About Us

Drake Construction Services, Inc. is dedicated in providing the wisdom and skill required to construct the best buildings for our customers. Holland Drake & his two sons, Kendall Drake & Dylan Drake, Owners, continue their family legacy of building in Central Florida since 1871. 

James E. Drake – In 1871 as President of the Gulf Railroad Company, built the 1st railroad line going south of Jacksonville to Eustis, FL.

Drake Lumber Locomotive

The “James E. Drake locomotive”

George MacKay (Holland’s Great Grandfather) – Was an early 1900’s Architect/Builder. Some of his buildings are pictured below: 

Ocala Courthouse
MARION COUNTY COURT HOUSE (ORIGINAL)
Marion Hotel
MARION HOTEL (in background)
Ocala Courthouse
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Marion Hotel
OCALA HIGH (now 8th Street School)

Trusten P. Drake, Jr. … In 1949 was appointed to the State Road Board and instrumental in bringing Ocala…s first four-lane highway, Pine Street.

George MacKay Drake and Trusten P. Drake, III - Owners of Drake Construction Co. and Drake Contracting, Inc. between 1961 … 1984. They built many significant buildings, some of their buildings are pictured below:

GPA at UF
GPA @ UF
Music Building at UF
MUSIC BLDG. @ UF
Ocala City Hall
OCALA CITY HALL
Journalism Building at UF
JOURNALISM BLDG. @ UF

Drake Construction Services, Inc.…s construction operation is managed by Holland Drake. Prior to starting Drake Construction Services in 2009, Holland led construction for 17 years as the Qualifying Contractor for Bruno-Ehlers Enterprises and as Project Manager with Brian Ehlers Construction and Edwards Construction on a vast spectrum of building projects. Some of these projects are pictured below:

Gateway Bank

GATEWAY BANK

Gateway BANK

GATEWAY BANK

Belleview Highschool

BELLEVIEW HIGH SCHOOL (Masonry & Concrete)
Library at Central FL Community College
LIBRARY @ CENTRAL FL. COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Lange Eyecare
LANGE EYE CARE
Ocala Family Medical Center
OCALA FAMILY MEDICAL CENTER
Crown Office Products
CROWN OFFICE PRODUCTS
Marion Citrus Mental Health Center
MARION CITRUS MENTAL HEALTH CENTER
Timberidge Professional Center
TIMBERRIDGE PROFESSIONAL CENTER

  

TESTIMONIALS: 
 

OCALA TRACTOR DEALERSHIP 2024, Ocala, FL

 

The Owner said upon Drake Construction championed bringing central water to the project via a 1-mile Marion County water main extension:

 

“Wow, great job guys. Really appreciate all the hard work! Also, thinking outside the box to put together this plan… 

Thanks again, Ryan” 
 
 
RAINBOW SPRINGS COUNTRY CLUB - 2018 Remodel/Restoration, Dunnellon, FL

“Kendall, Thanks again for all your help. You all were a pleasure to work with and never let us down! Feel free to use me as a reference for your work.”

Geoff Goetz, Co-Owner, Gissy-Goetz Properties LLC

 
Restoration of 100 year old Building - IVY ON THE SQUARE RESTAURANT, Ocala, FL

“Holland, Thanks for everything you did, as you had great vision along with a first-class crew”

Thanks, Kirk Boone, Owner

 
Stone's Home at CAMPALTO (Historic District Home Community by DRAKE CONSTRUCTION), Ocala, FL

 

"Holland, It is, as you have stated, a project only our good God could have brought into existence at exactly the right time. Greg and I speak often of how grateful we are. Working with your family and selected vendors has been a complete pleasure. We do not shy away from telling others how fantastic you all are. Your family has been extremely gracious and accommodating to our ideas, changes, add on's, you name it. It has been a fun journey! We look forward to meeting our neighbors and plugging into the wonderful community of Ocala."

