Putting years of on-the-job construction experience
to work for you.

Ryan Derrick

Partner / Construction Management

As a Partner in Colony Construction Management, Ryan is responsible for leading all construction-related activities on behalf of third-party clients.  In this role, Ryan is responsible for pre-construction pricing, budget and design optimization, day-to-day management of capital improvement projects and the overall execution of the firm’s value enhancing capital initiatives. Prior to joining Colony Commercial, Ryan was a project manager and oversaw the Charlotte region for a leading institutional general contractor.  

Over his career Ryan has worked for leading regional architecture and general contractors, leading the delivery of nearly $100M since 2018 across a variety of product types for a number of institutional-quality clients.

Drew Smith, PE

Senior Construction Manager

As a Construction Manager, Drew oversees the execution of projects from design through construction.  Drew is responsible for preconstruction activities, including design and value engineering reviews, as well as the firm’s day-to-day management of clients’ capital improvement projects.

Before joining Colony Commercial, Drew worked for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for 12 years in three different districts, which included Savannah, Germany and New York City.  Drew has a broad range of experience managing a multitude of military, marine, ground-up construction and renovation/adaptive reuse projects.  In addition to managing construction, Drew ran the Army Corps Value Engineering Program for several years.

Drew graduated from North Carolina State University with a BS in Civil Engineering and later earned a Master of Building Construction from Auburn University. Additionally, Drew is a licensed Professional Engineer in North Carolina and Georgia.  

Sam LoDebole, PE

Senior Construction Manager

As a Construction Manager, Sam’s main focus is on multifamily construction while also assisting in Colony Commercial’s adaptive reuse projects. Sam is involved in the early stages of design where he assists with design optimization and constructability, and then handles the day-to-day management of the multifamily projects. 

Before joining Colony Commercial, Sam worked for a Civil Engineering firm in Charlotte, NC for 3 years where he assisted on multifamily, office, retail, and mixed-use projects all around the city. Prior to working as a Civil Engineer, Sam worked for a Structural Engineering firm in Raleigh, NC doing residential structural design and inspections.

Sam graduated from North Carolina State University with a BS in Civil Engineering and is a licensed engineer in North Carolina.

Lauren Shirley

Construction Manager

As a Construction Manager, Lauren’s primary focus is on multifamily construction while also assisting in the management of Colony Commercial’s upfit projects. Lauren's early involvement is concentrated on design coordination and efficiency review. Her day-to-day participation for active projects includes management of financials, schedule, and personnel coordination. Her client-focused efforts remain consistent through construction completion and project turnover.

Before joining Colony Commercial, Lauren worked as a Construction Administration Manager for a Commercial Architect in Charlotte, NC. Her primary roles were to enforce the Contract Documents and act as a liaison between the General Contractor, Ownership, and the Architecture teams. Her main focus was Multifamily and Senior Living projects across the Southeast. Prior to this role, Lauren worked as a Project Engineer for a General Contractor in Charlotte, NC where she facilitated project documentation and assisted in financials and construction scheduling for a high-end Mixed-Use development.

Lauren graduated from Virginia Tech with a BS in Civil Engineering and a focus in Construction Management.