Hi, I’m Riley Clements, and I recently joined the Charlotte Alliance Young Professionals (“YP”) Board at the beginning of 2022. I am excited to join the Regional Engagement Committee focused on connecting with other young professionals supporting the Charlotte Region. My goal for this committee is to foster ongoing communication to improve Charlotte’s impact beyond our “typical” view by leveraging Charlotte’s growth to better our neighbors by sharing lessons learned and best practices.
A native to Charlotte, one of the rare ones I know, I grew up in what used to be South Charlotte, near South Mecklenburg High School. Nowadays, this area feels closer than ever to the Central Business District. I have been fortunate to be able to see Charlotte change over the course of my life. Just last week, I told a colleague how we used to call Charlotte the “20-minute city” meaning you could travel from one side to the other within 20 minutes. Traffic really wasn’t a thing back when I was growing up. Nowadays, it’s the norm. As a native, I am thrilled about this growth and proud to share Charlotte on a platform such as the Young Professionals Board.
My life looks very different than it did at the start of the pandemic. My wife, Mckenna, and I welcomed our first child, Calder. He’s the center of our world. While raising our first child by ourselves was challenging, it was the best thing for me as a first-time father. Our family lives in Belmont, not the city, but the neighborhood! We love the ever-changing aspect of the neighborhood and everything we can walk to and enjoy. You will often see us at Optimist Hall or Giddy Goat coffee on the weekends. Just look for the crazy blonde boy running around with our pit bull Tony.
Professionally, I have been in the commercial construction industry my entire career. I originally studied mechanical engineering at UNC Charlotte. When the economic recession hit in 2008, I decided to go to CPCC to learn construction management with a focus on carpentry. Construction is the family business. I decided I wanted to work with my hands and build in the field. Fast forward 14 years and I have learned that I am far better at talking than building.
In 2021, I joined DPR Construction, a national self-performing general contractor focused on highly complex and technical projects. We focus on five key markets: commercial, higher education, life science, advanced technology and healthcare. I am very fortunate to be able to share our unique approach with our clients and partners. We recently completed “The Line,” an exciting new mixed-use development next to the current Sycamore Brewing (sorry for the rail trail closure!). Charlotte is expanding rapidly but is learning from cities that have done what we are doing before us. While traffic is bad, it’s not nearly as bad as our neighbors in Georgia. With our mass transit years ahead of our competition that is now trying to play catchup, we are in a wonderful position. South End alone is a nationally ranked submarket for expansion. The amount of development slated for the area will forever leave a lasting impact on our region. It will continue to attract the best and brightest young professionals – ones that we hope to have join our board in the future.
Throughout my career, I have been close to but not active in the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance. My family members in the industry have been active participants in the CLT Alliance and I am looking forward to making my own impact. I found the board after discussions with DPR leadership. While we are a national contractor, we function as a mid-size builder in our local markets. We are heavily involved in the local community through our community initiatives program and the DPR Foundation providing grants, workforce development training, and volunteer hours to local organizations. You will see us partnering with Goodwill Industries, Grier Heights, The Roc, Veterans Bridge Home, etc. My membership on the YP Board is another impact we hope to make in growing our young leaders to be more focused on our communities in a different way. I look forward to growing the YPs in voice and impact over the coming years.
