Archives: Projects

Weigand Construction projects

Willow Creek Middle School

Posted on June 15, 2026

Bordered by farmland in the countryside of Huntertown, IN, Willow Creek Middle School is the third middle school added to the Northwest Allen County Schools (NACS) district. Made possible through the Hatch and Malcom families who provided the land through a partnership with NACS, Willow Creek was designed to relieve the growing influx of students attending both Carroll and Maple Creek Middle Schools. With architecture by Moake Park Group and construction managed by Weigand, this facility makes NACS education resources available to more students and families residing in the surrounding communities.

Dynamic Learning Environment

Built as a single-story, 183,000 square foot complex, Willow Creek features a wide range of facilities specially configured to support both existing and future learning formats:

Student Library
Commons and Study Areas
Band Practice Room
Computer Programming Area
Applied Skills Classroom
SPED Program Spaces
Science Lab
Project-Based Learning Spaces
Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Grade Wings
Cafeteria
Auditorium with Backstage and Lighting
Teacher’s Lounge
Conference Rooms

This floor plan provides students with a well-structured atmosphere as well as resources and offerings to develop their skills across a diverse set of learning disciplines.

Spanning Athletic Facilities

Willow Creek also features an established sports complex and athletic spaces including:

Football, Baseball, and Soccer Practice Fields
Training and Wellness Center
Locker Rooms
Football Stadium with Seating for 1,250 Spectators
Eight-Lane Running Track
Six Pickleball Courts
Four Tennis Courts
Gymnasium with Basketball Court and Grandstand

Designed for Future Development

Sitting on a 130-acre plot of land, the middle school can support up to 1,000 students and is well positioned for expansion as needs change in the years ahead. Weigand Construction is proud to have partnered with Northwest Allen County Schools to transform their vision into real bricks and mortar. The home of the Thunderhawks is now enriching the lives of students and families in Huntertown, helping to build promising futures of young learners in the district.

Sweetwater Sound | Distribution Center & Office Expansion

Posted on April 21, 2026

Completed in early 2020, Sweetwater Sound‘s state-of-the-art distribution center acts as the core of the company’s lauded music gear shopping experience. Upon making a strategic decision to keep transport logistics based in its Fort Wayne, IN headquarters, the online retailer chose Weigand to manage the construction process while Design Collaborative oversaw architecture and floor planning. Our team kept the construction schedule on track despite significant timeline, material, and staffing constraints posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring the project was delivered on time.

Expanding Output

The facility dwarfs Sweetwater’s former warehouse, sitting at 480,000 square feet, about four times the size of the initial fulfillment center. Record growth and mounting demand for instruments and music equipment created a need for additional space and capacity to process orders at a much faster rate. With a substantially larger storage area and specialized, in-house sorting and picking technology systems, warehouse staff can pick, transport, package, and ship tens of thousands of same-day customer orders with incredible efficiency. Even with significantly increased throughput, the distribution center maintains a 99.9% shipment accuracy rating.

Multi-Service Building

Along with more room for packing and delivery operations, the distribution center serves as a space to house other functions including:

Administrative wing
Guitar gallery and maintenance shop
Band and orchestra shop.
Product photography studio
Employee cafeteria and break area
Staff storage lockers

These features have provided practical avenues for Sweetwater to sustain and supply audio gear to its growing customer base, building critical solutions into their supply chain network and infrastructure for future expansion.

Vera Bradley | Distribution Center

Posted on April 9, 2026

Located on the company campus off Stonebridge Road in Roanoke, Indiana, the Vera Bradley Distribution Center manages receiving, storage, and outbound product shipments for retail, wholesale, and online order fulfillments. Built as a 200,100 square-foot addition, this project consolidated multiple warehouses into one. With construction managed by Weigand and architecture led by Design Collaborative, the expansion places all logistics operations in a central location, improving throughput and direct-to-consumer shipping.

Global Logistics Hub

Overseeing parcel transport to vendors and customers worldwide, the distribution center features a specially designed floor-plan to manage its daily, high-volume output. With comprehensive conveyor, picking, and sortation systems, workers can quickly organize, weigh, and verify accuracy on hundreds of thousands of outgoing shipments each day.

Ample space committed to receiving and storage ensures an efficient supply of products available for packaging throughout the course of a shift. At the heart of Vera Bradley’s operations, the distribution center plays a critical role in meeting demand for its signature handbags and luggage, connecting products with customers across the globe.

Nelson Manufacturing | Office and Trailer Finishing Facility

Posted on March 13, 2026

Set along the US-224 corridor in Ottawa, OH, Nelson Manufacturing‘s office and trailer finishing facility stands as a testament to the company’s history, future, and commitment to Putnam County, where it has operated for nearly 80 years. With architecture led by Technicon Design Group and construction managed by WCI, this specialty trailer provider has added a safe, strategic facility supporting critical stages of its production cycle.

