Daniel O’Connell Retzner, AIA, NCARB

Senior Associate

Chicago, Illinois

As Senior Associate in the Mountain-Midwest region, Dan provides architectural consulting, property condition assessments, construction loan monitoring services and owner’s representation services. His responsibilities include pre-construction project reviews, including detailed assessments of proposed building systems, with a focus on the enclosure system as well as sustainability, performance and accessibility.

Dan has over 15 years of architectural experience as a practicing architect. His portfolio includes new construction high-rise commercial and residential projects in the United States, Middle East and Southeast Asia, as well as adaptive reuse and historic preservation projects in Chicago.

Prior to joining Marx|Okubo, Dan was Director of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Senior Project Manager at a Chicago design firm where he led the conversion of the firm’s project delivery to BIM, as well as managed a variety of projects from entitlements through construction.

Dan holds a bachelor’s of science degree in architectural studies from the University of Illinois – Urbana Champaign and is a licensed architect in the state of Wisconsin. He is a member for the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and is certified with the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB).

Maggie Easley, AIA

Associate

Chicago, Illinois

As Associate serving the Mountain-Midwest region, Maggie is engaged in performing various services at Marx|Okubo including property condition assessments, owner’s representation and pre-construction product reviews.

Prior to joining Marx|Okubo, Maggie was a project manager at an owner’s representative firm for two years. Before that she worked in architecture firms for over five years, finishing as a project architect before changing career paths. She has worked on multiple long-term, multi-phase renovation projects as an architect and owner’s representative in the commercial sector on office, retail, and restaurant projects. She also has experience in the sports, recreation, and entertainment sector having worked on collegiate sports projects and community recreation projects.

Maggie has a bachelor of science degree in architectural studies from the University of Illinois in Champaign – Urbana. She also has a master’s degree in architecture from Tulane University. Maggie is a licensed architect in the state of Illinois and is a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

Aniket Zarekar

Senior Project Coordinator

Chicago, Illinois

Senior Project Coordinator serving the Mountain-Midwest region, Aniket assists in building evaluations of existing and new-construction projects, as well as performs field observations for property condition assessments, facility condition assessments, and new construction/loan monitoring. He also conducts plan reviews for general code compliance and adequacy of construction, which includes coordination, detailing, and review of building materials/systems. In addition, Aniket prepares cost evaluations of new and existing construction, performs existing building replacement cost evaluations, and assists in architectural/engineering repair documents for existing buildings. His project expertise includes historic and landmarked structures, adaptive reuse, and cast-in-place concrete construction.

Prior to joining Marx|Okubo, Aniket worked for several years as a structural engineer at Silman in New York where he gained industry experience in structural design and project management. His project portfolio consists of over 56 small- to large-scale projects within the new construction, renovation, and rehabilitation sectors. His role included coordinating project requirements between the design team, architects, owner, mechanical/electrical/plumbing (MEP) consultants, and on-site contractors, as well as prioritizing project goals while maintaining design efficiencies, sustainability goals, and budget constraints. Aniket also worked at Nitterhouse Concrete Products in Pennsylvania performing structural analysis and design of precast concrete building components and their connections including parking garages, residential/commercial buildings, and envelope structures. In this role, he also coordinated project requirements with the engineers, drafters, architects, and manufacturing plant.

Aniket earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Pune University in Pune, India and a master’s degree in structural engineering from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Jordan Fitch

Senior Project Coordinator

Chicago, Illinois

As a Senior Project Coordinator in Marx|Okubo’s Mountain-Midwest region, Jordan performs field observations for property condition assessments, new construction/loan monitoring, and pre-construction project reviews for a variety of existing and new construction projects.

Prior to joining Marx|Okubo, Jordan spent five years as a practicing architect at a firm in Chicago, specializing in complex adaptive reuse and historic preservation projects, with an emphasis on multifamily residential and hospitality properties. In his role as a project architect, he monitored multiple mixed-use projects through the design process from concept to construction administration. With an interest in the intersection of sustainability and reuse of existing buildings, Jordan has led sustainability data-tracking efforts for over 40 projects per year at his previous firm.

Jordan earned a master’s degree in architecture from the University of Cincinnati, and also holds a master’s degree in teaching from the Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois. He earned a bachelor’s degree as a double major in mathematics and French from Centre College in Kentucky. Jordan is a licensed architect in the state of Illinois, LEED Green Associate certified, and a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).