September, 2008 – Richard von Luhrte has been named 2008 Architect of the Year by the Colorado Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The announcement was made at the annual conference in Vail, Colorado. A prominent and influential voice for responsible urban development and for transit and mixed use design, von Luhrte is project principal for a new zero energy building (ZEB) for the U. S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden. Other of Rich’s projects of note include the Denver Aquarium and Spire Denver.