Tucker Reed

Principal

Tucker Reed is Co-Founder and Principal of Totem. Aside from serving as CEO, he leads our real estate development projects and advisory work. Tucker has nearly two decades of experience navigating the complex intersection of New York City government and private real estate development. Early in his career he worked for Mayor Michael Bloomberg on workforce development policy, connecting some of New York’s poorest citizens to job and growth opportunities, and he was an instrumental part of helping to transform Brooklyn’s waterfront from an abandoned manufacturing hub into one of the world’s premier innovation districts.

He then transitioned to private real estate working at Two Trees, the company largely responsible for the revitalization of neighborhoods like DUMBO and the Williamsburg waterfront. In between working for the City and Two Trees, Tucker spent 18 months in Baghdad during the Iraq War helping to lead redevelopment efforts against a backdrop of extreme violence and a total breakdown of city services.

In 2011, he was appointed by City Hall and the Brooklyn real estate community to lead the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership – the local development corporation tasked with the revitalization of Brooklyn, a key component of Mayor Bloomberg’s five-borough growth strategy. Under his 5-year leadership, the organization attracted more than $20 billion dollars of private investment to the area, resulting in thousands of new apartments, new office buildings, and Barclays Center.

Today, under Tucker's leadership, Totem has built an impressive pipeline of new development across Brooklyn, with approximately 1.5 million square feet of projects. He has advised on urban redevelopment projects across the globe from Tokyo to Pittsburgh to San Salvador and has been named to the list of Commercial Observer's 100 Most Powerful People in New York City real estate. He serves on the Board of BRIC and the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce and is on the faculty at New York University’s Shack Institute of Real Estate. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and puppy dog.