Wisconsin completes Minuteman Plaza renovation at Joint Force Headquarters

Madison, Wisconsin — The Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs marked completion of the Minuteman Plaza renovation at Joint Force Headquarters on November 5, converting an underused main-entrance area into a formal ceremonial and memorial space.

The completed work provides a podium area and seating for 60 people, a dedicated September 11 memorial, a replacement Minuteman statue and a relocated flagpole. Planning began in 2021, the final design was approved in 2025 and construction started in 2026. The department’s construction and facilities management office coordinated the project with KPH Construction, Strang Inc. and JSD Professional Services.

Nathan Olson, the department’s deputy construction and facility management officer, said the earlier entrance was difficult to maintain and did not make effective use of the site. Maj. Gen. Matthew Strub, Wisconsin’s adjutant general, described the finished plaza as part of a broader effort to present modern, welcoming facilities statewide.

The source did not disclose the renovation’s value, procurement details or another dated construction milestone. For contractors, the clearest signal is the department’s stated statewide facilities-improvement direction, but this completed plaza is not an open solicitation. Any future work would require separate official procurement evidence.

Featured photo: Staff Sgt. Olivia Sherman/U.S. National Guard. Photo record and capture-date evidence.

Primary source: Wisconsin National Guard project announcement.