A St. Louis-based startup company is moving into new office space converted from a vacant factory, a move the Arch Grants recipient said will allow it to continue to grow and add employees over the next year.
TCARE, which provides technology to reduce burnout in family caregivers, will start construction immediately to convert the former HM Dunn AeroSystems manufacturing facility at 1252 S. Vandeventer Ave. in the Botanical Heights neighborhood. TCARE will lease the facility from Arch to Park Equity Fund LLC, the patient capital fund of civic business organization Greater St. Louis Inc., the company announced Thursday.
The company, led by CEO Ali Ahmadi, is targeting late summer to move into the new space from its current location at 3101 Olive St. in Midtown.
TCARE developed technology to help employers and insurance health plans reduce burnout among their employees and members who provide care for senior family members. It also has been used to help those who care for foster children and children with special needs.
Originally located in Madison, Wisconsin, TCARE relocated to St. Louis in 2019 when the startup received Arch Grants funding. The company has grown significantly and now operates in 32 states with over 170 total employees. About 30 of its staff members are based in St. Louis, the company told St. Louis Inno last fall. The fast-growing startup said it would move to a larger local office and hire 100 more employees in the next year after closing on a $17 million funding round in September.
TCARE will share the 1252 S. Vandeventer Ave. building with office space for St. Louis-based medical transportation broker Medical Transportation Management, which does business as MTM, since the companies have formed a partnership to provide senior transportation services, according to a news release. MTM, which ranks as one of St. Louis’ largest private companies, is based in Lake St. Louis and has offices in Chesterfield. MTM's new offices in Botanical Heights will be additional space for the company and not replace other locations, a spokesperson told the Business Journal.
Build-out costs for renovating the 1252 S. Vandeventer Ave. space weren't disclosed. TCARE will occupy roughly 60% of the office space and MTM will occupy about 40%, the MTM spokesperson said. The building has been vacant since HM Dunn AeroSystems closed the facility in 2018, terminating 53 jobs.
Arch to Park Equity Fund bought the building from HM Dunn’s real estate entity in 2019 “as part of its work to bring density, vibrancy, connectivity, and activation to the urban core of the St. Louis metro,” Greater St. Louis said in the release. It’s the first building that the fund has purchased. Typically it invests in other developers’ projects, such as the $130 million redevelopment of the historic Butler Brothers Building downtown into The Victor apartment complex.
“From Arch Grants bringing us here, to the support we’ve received from other companies in the industry to help us grow, and the work Arch to Park Equity Fund did to get us into our new space, our story is a perfect example of how St. Louis comes together to help companies start up, stand out, and stay,” Ahmadi said in a statement.
The developer and broker for the project is Clayton-based DCM Group, led by President Robert Goltermann.
“This development would not have been possible without the continued investment in the urban core,” Goltermann said in a statement.
TCARE's new office is next to Rockwell Brewing Co. and just south of The Grove entertainment district, blocks from new Midtown developments such as the City Foundry food hall and mixed-use redevelopment that opened in 2021, and the $60 million redevelopment of the Armory STL entertainment complex, which opened in December.
The area surrounding the building is “connective tissue primed for development” that TCARE will anchor for decades to come, Greater St. Louis said. The Tower Grove Connector, a 1.4-mile trail planned by Great Rivers Greenway, will run in front of the building.
In addition to connecting the surrounding areas, the project should support new development, Mayor Tishaura Jones said in a statement.
“St. Louis continues to strengthen its reputation as a hub for tech and innovation in the Midwest,” Jones said.
As TCARE moves in, the building will be renamed the Dubinsky Building to honor local business leader John Dubinsky, a founder of the Cortex Innovation District and the Arch to Park initiative, Greater St. Louis said.
CannonDesign is the architect for the project.
