Rebecca Spears, AIA, LEED AP,
Principal

Rebecca is a Principal at RB+B who excels at organization, efficiency, and keeping lots of moving parts going together in the same direction. She is an extremely good listener who makes sure we understand and meet our clients’ goals throughout each stage of the project. During design, she is great at working with clients in the beginning stages to draw out, define and form their vision since this sets the stage for the rest of the project. Her depth of experience is the largest value she brings to projects. She recognizes there is always something new to learn on every project and builds a wealth of knowledge to reference moving forward. [...]

Rebecca is a Principal at RB+B who excels at organization, efficiency, and keeping lots of moving parts going together in the same direction. She is an extremely good listener who makes sure we understand and meet our clients’ goals throughout each stage of the project. During design, she is great at working with clients in the beginning stages to draw out, define and form their vision since this sets the stage for the rest of the project. Her depth of experience is the largest value she brings to projects. She recognizes there is always something new to learn on every project and builds a wealth of knowledge to reference moving forward.

Inside the office, Rebecca organizes and manages the firm’s Friday Breaks/Knowledge Share initiative and keeps up with what’s going on with our staff/personnel.

Outside the office, Rebecca serves on a foundation board for charitable giving and likes to volunteer her time building trails. She enjoys camping, mountain biking, gardening, volunteering and travel—sometimes combing these activities.

David Kress, AIA, LEED AP, A4LE,
Principal

David is a Principal at RB+B who brings many years of experience and numerous tools to bring success to projects. He enjoys casting the vision for projects and the creation of the first concept, while excelling in creativity and fine-tuning space planning. David is always looking for creative ways to provide efficiency and clarity to projects, a major asset as costs continue to escalate for materials and lead times grow. [...]

David is a Principal at RB+B who brings many years of experience and numerous tools to bring success to projects. He enjoys casting the vision for projects and the creation of the first concept, while excelling in creativity and fine-tuning space planning. David is always looking for creative ways to provide efficiency and clarity to projects, a major asset as costs continue to escalate for materials and lead times grow.

Inside the office, David provides overall office management and oversight. Outside the office, he enjoys designing and building furniture, paddle boarding, and gardening, while also volunteering with his Church. He also enjoys water sports and believes everything is better around water.

Matt Arabasz, AIA, ALEP, LEED AP BD+C,
Principal

Matt is a Principal at RB+B who is the ultimate problem solver. He enjoys taking all project parameters into consideration and exploring solutions that resolve all of them. He believes that solving a design challenge can be done numerous ways, but solving a challenge elegantly is what makes Architecture beautiful. Matt propels our teams to prioritize communication and clarity in all undertakings, specifically prioritizing communication with consultant partners and contractors. He believes strongly in the value of Preconstruction meetings, enabling the design and construction team to unite on design intent and follow through. [...]

Matt is a Principal at RB+B who is the ultimate problem solver. He enjoys taking all project parameters into consideration and exploring solutions that resolve all of them. He believes that solving a design challenge can be done numerous ways, but solving a challenge elegantly is what makes Architecture beautiful. Matt propels our teams to prioritize communication and clarity in all undertakings, specifically prioritizing communication with consultant partners and contractors. He believes strongly in the value of Preconstruction meetings, enabling the design and construction team to unite on design intent and follow through.

Inside the office, Matt serves as an oversight role in many capacities, from mentoring younger staff to supporting our Revit Committee, as well as in Technology and Marketing.

Outside the office, Matt can be found enjoying the outdoors—camping, backpacking, hiking, mountain biking, skiing, snowboarding, and taking his motorcycle on adventures.

Derek Young, AIA, LEED AP,
Principal

Derek is a Principal at RB+B who always keeps the big picture goals of his projects in sight. He manages the details while not allowing the project to get lost in them. He is personable and able to communicate effectively with clients, contractors and consultant team members alike, and enjoys the personal and relational aspects of his work. [...]

Derek is a Principal at RB+B who always keeps the big picture goals of his projects in sight. He manages the details while not allowing the project to get lost in them. He is personable and able to communicate effectively with clients, contractors and consultant team members alike, and enjoys the personal and relational aspects of his work.

