recipient of the Community Service Award from the American Institute of Architects’ – Denver Chapter for her exceptional work and became the first president of the ASLA Rocky Mountain Chapter. In 1990, Jane Silverstein Ries was inducted into the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame for her efforts in historical preservation. By the end of her career, she had completed roughly 1500 gardens and left a lasting impression on Colorado’s landscape.

Photo courtesy of the Cultural Landscape Foundation

Photo courtesy of the JSR Foundation 

RTA was honored to again be a sponsor of the annual State of the City address by Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers, hosted by the Colorado Springs Chamber and EDC. A big thank you to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern Colorado, Children’s Hospital Colorado Springs, and Rocky Mountain Healthcare for joining us as our guests.

The state of the City of Colorado Springs is certainly bright! 

It’s a bird… it’s a plane…. it’s an RTA drone! Austin Beninga and Joey Bahnsen, two of RTA’s FAA-licensed drone pilots, were given the opportunity to teach students in the Fowler School District about how RTA uses drones during the design process and the rules and regulations that need to be followed to operate drones legally and safely. It’s not every day they get to fly the drone with an audience, and the students were very enthusiastic and intrigued about the technology. It made for an inspiring demonstration!

Colorado is a destination for visitors from all over the world seeking to connect with the awe-inspiring power of nature, and a healthy indoor environment that nurtures the human/nature connection was a key design goal of the new Pikes Peak Summit Visitor Center.

From improved indoor air quality and significantly increased access to natural light and breathtaking views through the expansive windows, learn more about how the new Pikes Peak Summit Visitor Center was designed to provide an improved overall experience to maximize the health and happiness for both visitors and staff and the fifth petal of the Living Building Challenge… Health and Happiness.

We had so much fun celebrating the groundbreaking of the Strasburg Elementary School addition and renovation project with the District staff, students, and community members. The project includes a classroom addition with a learning tree, a new light-filled gymnasium, learning communities with unique break-out spaces, and updated playgrounds.