Texas & Louisiana City Scoop: Construction Starts in Little Rock
Before the COVID-19 outbreak, the value of new contracts was expected to fall 29%
Sharp declines had been forecast across all three market sectors, with non-residential posting the biggest drop.
City Grill
Bill Roachell
President
ABC Arkansas
Three major projects are generating buzz in the Little Rock area, including two from Amazon. The retail giant is constructing an 826,000-sq-ft fulfillment center on 80 acres at the Port of Little Rock and also refurbishing an 85,000-sq-ft facility in southwest Little Rock, Roachell says. “They’re calling it their ‘last mile’ delivery center, so they’ve made a huge investment here in central Arkansas.”
A nearly $1-billion project to widen a seven-mile stretch of Interstate 30 that traverses downtown Little Rock has created some development in the eastern part of the city, which has been on a bit of a decline in the last couple of years, Roachell adds.
While a few jobsites shut down as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Little Rock contractors have mostly continued to work, he says.
Looking ahead, “it’s going to be interesting to see the effect that Amazon’s [projects are] going to have—if it’s going to continue to spur growth in east Little Rock out to the river port,” he says. “Some for sale signs have already gone up on some property that’s out at the Amazon facility—people want to be out in that area now that Amazon is there.”
