From Blueprint to Greenprint

The sustainable symphony of Rodwin Architecture and Skycastle Construction

By Holly Bowers

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a sustainable home? Is it an Earthship built out of old tires? Or maybe a homestead that runs completely off-grid?

Rodwin Architecture and Skycastle Construction are working to change that perception.

Scott Rodwin has been a leader in sustainable design for more than 30 years. He started Rodwin Architecture in 1999 and Skycastle Construction in 2001. Following the Great Recession in 2008, he and Brandon David, Skycastle’s president and head of design-build at Rodwin Architecture, turned the two firms into a single design-build entity that provides complete services to their clients. Chief among those services is creating and constructing high-quality homes that function as comfortably and sustainably as possible.

Both Rodwin and David are quick to emphasize that sustainability is not about what a design looks like; it’s in how the home is built and how it operates. “[Green] doesn’t look like anything,” Rodwin explains. “It’s about how it performs and how we think about the design ahead of time, meaning orienting to the sun, creating a really good thermal envelope, having a very intelligently designed or engineered mechanical system and then layering on things like LED lighting and renewable energy photovoltaics.”

Rodwin Architecture and Skycastle Construction’s portfolio is the best proof of that. Their work includes the Hoefling House, a contemporary-looking home inspired by its surroundings in Boulder. Hoefling House is close to net zero in its energy performance and achieved LEED Platinum certification, the highest possible level of sustainability.

On the other side of the visual spectrum is Farmhouse. While it looks like a conventional farmstead, the home is Rodwin and Skycastle’s first regenerative house, meaning that it generates more energy than it uses.

The perception-busting work is really paying off. 

In June, Skycastle was named the 2023 Mercury fastest-growing private company in Boulder Valley in its size grouping by BizWest Magazine. The honor comes thanks to Skycastle’s 154 percent increase in revenue growth over the past two years. 

But the company’s success is wider than its revenue growth. In the past 25 years, David says, he’s seen green building go from a nice-to-have to a need-to-have. “People see a real strong need for it, they can see the value in it…there’s a smarter way to live that not only gives us and our clients more comfort, but lower energy bills.” 

People are also realizing that sustainability doesn’t have to mean sacrifice. “It’s one of the main things we talk about when we first meet with clients,” Rodwin says. “You don’t have to compromise. You can have the performance, you can have the functionality, you can have the beauty. And you can also have low energy bills, low water bills and really good indoor air quality.” 

Clients themselves have changed, too. David says they’re much more educated and knowledgeable about green building, so they want to understand how their home is being designed.

He loves that collaboration. Customer experience is incredibly important to Skycastle. The team creates an excellent experience through the holistic services they provide with Rodwin Architecture as a design-build firm. Skycastle can inform the design of projects, and the tight communication between the design and build teams leads to lower costs and high efficiency. Homeowners also get a single point of responsibility, which, as anyone who has undertaken a major building or renovation project knows, is key.

Rodwin and David are also committed to setting clear expectations for their clients from the get-go about costs, timelines and the design of their homes. “We want them to actually understand the level of thoughtfulness that goes into every aspect of both the design and the construction process,” Rodwin explains. After all, sustainability is only one value that the team works to incorporate in each home they design and build. The home should also reflect who the homeowner is and how they want to live.

Achieving that requires a deep knowledge of building codes in Boulder, which has stringent green building rules. Over the last 15 years, Rodwin Architecture and Skycastle have taught “Understanding the Rules for Building in Boulder” to more than 2,000 realtors. As the first point of contact that most property buyers have, realtors need to understand the ins and outs of Boulder’s codes so that they can help clients understand what they can do with their property.

Education is a key part of Rodwin and David’s work. In addition to “Building in Boulder,” they’ve taught green building courses for the City and County of Boulder, for the American Institute of Architects and at the university level. Skycastle also participates in the Colorado Green Building Guild and invests in regular development for its staff, including monthly lunch-and-learns, job site visits and continued education at conferences and events.

These efforts help the team hone the skills they need to build the highest-quality green homes. With Boulder’s culture of sustainability, walking the walk is crucial. “Skycastle is where the rubber meets the road,” Rodwin says. David makes sure that every home the firm builds performs as well and as sustainably as promised. 

And at the end of the day, Rodwin and David hope that their homes will inspire other homeowners and builders to consider green construction. One green single-family home isn’t going to save the world, Rodwin acknowledges. But inspiring others “dramatically amplifies the sustainability benefits that we’re achieving.” rodwinarch.com; skycastleconstruction.com