From End-To-End

Covering 80,000 square feet, the processing facility includes:

Office and administrative wing
Surface preparation zone
Painting station
Finishing area
Three conference rooms
Locker and break room
Material storage space

The production floor places blast, bake, paint, and assembly booths in an end-to-end sequence. Across the entire line, a large conveyor system moves raw materials and equipment to each station for processing. Once final assembly is completed, overhead cranes move finished trailers to the doors, where they are hooked up and hauled away for transport. This layout allows workers to move efficiently through each phase of production, reducing downtime between stages.

“When you’re dealing with manufacturing, that whole design process is really dynamic. With any building, you’re always considering how people move through the space.” – David Burgei, Architect, Technicon Design Group

Attached to the manufacturing area is an office suite complete with meeting rooms, break area, worker storage lockers, cubicles, and a front desk.

“When we first discussed the office portion, it was going to be a separate building. As we kept exploring options, we found it was really beneficial to bring this all under one roof. The office portion acts as the front door to basically all of Nelson’s campus, so we wanted to be something that kind of stood out from the rest of the building but still was cohesive to the whole.” – David Burgei, Architect, Technicon Design Group

Through Technicon’s intentional design approach, the owner and stakeholders selected a building arrangement that best served their production and administrative needs while maximizing worker safety.

Preserving Family History

Installed just inside the facility entryway are two engraved plaques. One reads “Nelson Trailers,” while the other states “In memory of John M. Nelson, Virginia B. Nelson, and John M. Nelson II.” The Nelson family founded and managed the business from 1947 through 1990. Tragedy struck in 1979, when John and Virginia Nelson passed away in a plane crash, leaving their son John to assume sole ownership of the company. He later also passed away in a plane crash in 1990.

“We wanted to honor our legacy. There was an old sign out front that served as a memorial to the Nelson family, and we wanted to preserve that as part of the company’s history. We also wanted employees to see it every day and be reminded that we’re here because of them.” – Tony Niese, President, Nelson Manufacturing

Looking Forward

Thanks to strong collaboration between project partners and ownership, Nelson Manufacturing now has a facility equipped to fabricate specialty trailers more efficiently as the company expands its operations.

Fairfield Community Schools | Falcon Fieldhouse & Auditorium Renovation

Posted on November 21, 2025

Fairfield Community Schools (Goshen, Ind.) celebrated the opening of its new Falcon Fieldhouse and renovations to the junior-senior high auditorium. Designed by Garmann Miller and built by Weigand Construction, the fieldhouse features an indoor track, multi-sport courts, and batting cages, allowing students to train year-round while multiple teams practice at the same time. The auditorium renovation added new seating, staging, and upgraded sound and lighting, creating a professional-quality venue for Fairfield’s show choir and performing arts programs. With grades 7–12 on one campus, the improvements expand opportunities for student participation while strengthening school pride and community connection.

Significant Athletic Addition

The fieldhouse was constructed with the intent of creating additional space for sporting events, practices, and extracurricular activities that weren’t feasible prior. It features:

Gymnasium with Three Basketball/Volleyball Courts
Three-Lane 50 Meter Sprint Track
Bleachers Seating 640 Spectators
Lobby/Commons Area
Team Store
Concessions Stand
Locker Rooms
Mezzanine Overlooking Lobby and Gymnasium
Scoreboards
Batting Cage
Golf Simulator
Storage Space

These features supply needed infrastructure to Fairfield’s athletics programming. With added gymnasium space and new training resources, basketball, volleyball, tennis, and track teams can now conduct practice indoors when weather conditions are unfavorable.

Pulling Back the Curtain

Along with building the new fieldhouse, Weigand renovated Fairfield’s junior-senior high auditorium. This involved a redesign of the entrance, lobby, and theatre. The entrance received a completely redeveloped façade, outer door, vestibule, and new signage that matches district branding. Custom outdoor seats in the shape of the school logo are positioned on either side in front of the main doors, along with decorative landscaping and a new concrete slab. The reworked lobby has new flooring, a ticket booth, updated light fixtures, open seating areas, school lettering and colors throughout, and two sets of large double doors leading straight into the auditorium. The theatre features:

3 Seating Columns with 685 Total Chairs
Main Stage and Backstage Area
Orchestra Pit
Auditorium and Stage Lighting System
Second-Story Production Booth

This dramatic conversion of the existing theatre significantly upgraded equipment, stage space, and seating. The auditorium now supports stage productions, school assemblies, celebrations, meetings, and public events at a scale not achievable initially.

Facilities Befitting the Falcons

This set of projects is a major investment in Fairfield Community Schools, promoting the academic, athletic, and creative growth of the student body. The Falcon Fieldhouse elevates the game-day experience while the newly improved auditorium brings students’ artistic development center stage. The district is well positioned to enrich its learning pathways through premier spaces that advance both athletics and the arts.

