Healthcare Heavyweight
Project Director Colin Halsey oversees a thriving team of healthcare construction specialists in McCarthy’s Kansas City office.
Anyone who doubts the growing impact of McCarthy’s KC healthcare team should take a peek at the U.S. map Colin Halsey created to chart the team’s current project work.
Spanning eight states and multiple health systems, the diverse assignments reflect a booming healthcare practice with Halsey’s fingerprints all over it.
Since putting down roots in Overland Park with his family in 2020, Halsey has been a driving force in expanding McCarthy’s regional healthcare practice by more than 85%.
His expertise and innovative approach are evident in projects that include a recent expansion of the South Medical Pavilion Infusion Clinic for The University of Kansas Health System to double its capacity. Completed more than a month earlier than projected, the expanded clinic began treating patients three months sooner than anticipated.
“I challenged our project team to think outside of the box, and we ended up coming up with a way to build a temporary corridor to rephase and resequence the project,” he says.
That novel solution helped McCarthy secure a continuous works relationship with The University of Kansas Health System that has led to 14 additional expansion and renovation projects since January 2024. “I think KU appreciates our team’s focus on understanding their business and identifying opportunities to deliver each project as efficiently as possible,” he says.
Halsey also oversaw construction of the KCUC Kansas City Proton Institute, the region’s first privately owned, physician-led proton therapy center. Specializing in advanced radiation therapy treatments for cancer, the clinic helps to make lifesaving care more accessible and affordable for the community.
He’s currently deploying individual project teams for a dozen projects in six states for CommonSpirit Health, the nation’s second-largest nonprofit hospital system.
Halsey loves working on healthcare projects because of their technical complexities and positive community impact.
“These buildings now function like living, breathing organisms,” he says. “When people visit hospitals, they may be having the best day of their life if they're welcoming a new baby or the worst day of their life if they're saying goodbye to a loved one. It’s so rewarding to work on buildings that have such a profound impact on our communities.”
Rock-Solid Foundation
A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Halsey grew up surrounded by strong construction influences. His grandfather was a civil engineer who designed and built his own home, and his dad was a carpenter who worked in the trades before shifting to electrical wholesale distribution sales.
Many of Halsey’s childhood memories recall collaborations with his dad on home improvement projects. “With my dad’s skills as a carpenter, he was always tinkering on projects around the house, and I'd be there right next to him swinging a hammer, helping him cut boards and putting stuff in place,” he says.
At a young age, Halsey also discovered his mechanical aptitude. “I used to love taking my toys apart to see how they worked and how they went back together,” he says.
As a high school senior, Halsey worked for a general contractor that specialized in concrete work. “I'd go to school until lunchtime, and then work for three or four hours in the afternoon,” he recalls. “It was great because it helped me save for college and learn the trade.”
When it came time to choose a college, Michigan State University topped Halsey’s list of prospects because of its strong construction management program and reputation as a sports powerhouse.
As a freshman, Halsey met the woman who would become his future wife, and as a junior, he met the company that would become his future employer.
His introduction to McCarthy came at a MSU career fair where he met representatives from the company’s Southern California region. “I went to an information session one evening, had an interview the next day, and they offered me a summer internship opportunity to work on the Los Angeles International Airport Terminal Renovation project.”
The 12-week internship provided Halsey with hands-on experience managing the details of a major construction project, including submittals, RFIs, document control and coordination with trade partners. “I got to know a lot of great people, and I loved the culture and how we worked together as a team,” he says.
At the conclusion of the internship, McCarthy offered Halsey a full-time position to join its Southern California team. But he wanted to launch his career in the Midwest and joined McCarthy’s St. Louis office as a project engineer in 2008. “I spent my first 12 years traveling counterclockwise around the greater Midwest,” he jokes, recalling his project experiences in Omaha, Oklahoma City, Joplin, St. Louis and Des Moines.
A standout project experience involved serving as a superintendent during the construction of a replacement hospital for Mercy in Joplin, Missouri, after an EF5 tornado destroyed the previous hospital in 2011. Completed under budget and in less than half the time it would typically take to construct a similarly sized hospital, the 890,000-sq.-ft. facility opened in March 2015.
“At the time, it was the fastest and largest job in company history that we took from inception through completion,” he says. “I think it was so successful because everyone just checked their egos at the door and did what was best for the project. A lot of us joke that it was the most fun job we'd never want to do again.”
Since relocating to Overland Park in 2020, Halsey has thrived in his new Midwest home. “Kansas City is a great city and a top place to raise my family,” he says. “We love it here.”
He’s particularly proud of McCarthy’s growth and diversification across the region. “We're executing work for all of the region’s major healthcare systems, our water and wastewater group is thriving, and our science and technology projects are really gaining momentum,” he says. “The sky's the limit for us in Kansas City.”
Colin and his family at Disney's Tower of Terror.
Get to Know Colin
- Colin and his wife, Erika, are parents of son, Connor (9) and daughter, Kaylee (7). They live in Overland Park.
- He leads the local McCarthy Partnership for Women team, a resource group focused on the recruitment, development and retention of women in construction.
- Ingram’s magazine recently named Colin to its 40 Under Forty list of young business leaders for 2025.
- Outside of work, he volunteers for community improvement projects through McCarthy’s Heart Hats program and also serves as a coach for his kids’ sports teams.
- A sports enthusiast, Colin is a passionate fan of the Kansas City Chiefs and the Michigan State University athletic teams.
