Real Estate: ROBERT C. ‘BOB’ KETTLER

Kettler comes from a real estate family. He attended the University of Miami with an interest in architecture. But after taking a year off to sail to South America with a friend, he switched his focus to real estate and business. He also studied at George Washington and American universities, though he didn’t finish his degree.

In 1977, Kettler partnered with his brother-in-law on a small suburban residential project in Centreville. Kettler says that’s what launched the eponymous business he leads today — a wide-ranging commercial real estate company with 30,000 multifamily units developed and more than 2,000 in the pipeline, as well as 2.2 million square feet of commercial construction. At the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., Kettler has naming rights for the second-floor loft level.

Some of Kettler’s biggest accomplishments include projects in Tysons such as the Rise and Bolden luxury apartment towers at The Boro and Brentford at the Mile. This spring, Kettler started work in Charlotte, North Carolina, on a 322,000-square-foot residential, restaurant and retail project. He’s also involved in Gas Worx, a 50-acre mixed-use development in Tampa, Florida’s Ybor City neighborhood.