RFM Principal Dean Kelly Named a Leadership Kitsap 20 Under 40 Honoree
BREMERTON, Wash. — Dean Kelly, one of Rice Fergus Miller’s four Principals, has been named a 2023 20 Under 40 honoree by Leadership Kitsap. Dean helps oversee the Bremerton, WA-based architecture and planning firm, which has projects in six markets: hospitality, housing, healthcare, community, education, and fire and emergency services. The firm practices in seven Western U.S. states and is headquartered in Bremerton in one of the most sustainable buildings in the country.
Leadership Kitsap’s 20 Under 40 Awards Program seeks to identify and celebrate exceptional business leaders under the age of 40 who are dynamic trailblazers in the Kitsap community. The program aims to help these young leaders amplify their contributions to Kitsap’s economy and civic dialog. “I am incredibly honored to be among this year’s class of award winners, and I am grateful to RFM for drawing me to this wonderful place my family and I call home,” said Dean.
Dean joined RFM in 2014 after relocating his family from Texas to join the firm. In eight years, he has risen from a staff architect to one of four Principals and major shareholders who own and operate RFM. Dean now shares ultimate responsibility for the success of the firm’s second generation, as former owners Steve Rice, Dave Fergus, and Mike Miller all retired in the last two years. The firm has more than 50 employees and was recently ranked number 16 in the Puget Sound Business Journal’s list of top architecture firms.
Dean’s design experience has centered around master planning, senior and multi-family housing, and mixed-use projects. He is a former Chair of Bremerton’s Design Review Board and has led large scale master plans for Non-Profit Senior Living Organizations and Tribes across the Puget Sound region. In his local community, he is currently leading the design of Port Orchard’s new waterfront Community Event Center as well as Evergreen Pointe, a proposed multifamily apartment project adjacent to Evergreen Park. Dean serves as a design mentor to junior staff, and ensures the firm maintains a rich culture of design discourse.
Dean was a leader of design efforts for Quincy Square, a revitalization of 4th Street in downtown Bremerton. The project will transform 4th Street into a destination for music, performance, and food, featuring a stage, festival lighting, seating areas, and a piano paving motif inspired by Quincy Jones. The project has received funding and construction is slated to begin in 2023.
Inspired by the Quincy Square project, the Music Discovery Center is an organization that will provide inclusive music education access to youth across Kitsap County. Dean is a founding board member and helped the MDC achieve non-profit status while serving as Vice President.
Beyond the architecture realm, Dean uses his leadership abilities to give back to the community whenever he can. He coaches his son’s soccer team, attends community events and fundraisers, and volunteers for charity events through Rice Fergus Miller’s generous charitable giving program. Steve Rice, RFM’s Founding Principal noted, “I have hired hundreds of staff since 1987, and I can say that Dean is a once-in-a-generation leader.”
The 2023 honorees will be celebrated at a gala on January 26th at the Kitsap Convention Center. Dean follows in the footsteps of fellow RFM Principal Jennifer Fleming, who was a 2022 Leadership Kitsap 20 Under 40 honoree.
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About Rice Fergus Miller
Rice Fergus Miller, Inc.—a B Corp., is an architecture, interior design, and planning firm based in Bremerton, Washington. Established in 1987 and the only architecture firm in Washington State with Certified B Corporation status, the firm is committed to performing meaningful work that builds and strengthens communities. Housed in a reclaimed Sears auto service center that is one of the most energy-efficient buildings in the United States, Rice Fergus Miller blends the personal aspirations of its more than 50 team members with a vision for sustainable design. In 2022, the firm celebrated 35 years in business.