Sincerely, Greg and Angela, Owner

 

Flood Restoration of 21 Condos after Hurricane Idalia (2023) - Paradise Point Villas Condos (PPVCA), Crystal River, FL 
 

“Holland & Kendall, Attached is a letter expressing the appreciation for the quality work done by your company.  It is a pleasure and encouraging to work with a company of such high standards.”
Best regards, Bill Martin, Treasurer, PPVCA

 
Flood Restoration of 15 Condos after Hurricane Hermine (2016) - Paradise Point Villas Condos (PPVCA), Crystal River, FL

 “Holland, Nice job, timely, great supervision, good subs, all around good job.  …”

Thanks,
Les Connon, Board Member, PPVCA

 

WHAT CLIENTS SAY:

Drake Construction Services strives to make sure every Owner detail is constructed at the highest quality in the fastest manner and lowest cost. Excerpts from some testimonials recognizing these building fundamentals include:

 

  
“Holland, Thanks for all of your help and hard work in building our family dream home.  You did an outstanding job.  We appreciate you honesty, integrity, and excellent attention to detail. 
 
It did not go un-noticed that you take  lot of pride in your work and are willing to go the extra mile to get the job done right.  It did not go un-noticed that you continually worked very hard to make sure that we were getting the best value for our money.  Our financial interest and our budget were very important to you, but you made sure that a quality home was also a important factor as well. 
 
It was a pleasure to work with you. Thanks for building our home.”
 
Sincerely,
Steven and Tricia Redrick
 
 
"……At the first meeting with Holland I knew that he was a different builder……. And Holland Drake has been true to his word.
 
Holland put together a fantastic team of people in an architect, a designer and multiple suppliers and made sure we were all on the same page. As the leader of this team he was conscious that I wanted to be part of every step and to be involved in making this home unique to our family. He listened to me, something that I value in a builder above all else. Not only that, but it became very obvious to me of his talent and expertise when I saw him researching on every detail of the home. He made sure we got the best quality at the best rate that I was within budget or under. No detail was sacrificed and I attribute that to Holland taking such pride in his work.
 
And the end result? It has exceeded Ron and my own expectations. It is our dream home, everything that we wanted and more. ……………………………..
 
We have had the privilege of building 9 homes in our journey of life and I would have to say that this was the best building experience we have ever had. We would recommend Holland Drake to anyone looking to build. He gives you 110% and his heart is evident in his work. Thank you so much Holland for sharing your passion with us and for helping us create our dream home."
 
With Grateful Hearts,
Denise and Ron Zook
 
Flood Restoration of 21 Condos after Hurricane Idalia (2023) - Paradise Point Villas Condos (PPVCA), Crystal River, FL    
 

"Drake Construction recently completed the restoration of 21 units at Paradise Point Villas Condominium Association (PPVCA) in Crystal River, FL.  The complex was heavily damaged by hurricane Idalia that hit on August 30, 2023.  There are a total of 38 condominium units at the complex, so Drake Construction restored over half of the units… A primary reason that over half of the owners selected Drake Construction is the past performance when they restored 15 units impacted by hurricane Hermine in 2016.  That experience, although seven years ago, was exceptional in that all units were completed in a timely manner with outstanding quality.  Of the various condominium complexes in Crystal River, PPVCA was completed months ahead of the other complexes, and this is largely due to the professional work of Drake Construction…

As treasurer of PPVCA, and the focal person to work with the FEMA adjuster, Holland and Kendall Drake were detailed in their communication, prompt, and always did what they said they would do.  I would highly recommend Drake Construction for a major construction project.

Bill Martin, Treasurer, PPVCA"

 
 Flood Restoration of 15 Condos after Hurricane Hermine (2016) - Paradise Point Villas Condos (PPVCA), Crystal River, FL

“Dear Holland:  On behalf of the Board of Paradise Point Villas & Condominiums (PPVCA) I am pleased to write this letter to thank you for the rebuilding of many of the units damaged by the floods occurring during Hurricane Hermine on September 2, 2016.

