NWA tasks a part of St. Louis developer’s new entire health-focused actual property firm

A St. Louis developer has formed a new real estate company focused on whole health and is investing more than $100 million in Northwest Arkansas projects to help get it off the ground.

Rob Goltermann said Road Trip Development would fill a void in the multifamily market — promoting better health outcomes for tenants through development.

“I’ve been doing development for 20 years; this is the perfect time to launch this brand,” said Goltermann, who is also president of DCM Management Co. “Especially in Northwest Arkansas. Everything we do through programming and amenities will provide the public with a new way to live. Through mental health, physical health, how they eat — all of the above.”

“The entire premise is that this multifamily brand is centered around mental and physical health.  It will not only be about the brick-and-mortar (which is a huge part of it and the amenities) but will have exclusive programming as well.”

Goltermann said DCM and Road Trip Development are separate companies. Road Trip Development’s launch coincides with the construction start for its flagship design — a 207-unit project on College Avenue in Fayetteville called The Claude. DCM bought the site near the Northwest Arkansas Mall last summer and built a 6,400-square-foot retail building on a portion of the land. It’s fully leased to Aspen Dental and Sleep Member.

Goltermann said The Claude would include numerous amenities that promote health and well-being. In an interview, he listed meditation rooms, secret gardens, infrared saunas and cold plunge pools as examples.

“The whole premise of the company is to create a better way to live for the American public and use a unique, disruptive process that will introduce better health outcomes to tenants,” Goltermann said. “At Road Trip Development, we are going to give our tenants something they didn’t know they were missing.”

Thomas Construction of Osage Beach, Mo., is the builder. The Claude will have floor plans ranging from 550 to 1,650 square feet. Lease rates will be from $1,015 to $3,050 ($1.85 per square foot).

Goltermann said Road Trip’s origin (and namesake) came from multiple trips to Northwest Arkansas and learning about the Bentonville nonprofit Whole Health Institute, created in 2020 by Walmart Inc. heiress and philanthropist Alice Walton to make a transformative approach to health and well-being available to everyone.

“We want to provide developments that offer new ways to live for tenants,” he said. “The purpose of the entire company is where wellness, art, and health all converge.”

Goltermann said Road Trip Development has two Bentonville projects in the development pipeline. The first is a five-unit pocket community scheduled to break ground in April at 809 N.E. A St., across the street from the Black Apple neighborhood. Goltermann paid $503,000 for the 0.4-acre property last year.

The second project is a 250-unit multifamily development similar to The Claude. Goltermann said he has about 12.5 acres under contract along Central Avenue (Arkansas Highway 72) near Interstate 49.

“We have been inspired by the positivity and how forward-thinking the region is,” said Claire Leindecker, a director at DCM and Road Trip Development principal. Leindecker, Mike Burkhart and Rebecca Elliot, the principals of Springfield, Mo.,-based design firm Burkhart Elliott Creative, were instrumental in the new brand’s creation and design standards.

“This team has been crucial to the launch of the company, and the partnership is considered a key element to what makes our product different,” Goltermann said. “The branding and the entire design intention is done with such detail and thought. It is truly remarkable what this team has created.”

Goltermann said Road Trip Development would have a permanent office in Bentonville at 809 N.E. A St. by the end of the year. The company has developments in Arkansas and St. Louis, with others pending in Madison, Wisc., and Greenville, S.C.

“I am confident this new company will change how we think of living in America, and after a few years, we will all come to expect this standard of living,” he said. “Mental and physical health is a passion for the principals of Road Trip, and we are excited to scale the development company.”