Alice L. Walton Foundation names designers for 100-acre health care campus in Bentonville
by November 12, 2025 12:18 pm 9,322 views
A rendering of the Center for Advanced Specialty Care in Bentonville from CannonDesign shows the building ranges in height from four to seven levels. A spokeswoman said the details, including cost, square footage and the number of stories, have yet to be determined.
The Alice L. Walton Foundation announced Wednesday (Nov. 12) that New York-based CannonDesign and Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based EDSA will design the Bentonville Health Care Campus that’s planned to be built west of Interstate 49.
The first phase of the 100-acre campus will include the construction of a Center for Advanced Specialty Care, parking garage, central utility building, and gardens and trails. The initial phase is expected to open in December 2028 on the north part of the campus, southwest of I-49 and East Central Avenue (Arkansas Highway 72). It will be accessible through Central Avenue and McCollum Drive.
In February, the Alice L. Walton Foundation announced the purchase of the 100-acre campus site as part of a $700 million, 30-year affiliation announced in September 2024 between Mercy, Heartland Whole Health Institute and the foundation. The partnership includes $350 million from the foundation to develop an outpatient center of care for specialty services in Bentonville and $350 million from Mercy to build a new cardiac care center at its hospital in Rogers. The collaboration also includes the Cleveland Clinic, which will contribute its cardiovascular knowledge to the effort.
“Our innovative partnership focused on bringing world-class specialty care to our region needs equally innovative design partners,” said founder and philanthropist Alice Walton. “I’m delighted to announce that CannonDesign and EDSA have been selected to design our future Bentonville Health Care Campus. They bring to this project an understanding of whole health and how our environment and interactions influence our health and well-being. They’ve coupled that understanding with admiration for the beauty of the Ozark region and the collaborative spirit of our community, and channeled it into designs that enhance accessibility, connection, and ultimately wellness.”
Renderings show the building for the new center ranges in height from four to seven levels. A spokeswoman said the details, including cost, square footage, and the number of stories, have yet to be determined, as the project is still in the early stages of design.
“We’re designing this campus through the lens of living-centered design, which explores how places can help people live healthier lives and support stronger communities,” said PJ Glasco, project executive and health practice leader at CannonDesign. “What the foundation is striving to achieve with this campus is extraordinary, as it addresses interconnected health needs at a scale few have ever attempted. Our team is thrilled to help bring this vision to life and demonstrate how design can directly shape healthier outcomes across the region.”
According to a news release, the Bentonville Health Care Campus will be unique from conventional health care developments that comprise a series of clinical buildings connected with parking lots. The new campus will be “a fully integrated environment design focused on enhancing whole-person health — physical, mental, social and emotional well-being.”
The landscape of the new campus will include green space, trails and pedestrian paths linked to “contemplative areas designed for quiet retreat,” the release shows. “Water serves as both a unifying feature of the landscape and a key part of the campus’s sustainability strategy.” Stormwater will be captured, cleansed and reused.
“Every design decision is guided by ecological wellness and human experience,”said EDSA Principal Gregg Sutton. “Through architecture, landscape, and art, we’re crafting spaces that feel alive, connect people to nature, and inspire healing. Materials like wood, stone, glass, and metal work in harmony with flowing water and curated art to create environments that support both physical and emotional well-being. The goal is for the campus to feel less like a place to ‘get treated’ and more like a place to live well.”
Construction on the first phase of the new campus is expected to start in 2026. Arkansas-based Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects will work with CannonDesign as local architects of record. Polk Stanley Wilcox’s recent work includes the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine building, which opened earlier this year on the Crystal Bridges Campus, about 2 miles west of the Bentonville Health Care Campus.
Additional contractors include Tulsa, Okla.-based Flintco as construction manager, Conway-based Nabholz is responsible for large-scale campus development and Houston-based Walter P Moore is handling civil engineering.