SmithGroup Opens New Charlotte Office, Expanding Higher Education Presence in the Carolinas

SmithGroup, one of the nation’s leading integrated design firms, has opened a new office in Charlotte, expanding its growing presence in the Southeast and reinforcing a longstanding commitment to Higher Education across the Carolinas.

The new Charlotte office builds on the momentum of SmithGroup’s Atlanta location, opened in 2022, and a decades-long legacy of serving colleges and universities throughout the Carolinas. The new office will initially focus on serving higher education clients, with plans to expand into additional markets over time.

Suzanne McDade has joined SmithGroup as a Senior Principal and Higher Education Studio Leader and will lead the firm’s Charlotte presence. With more than 20 years of experience delivering complex academic and campus projects, McDade brings deep expertise and longstanding relationships with institutions across the Carolinas, including UNC Chapel Hill, NC State, Clemson University, UNC Charlotte, the North Carolina Community College System. and the South Carolina Technical College System.

“I look forward to expanding SmithGroup’s presence in North Carolina’s higher education market and building on the strong relationships I’ve formed with campus leaders across the region,” said McDade.

Joining McDade in the firm's Charlotte office is Matt McNeely, a seasoned operations and project manager with 25 years of experience.  He joins SmithGroup as a Principal after spending more than two decades leading a wide range of higher education and science & technology projects at institutions throughout the Southeast including East Carolina University and UNC Wilmington

While the Charlotte office represents a new physical location for SmithGroup, the firm is well established in the region. SmithGroup has worked on projects for a wide range of North Carolina institutions, including North Carolina State University, Wake Forest University, Duke University, UNC-Chapel Hill, UNC-Charlotte, East Carolina University and Western Carolina University.

The firm’s work in the state spans the full breadth of its higher education expertise, from strategy and analytics, such as Wake Forest University’s space utilization study; to campus planning, including the North Carolina State University Physical Master Plan; to building-scale projects such as the University of North Carolina at Greensboro Nursing and Instructional Building and the Western Carolina University New Engineering Building, which is currently in the design process. Beyond higher education, SmithGroup has led projects such as the Ally Charlotte Center and is currently engaged in projects that include the WakeMed Whole Health Campus, North Carolina Museum of History, and the Innovation Quarter Phase II Master Plan anchored by Wake Forest School of Medicine and supported by Advocate Health.

“The opening of our Charlotte office represents an important milestone in SmithGroup’s continued growth,” said Bob Bull, East Region Director at SmithGroup. “By expanding our geographic presence, we are better positioned to pair local insight with our national depth in higher education, which will strengthen client relationships throughout the Southeast and deepen our connection to the communities in North and South Carolina”.

The Charlotte office of SmithGroup is located at 600 S Tryon Street, Suite 1800.

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