Feature image: Bram Keahey (Photo by Jamie Lee)
For 50 years, TAGGART Architects in North Little Rock has been working to create a better world one project at a time. Founded as Burt Taggart and Associates by Burt Taggart Jr. in 1975, what began as a passion for thoughtful, purposeful design has grown into an award-winning practice licensed in 32 states and with a reputation for shaping spaces that are focused, intentional and passionate.
Over the past five decades, TAGGART Architects has been privileged to design schools that foster learning, workplaces that drive innovation, civic buildings that connect communities and health care spaces that improve lives. With each project, the team has remained committed to the core principles of sustainability, innovation and a deep understanding of the people who inhabit the spaces the firm creates.
The firm has been a driving force behind the revitalization of the Argenta Arts District in downtown North Little Rock, where TAGGART Architects now calls home after moving in 2020 from its original location just off the city’s main retail hub.
From the roof of the firm’s new 600 Main building in Argenta, designed and built to serve as the company’s new headquarters, several iconic TAGGART projects can be seen — Argenta Plaza, the First Orion building, Simmons Bank Arena, Dickey-Stephens Park, the Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub and Argenta Contemporary Theatre.
The new North Little Rock Events Center, under construction nearby on the riverfront, is another TAGGART project.
Some of the firm’s signature projects outside Arkansas include the Cleveland Clinic Edwin Shaw Rehabilitation Hospital in Ohio and Select Medical Rehabilitation hospitals in St. Louis and Las Vegas. Inside the Natural State, work in the health care arena includes numerous projects for Little Rock-based CHI St. Vincent Health System and Unity Health.
On the educational front, TAGGART has done extensive work with the North Little Rock School District, as well as the University of Central Arkansas in Conway and the Little Rock and North Little Rock campuses of the University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College.
As managing partners Bram Keahey, James Meyer and Brandon Ruhl reflect on the milestone anniversary, they look forward to continuing to elevate details above all else. They believe that exceptional service and great design are nonnegotiable and that details define how they plan, design and build spaces for communities.
The next 50 years have the potential for even greater possibilities. The built environment continues to evolve rapidly, shaped by advancements in technology, climate-conscious considerations and the ever-changing needs of the people whose interactions give life and purpose to every project. TAGGART Architects is prepared to embrace the challenges of the future with the same forward-thinking approach that has defined the firm over its history. Â
600 Main St., Suite 300, North Little Rock
501-758-7443
Year founded: 1975
Years in Business: 50
Number of Employees: 25
Years in LREA: 7
Now celebrating its 50th anniversary, TAGGART Architects in North Little Rock was integral to the development of the Argenta Arts District.