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Nappanee Fire Station #1

Posted on October 30, 2025

A project that took nearly a decade to fully realize, Nappanee Fire Station #1 is the fruit of a labor of love for the city and its surrounding communities. First envisioned by Fire Chief Don Lehman, former EMS Chief Jim Sumpter, and Mayor Phil Jenkins, the trio would spend eight years conducting research and visiting fire departments across northeast Indiana for inspiration to craft a modernized station of their own. In operation for 55 years, the department’s existing facility no longer met the needs of its growing team of fire and EMS first responders. The city employed the help of K2M Design, DS Architects, and Weigand Construction to shape a new fire station that would support its operations for years into the future. It features:

Eight Dormitories
Kitchen
Day Room
Fitness Center
Decontamination Room
Gear Storage
Administrative Wing
Training Room

Protecting First Responder Health

Prolonged carcinogen exposure is a risk that people in the fire service actively take on in their occupation, which can lead to cancer in many cases without proper intervention. Thanks to logistical and mechanical improvements made with Fire Station #1, a comprehensive exhaust extraction system covers the apparatus bays along with designated “hot,” “warm,” and “cold” zones. This layout allows harmful chemical and diesel fumes that often cover equipment, clothing, and vehicles after a fire call to safely off-gas through a separate ventilation network, reducing contact and preventing contamination in the living quarters.

Uniting Service Teams

Previously, EMS team members had to stay in a separate house and walk to the fire department in order to access their vehicles and equipment when responding to a call. Planned as a central service station, the facility is outfitted with space to support all first responder crews, making it safer and easier to prepare for emergencies at a minute’s notice.

“Some have been waiting 22 years, as promised, for a facility they can now call home…Full-time responders work 24- or 48-hour shifts, spending one-third of their lives here. This is not only a fire station – it’s a firehouse.” – Don Lehman, Fire Chief, Nappanee Fire Department

The “Foo” Fighter Mascot

Fire Station #1 also pays homage to beloved cartoonist Bill Holman, a Nappanee native who created the classic Smokey Stover comic strip series featured in the Chicago Tribune. The building has several references to Smokey throughout, including a large wall graphic in one of the conference rooms, a real-life version of Smokey’s famous “Foomobile” in the lobby, and depictions of the character in the Nappanee Fire Department’s logo, which is seen facing the front the exterior tower as well as inside near the apparatus bay doors.

A New Chapter

The host of features and improvements in Fire Station #1 position the Nappanee Fire Department to offer faster response times, provide safer environments for crew members, and sustain stronger operational capacity. WCI is proud to have served as a partner in making this facility, which directly impacts so many lives and communities across Nappanee, a reality.

DeKalb County Central United School District | Addition and Renovation

Posted on October 24, 2025

Students at DeKalb Central in grades 6-12 are have access to improved sports, music, science, and Career and Technical Education (CTE) facilities thanks to a comprehensive overhaul specific areas throughout the campus. Designed by architect Garmann Miller and built by WCI, this addition and renovation addressed a broad scope of needs that will stand to serve learners and educators alike well into the future.

Cross-Campus Development

In the high school, interior redevelopments were performed in two key areas:

The AG Shop
The Strength and Conditioning Room

In the shop, the redesigned space made way for new workstations and tool storage for various learning programs. The weight room got a significant upgrade with garage doors for easy access and airflow, as well as updated flooring surfaces to support weight racks, bench presses, and other gym equipment. Outside, the existing grass football field was removed and replaced with synthetic turf; the track encircling it was also resurfaced. Other additions included:

A New Digital Scoreboard
Tennis Complex with 10 Courts and Fencing
Dedicated Locations for Track Events such as Long Jump, High Jump, and Pole Vault

At the middle school, a semi-translucent entry canopy was constructed, modernizing the main entrance of the building while paying homage to the district theme by including Barons’ colors and signage. This also features a newly poured concrete pad, outdoor seating, and garden beds. Inside, the cafeteria, hallways, lockers, band room, science classroom, and assembly area received new flooring, paint, HVAC system, and lighting.

Semester Ready

“Some of the unique challenges that public schools have is the time frame in which the projects can be done. So whether it comes to the renovation of the middle school that obviously can’t be done when kids are in school. To have only the months of June and July to get a lot of that work done is extremely difficult.” – Steven Snider, former CFO, DeKalb Central Schools

Due to limited time with full access to the campus, Weigand approached this project with a deliberate, compressed schedule in order to complete the proposed scope of work in about two months. This required extreme coordination with suppliers, subcontractors, and WCI’s own workforce to ensure that each sequence of the job was properly delivered in the timeframes allotted throughout the summer months. This allowed teachers and administrators to move back into the space when construction finished without any disruption to the beginning of the fall semester. We’re proud to have partnered with DeKalb Central Schools make this project a reality and approach it in a way that best served their needs and timeline goals.