By my count, your company was responsible to repair/rebuild 15 homes on the property. … Our owners have been very pleased with the craftsmanship of workers and it is the general consensus that our homes are better now than before the flood.  …”

Thank You,
James Minton, President, PPVCA  

 

“Holland, I am very pleased with the quality work and timeliness of the reconstruction your company did at Paradise Point Villas Condominiums in Crystal River.  Your company performed the reconstruction on fifteen different units, and work began the last week in October.  Many units were completed by early January, and all units were completed by early March.  

Some other condominium complexes in Crystal River are still in early stages of reconstruction with high frustration by the condominium owners.  All of our unit owners have provided positive feedback as to the results your company provided.  Many thanks to you personally, as well as your on-site supervisor that kept work going smoothly throughout the project.”

Bill Martin, Treasurer, PPVCA

 
 
 
As Project Manager with Brian Ehlers Construction, Holland led the design-build team to build a new Ocala landmark, Gateway Bank. Carrying out every Owner detail is at the core of Holland’s building techniques. This attention to details was recognized by Tom Ingram, CEO of Gateway Bank, in the Jan. 2009 Ocala Style article featuring Gateway Bank. Tom’s remarks included:
 
“… design-build also allows for immediate attention when problems arise. When I was dissatisfied with the final exterior painting, I went directly to Holland to discuss alternatives.
“Some project managers would have been insulted, but Holland asked, ‘How can we make it better? What can we do to get it right?’” Tom recalls. “We had artist Dale Henry come in, and he made it a masterpiece.”
 
Tom Ingram, C.E.O., GatewayBank of Central Florida
 
 
More testimonials:
 
   “Thank you so much, everything looks so nice! All our patients love the new office.”
Carey Robinson, Administrator, Ocala Plastic Surgery / Villages Plastic Surgery
 
“I want to thank you for all of your fine work and diligent efforts. Your timetables are impeccable and always met with unwavering quality. We appreciate you.”
Chris Boyd, Boyd Development Company
 
.
“...for your participation in developing the new Ocala Family Medical Center.
 
Sharon Glassman especially wanted to thank you for your individual attention and professionalism in completing her building on time and within the agreed upon budget”.
                                                            Henry A. Ehlers, Bruno-Ehlers Enterprises, Inc.
 
 
“It was a pleasure to work with Holland and his staff, who were very conscientious of their work. It was great having the schedule from the beginning of the project, with each phase and its projected completion date. What of course was greater was the entire project was completed before the scheduled date of completion.”
                                                            Phillip Annunzio, Regional VP, Primerica
 
“It is especially pleasing and appropriate that I write this letter of appreciation to your company and those who enabled us to accomplish our company objectives.” “... your performance is to be commended. It was incredible to watch the progress daily. It was hard to believe that the quality and quantity of work was being completed from the use of generators. I have to be honest with you, I kept asking doubting questions and you kept a positive attitude and stayed focused on our objectives.”
                                                            Dewey D. Kemp, President, Crown Office Products
 
“You have truly provided our patients with a spectacular building. It is always an absolute honor and pleasure working with you.”
Rita Clymer, Administrator, Davita
 
 
“Holland, thanks again, bunches , for making our dream home come true!"
 
Jay & Denise Bird, Lake Weir Preserve
 
 
Drake Construction Services, Inc. provides the knowledge and experience needed to assure that each client receives the best building in accordance with their priorities. We assure innovation is brought to the forefront with each new project to assure that excellence in building construction is a continued family tradition.
 
 
Gaston Drake in 1904 founded Princeton, FL and provided lumber for Henry Flager's overseas railroad...(CLICK HERE) 
 
 
 
 
 

5 families that helped make Ocala great:  Meet the Drakes ...(CLICK HERE)