Jimmy Moses and Rett Tucker have decided to divide and continue.
No, the Little Rock developers are not parting ways. They’re looking to the future, Moses said in an interview.
Moses Tucker Real Estate will become two separate companies within six months to a year, Moses said.
One will concentrate on development while the other will continue to sell and manage commercial real estate in the city and state.
“We’re trying to put in a strong growth and succession program for our company,” he said. “Rett and I are both 63 years old. We just want to make sure that we properly set up our business to be competitive.”
Toward that end, one of Moses’ sons, Chris, 36, has been elevated to president and chief operating officer of the company.
When the company splits, Chris Moses will head up the commercial real estate operation, with 3.5-million square feet under his management, his father said.
Jimmy Moses and Tucker will be joined by Moses’ other son, Jamie, who is 39, in the development company.
“We’re more of a development company by choice, because that was what I started it up as 34 years ago” as Allison, Moses Redden Architects, Jimmy Moses said.
Moses, an urban planner by training, said AMR Real Estate was then created and eventually became Moses Tucker Real Estate.
“This is a dual effort to strengthen both areas of our business. Little Rock is in a position to become in the next 10, 20, 30 years a real powerhouse city. And we want to be in the forefront of continuing to make that happen.”
Creating “a great urban core is still at the core of our mission, and will always be,” he said.
Moses and Tucker were instrumental in developing the River Market District in the mid-’90s, and their efforts have spread from that beginning.
Starting in 2002 and continuing till 2009, they built nearly 300 condominiums, most of which are in two high rise buildings, the 18-story 300 Third and the 19-story River Market Tower.
While the 300 Third was a rousing success, with 83percent of the high-dollar condos sold by the end of the first year, 2007, the River Market Tower, completed in 2009, languishes, with only 39 percent of the units sold as of mid-June, according to Pulaski County land records.
The two towers’ performances reflect the cratering of the housing market in 2008.
Moses and Tucker have turned to building loft apartments in the Mann on Main, which is expected to be completed by August with the construction of Bruno’s Little Italy, part of the mixed-use project that includes office space.
By next year, at least 175 loft apartments are expected to be on the market on Main and on Capitol Avenue between Louisiana and Center streets, all in old, vacant buildings. Most of them are to be built by Scott Reed, a Portland, Ore.-based developer, and partners.
Moses is undeterred by the condo overbuild in downtown.
“We typically can do a project, maybe two projects at a time. [But] Little Rock has gotten to the point where we can do more projects if we have a better and bigger team.” If you have a tip, call Jack Weatherly at (501) 378-3518 or e-mail him at
Business, Pages 63 on 07/07/2013