Inside the office, Derek keeps a handle on RB+B’s staffing of projects and workload, and he is involved in our Project Management and Mentoring Task Force. He enjoys mentoring and sharing his knowledge with younger staff and supporting the next generation of RB+B’s project leadership.

Derek is a “former” Foster Parent, who now enjoys spending much of his free time with his two adopted children. Outside the office, he enjoys ice hockey, camping, hiking, and watching his kids’ sports. He loves a good cup of coffee and short, productive meetings.

Gopal Shrestha, AIA, LEED AP,
Director of Design

Gopal is a Senior Associate and RB+B’s Director of Design, lending perspective in almost every project within the office. He excels in the conceptual phase, helping to develop and craft a story for each project. As one can see in all of his work, he prefers simplicity over complexity, and strives to design buildings that have a connected relationship with both nature and the larger world. [...]

Gopal is a Senior Associate and RB+B’s Director of Design, lending perspective in almost every project within the office. He excels in the conceptual phase, helping to develop and craft a story for each project. As one can see in all of his work, he prefers simplicity over complexity, and strives to design buildings that have a connected relationship with both nature and the larger world.

Culture has been a very important part of Gopal’s life, shaping his views and informing his pasttimes. His life has been a fusion of east and west cultures: growing up in eastern culture and then receiving his formal education in western culture has made his view point a global one. In architecture, it has helped him to see things in a universal way. Gopal is also passionately involved with promotion and preservation of ancestral craft skills of the Kathmandu Valley related to metalworking, wood working, and handicrafts.

In the office, Gopal is involved in several committees, including the Office Improvement and Forestry Committees. Outside of work, Gopal enjoys traveling, cooking, playing guitar, experiencing the visual arts, and tackling home improvement projects.

Brianne Smith, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, CCS,
Senior Associate

Brianne is a Senior Associate and Architect at RB+B who manages the firm’s Specifications and Quality Control processes. A former Senior Project Manager, she brings strong attention to detail and constructability in all dimensions in her current role. She is thoughtful and considers all angles, adept at problem solving and challenging teams throughout the idea process to arrive at the most thorough, comprehensive solution. [...]

Brianne is a Senior Associate and Architect at RB+B who manages the firm’s Specifications and Quality Control processes. A former Senior Project Manager, she brings strong attention to detail and constructability in all dimensions in her current role. She is thoughtful and considers all angles, adept at problem solving and challenging teams throughout the idea process to arrive at the most thorough, comprehensive solution.

Brianne is a member of the Philo Women’s Society, an organization serving women and children in the Loveland community. She also serves on the Colorado Embodied Carbon Collaborative and is a volunteer in her girls’ classrooms. Her favorite aspect of designing schools is seeing kids and teachers using a new building.

In the office, Brianne is on the Revit Committee, Post-Occupancy Evaluation Committee, Sustainability Committee, and QC Task Force. Outside of work, Brianne can be found tending the fruits and vegetables in her garden, taking road trips through small towns, and reading biographies of little known (but dynamic) people. She believes there is no problem that a good cup of tea won’t make easier to solve.

Ben Basalay, AIA, LEED AP,
Senior Associate

Ben is a Senior Project Manager who is the go-to person when you need someone who will pay close attention to the details and provide a strong sense of focus. As a PM, he excels at problem solving and the search for functional, meaningful design and construction solutions while organizing information and triaging the urgency of tasks and assignments inherent to a building project. [...]

Ben is a Senior Project Manager who is the go-to person when you need someone who will pay close attention to the details and provide a strong sense of focus. As a PM, he excels at problem solving and the search for functional, meaningful design and construction solutions while organizing information and triaging the urgency of tasks and assignments inherent to a building project.

Inside the office, Ben is involved in the Revit Committee and services on the Quality Control Task Force and Post-Occupancy Evaluation Committee. He enjoys giving back to the community and has been a Larimer County Emergency Services On-Call Wildland Firefighter since 2003.

Outside of work you’ll find Ben enjoying all things Colorado, including hiking, backpacking, fishing, biking, snowriding, and playing hockey. He supports his kids through coaching their hockey teams, including serving as a volunteer youth hockey coach for the Northern Colorado Youth Hockey Junior Eagles program.