William B. Robb was a prolific mid-century architect in Fort Collins. A World War II veteran born in Pueblo, Colorado, Robb received degrees in architectural and structural engineering before taking a job with Boulder-based architect Robert W. Ditzen. Robb opened a branch office for Ditzen in Fort Collins in 1951 and two years later opened his own practice. As Fort Collins’ only local, independent architect, Robb was perfectly positioned to take advantage of the city’s dramatic growth in the decades following World War II. Throughout his career, Robb worked with a variety of talented individuals and helped to launch the careers of several other successful architects and designers, including Robert Brenner, Virgil Magerfleisch, George Brelig, Frank Vaught, and Joe Frye. 

Between 1951 and his retirement in 1987, Will Robb designed hundreds of residential, commercial, educational, religious, and municipal buildings across the city and greater Northern Colorado. Robb passed in 1999, but his work continues to influence our daily lives; you may worship in a church he designed, shop in one of his commercial projects, or drive your children to one of his schools. In 2020, the Colorado State Historical Fund awarded the City of Fort Collins a grant to study Robb’s work and legacy in the city.  Read the full report or check out the highlights below.

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Perhaps some of Bill Robb’s most distinctive designs were his religious centers. Church membership grew nationwide after World War II. Participation in religious activities was considered an essential element of American life and represented an important difference between Americans and the “godless communists” of the Soviet Union. As congregations grew, religious centers struggled to accommodate everyone within their pre-war footprints. Early twentieth century churches were generally located between residential and commercial areas; when those commercial areas expanded, religious centers found themselves surrounded by busy streets with no room for expansion. In addition, many congregants had moved away from city centers to outlying suburbs. Religious centers followed their members and bought large tracts of land in new suburbs or on the outskirts of town with enough space for a large building; many religious buildings from this era included classroom space, a fellowship area, and onsite parking.

Most of Robb’s church designs share a theme of dramatic rooflines. Several are variations on an A-frame design with differing details like flat tops, asymmetrical shapes, or prow-like gable ends. Often, the fellowship and classroom areas are low-lying single story parts that extend to one side of the dramatic sanctuary space. Other elements that Robb frequently utilized in his church designs are ribbons and walls of windows, spires and freestanding towers, and exposed wood beam interiors.

The post-war baby boom and the movement of young families into new suburban developments increased pressure on local schools. Between 1943 and 1954, Poudre School District enrollments increased 61%. To accommodate these students, new schools would have to be built and older schools updated and expanded. Schools constructed in the 1950s and 1960s looked different from the multi-story buildings of the early twentieth century. Expansive lots made available in newly planned suburban developments permitted schools to spread out over a larger area with only a single story. New materials invented during the war allowed construction of spacious rooms that could be easily adaptable for a variety of uses.

Robb’s educational buildings reflect these post-war design trends and many of his schools share similar materials and designs. The rambling single-story buildings are often topped with flat or shallowly sloped roofs; the primary entrance is sometimes recessed or hidden and most classrooms have a door that allows direct access to the outside. Windows are organized in long rows or stacked columns and the school exteriors are usually masonry, brick, or precast concrete panels.

In 1946, the Chamber of Commerce adopted the slogan “Fort Collins E-X-P-A-N-D-S” and made a concerted effort to both attract new businesses to the city and grow existing local commercial and industrial projects. Some existing businesses renovated their buildings to appeal to new customers while others expanded and relocated to developing parts of town where they construct larger buildings. Business owners hired Robb and his partners to design a huge variety of commercial projects ranging from simple storefront updates and small additions to high-rise towers and multi-building complexes. Many of his works remain in use as commercial and business centers today. Interestingly, quite a few of Robb’s commercial designs and remodels have been subsequently modified, removed, or demolished, this is especially true when compared to his religious and educational buildings, almost all of which remain intact.

Some commonalities found between many of Robb’s commercial designs include glass walls, projecting entry foyers, thick cornice or eave bands around roof edges, cantilevered roofs, stacked sandstone accents, stacked brick, and the use of fins or blades to heighten buildings and draw the attention of passing motorists.

Financial difficulties in the 1930s and the diversion of construction material toward the war effort in the first part of the 1940s lead to a severe lack of adequate housing after World War II. Increased marriage and birth rates and the desire for single-family homes spurred by years of delayed gratification compounded the housing deficit. The federal government embraced the public’s desire for the construction of new single-family homes through the G. I. Bill, which allowed for low or no down payments and low interest rates on home loans for veterans. This bill and the Federal Housing Administration, established in 1934, made homeownership possible for many Americans for the first time. Builders scrambled to keep up with the demand.

Farmland surrounding Fort Collins quickly developed into residential subdivisions for middle-class homeowners. Some developments had a set number of home designs that each buyer could choose from; more upscale developments allowed buyers to hire an architect to design a custom home. Only a few Robb-designed homes have been identified and additional research is needed to identify and locate other examples. In addition to individual residences, Robb contributed to several master-planned residential developments that included a mix of single-unit homes, apartments, and townhomes like Indian Meadows West and Scotch Pines.

Rapid population growth spurred the City of Fort Collins to complete infrastructure improvements including updates to roads, water supply and storage, and electrical transmission networks. Amid the various projects came a realization that the 1880s City Hall at 232 Walnut had become too small to accommodate the increased administrative functions of the city. Robb designed the new City Hall in Washington Park at the corner of North Howes Street and Laporte Avenue in 1958. 

Later, Robb completed several other projects for the City including the remodel and construction of several new Fire Stations and another new City Hall just to the west of the previous one in 1978. Federal and state agencies grew in the post war world as well and Robb designed new facilities for the Game and Fish Department and remodeled the local Forest Service Building. As with his other projects, Robb paid attention to the needs of each entity and designed each project with an eye towards its surroundings.

Robb’s buildings for governmental entities share some design similarities including the use of stacked sandstone exteriors, ribbons of windows oriented vertically or horizontally, long and low construction, and thick cornices or eave bands.