Bram Keahey, partner, manager and project architect with Taggart Architects in North Little Rock, is an optimist at heart. Keahey has been with the firm for 31 of its 50 years, and while he is not shy to admit any of the challenges faced by his industry today, he has always seen those hiccups as just another part of the journey to a successful project.
“Any difficult or trying situation is just a new experience and opportunity. I’ve learned that everything is manageable. I often tell myself that if I can make it through today, I can make it through any day,” he said, “and I do.”
Keahey originally planned to go into medicine, where he could combine his passion for people with his fascination with science. After landing on the architecture path instead, he found that the two professions had more in common than at first thought. Both are a mixture of art and science, he said, and now he can improve lives in a different way — by building places for people to live, work and play.
“I like being in a space that inspires me to be better and to see a world that is more resolved and intentional,” he said. “Good design benefits everyone, which in turn makes living in a community more fulfilling. We try to create something that makes going to work, walking in a plaza or just studying in a well-lit space a beneficial experience.”
Architecture school at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville taught him to “solve problems with a purpose,” he said, and that commitment has served him well over three decades at Taggart. The firm’s client-centric approach means that, even when things don’t go according to plan, Keahey and the rest of the team do whatever it takes to bring a client’s vision to life. His role, as he sees it, is that of a narrator. Constraints such as timing and budgeting turn him into a discerning editor, as well, he said.
“When you’re designing and you’re coming up with the best solution, it’s not terribly disappointing to me to have to change gears or to lose something, because I know inevitably the client’s going to appreciate that,” he said. “Having limits causes you to focus on what’s essential to the project, and yeah, maybe you lose something that was a great feature or a perfect design element, but the project becomes stronger because you focus on the things that are important.”
Keahey also credited two of the firm’s earliest partners, the late Jerry Currence and chairman emeritus Bill Gray, for their profound impact on both his career and the Taggart design ethos. For a long time, Keahey said, Currence and Gray were “the heart and soul of the company.”
“Jerry taught me the value of client-focused design and service. His natural gift of knowing the client and quickly getting to their solution is something that I work on every day,” Keahey said. “Bill Gray taught me, and continues to guide us as chairman emeritus, that it’s the staff and people around you that make a difference.”
Taggart’s move from its longtime location off McCain Boulevard to its new digs on Main Street in the Argenta Arts District represented another key development in the firm’s philosophy. The building has given Taggart a front row seat to — and a large hand in — the transformation of the area.
“We’re much more engaged with the Argenta Historic Design Commission, much more engaged with the city on how they’re developing and continuing to grow,” Keahey said. “By being downtown and making that move, we’re much more engaged with the heart of North Little Rock.”
As it celebrates its 50-year milestone, the firm is already looking ahead to the next half-century. The Taggart team, which is made up of mostly longtime employees, is committed to strengthening those things that have set it apart so far, whether it be cultivating deeper relationships with repeat clients, attention to detail or unwavering quality in the finished product. True to form, Keahey is eager for what’s to come, both challenges and successes alike.
“It’s a good time to be at Taggart.”
READ ALL OF AMP’S APRIL TOP TEN HERE.
