A blueprint for ecologically-sensitive campus design at Walmart’s headquarters
{"autoplay":"true","autoplay_speed":"8000","speed":"1000","arrows":"true","dots":"false","loop":"true","nav_slide_column":5,"rtl":"false"}
{"autoplay":"true","autoplay_speed":"8000","speed":"1000","arrows":"true","dots":"false","loop":"true","nav_slide_column":5,"rtl":"false"}

DETAILS

LocationBentonville,, Arkansas
ClientWalmart
Size350 acres

As Walmart evolves in response to a changing workforce and focus on sustainability, the company’s new Home Office campus in Bentonville captures these values over 350 acres—both a blueprint for ecologically sensitive campus design and a renewed anchor at its origin in the Ozarks. More than a headquarters, the campus is a major regional investment for Northwest Arkansas at large and a hub for thousands of associates living within biking distance of work, providing climate-friendly commuting options and setting an ambitious target of 10% of staff biking to work.

Central to the design is a forested greenway that runs through the heart of campus, paying homage to the limestone-banked seasonal creeks that once wove across the site and seamlessly connecting to the 40-mile Razorback Regional Greenway. Over 13 acres of constructed lakes and bioswales at the North and South ends of campus collect, filter, and redistribute stormwater across a vast irrigation system, providing over 52 million gallons of water annually and minimizing impacts to the city’s potable water supply. The plan also carefully preserves mature canopy in place and relocates trees across campus, integrating native Arkansan ecologies like highlands forest, bluestem prairies, seasonal wetlands, and pollinator habitats throughout.

Guided by the idea of “Big Nature” (a nod to the state’s nickname), the Home Office carries this environmental ethic from the campus’ sprawling forests and meadows to the facilities themselves, which include 12 office buildings, a fitness center, childcare center, food hall, hotel, central conference and training hall, and more—largely built with mass timber. A cohesive network of complete streets, shaded walkways, and bike paths knit the facilities together and connect it to Bentonville with a range of micro-mobility options. Elevating Walmart’s culture, heritage, and core values, the Home Office aims to model the next generation of sustainability-driven corporate campus design, cementing the company’s legacy in the Natural State.

Construction on the Walmart Home Office campus began in 2019 with anticipated completion of most features in 2025.

_____

In the media:

Houston Green Loop

With the coming expansion and realignment of the highways around Downtown Houston, SWA identified the opportunity to enact a bold vision: a multi-use branded connectivity system that will leverage the immense reconstruction investment. SWA’s concept creates a continuous pedestrian loop over, under, and around the downtown highway system, thus redirecting the u...

Lite-On Headquarters

This major Taiwanese electronics company chose Taipei’s “Electronics Center” overlooking the Gee Long River for their new headquarters. The overall concept is of a 25-story slender tower rising above a sloped landscape podium that covers much of the site. Below-grade parking slopes toward the river on one side, with the urban center on the ot...

Shanghai Tower

China’s tallest building, Shanghai Tower, is located in the Lujiazui Financial Center Zone near the Shanghai World Financial Center and Jin-Mao tower. SWA’s landscape design establishes a “Tower Park” to complement the building’s iconic form and function, connect the mixed-use project with its urban neighborhood, and provide a variety of beautiful settin...

Google Headquarters

As a winner of the ASLA’s Centennial Medallion, this project is recognized as one of the most significant landscapes of the last century. The former SGI campus, acquired by Google in 2004, and the adjacent Charleston Park, comprise a 26-acre brownfield site.The design creates a strong identity for the campus and provides a much-needed civic space, blurring dis...