Rod Barker

We know him as Rod Barker, but what better way to become “intimate” with this Chairman of the Durango Business Improvement District board than to learn his full, given name: Roderick Earl Barker.

As president and CEO of the Historic Strater Hotel, Rod, like all members of the BID board, has a vital stake in maintaining the economic viability of downtown Durango.

For essentially his entire life, Rod has been involved in hotel operation and design. His father, Earl, and a group of businessmen, formed the New Strater Corporation in 1926 and took over management of the hotel. Earl eventually became sole owner, and young Rod learned the industry from literally the ground up, serving as everything from bellman, buffet cook and accounting clerk, to general manager.

He did, however, take time away from Durango, attending the University of Colorado, Boulder, where he studied Geology and Environmental Conservation. He went on to study Business at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, and graduated with a BA in Business Administration from Fort Lewis College.

Rod’s experience in the tourism industry includes serving as a tour escort for Tauck Tours, in Westport, Conn., and various positions at fine hotels including the Broadmoor, Colorado Springs; the Brown Palace, Denver; and Westin Crown Center, Kansas City, before settling back in Durango at the Strater.

In 1980 he founded Strater Interiors, an interior design service, and has since been employing his talents in the redesign of the Strater’s “look” – including the work done on The Office and Mahogany Grille.

Numerous non-profit entities, both locally and on the state level have benefited from Rod’s volunteer involvement and leadership, most recently ACME (promoting cardiac surgery in Durango), the Downtown Durango Partnership, Durango Healthcare Collaborative, Historic Hotels of the Rockies, Fort Lewis Foundation, LEAD, and the Center for Southwest Studies. He joins the First National Bank of Durango board this year, and is also the recipient of the Presidents Award (Colorado Hotel & Lodging Association), the Chancellor’s Tourism Award for Leadership & Service (University of Colorado), and the Distinguished Alumni Award (Fort Lewis College).