Dekalb Eastern | The Aaron Willard Student Activity Center

Posted on September 15, 2025

The Aaron Willard Student Activity Center is both a significant campus addition aimed at enhancing student athletics and a tribute to the lasting impact of longtime educator and alumnus Aaron Willard. A former student, teacher, assistant principal, coach, and athletic director, Willard has served the Dekalb Eastern Community School District for 36 years before retiring in 2025. Willard left a profound mark on the Blazers community, with decorated coaching legacy, leading the baseball, softball, and basketball teams to a total of 700+ victories across the course of his career.

“It’s really humbling and very much an honor to have my name on the building…it’s an awesome facility and it’ll serve our students very well.” – Aaron Willard, Former Student Supervisor, Teacher, Coach, and Athletic Director, Dekalb Eastern Community School District

Improving Experiences in Sports

The new student activity center is 30,000 square feet of new construction designed by Barton Coe Vilamaa and built by Weigand. It includes:

IHSAA Rated Competition Court for Basketball and Volleyball
8 Retractable Basketball Hoops
2 Drop-Down Mesh Batting Cages
Weight Room
3 Lane Running Track
Bleachers Seating up to 900 People
Locker Rooms
Support Spaces
Offices

These features allow for multiple sports teams to share the space, conducting practices or workouts at the same time without interrupting one another. It will also create opportunities for conditioning in the offseason when weather is unsuitable for outdoor training. The facility can be sectioned off into partitions, making it possible for several extracurricular groups to meet and conduct their various activities all at once. On top of this, the building is connected directly to the existing campus, providing a safe and simple pathway for students to access the activity center.

Building Blazers Up

We’re thankful for the chance to partner with the Dekalb Eastern community in Butler, Indiana in successfully delivering the Aaron Willard Student Activity Center. Not only does operate as a place for students to grow, connect, and better themselves, but it also stands as a lasting memory of a leader who committed his life and career to enriching the lives of high schoolers through sports, teamwork, and grit.

Carroll High School | Addition and Renovation

Posted on September 15, 2025

Planned to meet future needs with an ever-expanding student population, additions and renovations to Carroll High School’s existing campus are bringing greater quality of life to the everyday learning experiences for Chargers and educators alike. Designed by Barton Coe Vilamaa and built by Weigand, the project features new construction in the east, north, and south sections of campus.

East Classroom Expansion

A diverse set of classroom buildouts are now available including:

2 Applied Skills Rooms
Science and Digital Design Rooms
8 General Education Rooms
Credit Recovery Room

This expansion incorporates classrooms and spaces that support dynamic teaching environments for students as they pursue their academic goals, bringing 27 supplementary rooms in total across the entire project. It also features a bus loop for ease of access into the building.

North Corridor

Developments in the northern section feature:

A connecting hallway joining the west and east academic areas.
An upgraded Weight Room with a 50% capacity increase and space for up to 144 student athletes at one time.
An additional General Education Classroom.

Southern Access Point

A new student entrance now sits on the south side of the campus giving high schoolers a direct path to reach the Media Center. The 9,000 square-foot space has a library with spacious open seating, a café, 5 small study areas, and two conference rooms. The cafeteria is 30% larger with 4,000 square-feet of extra room, providing students with a sprawling area full of natural lighting where they gather, eat, and connect during the lunch period.

A Blueprint for the Future

This mix of new construction and redevelopment marks a significant next step securing the future for upcoming Chargers. The resources and room provided by the addition and expansion project provides support for another 500 students on campus.

Concord Community Schools | Engineering and Construction Center

Posted on May 23, 2025

Facing a rising influx of students enrolling in trade programs, Concord Community School’s employed Weigand’s Construction Management services to build a brand-new trade school facility. This $3.9 million, 10,400 square foot education center houses additional students, resources, and space for each trade discipline offering.

Trades, Robotics, Manufacturing, and More

Sitting on the east end of Concord’s sprawling campus located at 59040 Minuteman Way, Elkhart, IN, the complex features various spaces designed to support classes such as:

Civil Engineering
Architectural Engineering
Manufacturing
Robotics
Design and Innovation
Construction Trades

Students learn direct application of these subjects in real time through classrooms equipped with the latest technology and training instruments.

Forecasting Workforce Gaps

With a rising need for people well-versed in trades of all types across the nation, the Engineering and Construction Center not only benefits the individual careers of students that pass through its halls but also creates candidates for all kinds of industries requiring the skill and expertise of well-educated workers. This has a direct, positive impact on learners’ careers, the community, and the economy as a whole.

Watch another Concord Community Schools Project in Progress Here