Keep exploring HGA in Wisconsin. This page brings together more stories from our Milwaukee and Madison teams, including project updates, community involvement, team milestones, and office culture moments from across the region.
Sherwin-Williams opens global Headquarters in Brecksville, OH
Big week for our Workplace team at HGA: Sherwin-Williams‘ recently opened the doors on its new Morikis Global Technology Center—a 600K-square-foot hub designed to bring employees and centuries of combined coatings expertise under one roof.
Nearly 900 scientists and engineers get to call purpose-built facility home, empowering their best work. Congrats to everyone at Sherwin-Williams on the grand opening!
HGA Named a Finalist for BizTimes Media Nonprofit Excellence Awards
HGA has been named a finalist in the In-Kind Supporter category for the 2026 BizTimes Media Nonprofit Excellence Awards, which recognize businesses, nonprofits, and individuals making a meaningful impact across southeastern Wisconsin through philanthropy, volunteerism, and community partnerships.
The In-Kind Supporter award honors companies that provide pro bono services, professional expertise, materials, skills, or volunteer efforts to help nonprofit organizations advance their missions.
HGA was recognized for its longstanding commitment to community engagement through pro bono design services, strategic planning, volunteerism, and nonprofit partnerships. Recent efforts include supporting organizations such as TRUE Skool, The Middle Ground Milwaukee, Menomonee Valley Partners, Groundwork Milwaukee, Meta House, and 4th Dimension, where HGA has contributed design expertise, planning services, fundraising support, and volunteer initiatives that help strengthen communities throughout the Milwaukee region.
HGA at The Center for Heath Design Conference
Saint Alphonsus Medical Center – Nampa
HGA celebrated the groundbreaking of the Saint Alphonsus Medical Center – Nampa expansion, marking the start of an exciting new chapter for healthcare in the growing Nampa community. The project will add a two-story vertical expansion to the existing bed tower alongside a new seven-story addition, dramatically increasing capacity for patient care.
The design incorporates a steel-framed structural system with prefabricated bathroom pods and MEP racks, reflecting close collaboration with the contractor and fabricator from the earliest project stages. We’re proud to partner with Saint Alphonsus on this milestone and look forward to seeing this project come to life.
2026 Summer Milwaukee Interns
As part of their summer long pro bono Community Action project for Menomonee Valley Partners, the Milwaukee summer interns spent part of their Friday kayaking the Menomonee River to get a different viewpoint of the Burnham Canal. After previously surveying the area by land, they rented kayaks from the Milwaukee Kayak Company and made their way from Twisted Fisherman to the end of the canal. Excited to see what else the interns get up to this summer in Milwaukee!
2026 Employee Appreciation Week
Our Milwaukee and Madison teams took center stage during Employee Appreciation Week, celebrating the people who make HGA a great place to work.
From kick-off events and happy hours to trivia, prizes, and time spent together, the week was filled with moments of connection and appreciation.
Congratulations to Cathy Hall and Amanda Wendling, recipients of this year’s Founders’ Awards, and thank you to all of our employees for the dedication, collaboration, and positivity you bring to HGA every day.
HGA at 2026 ASHRAE Annual Conference
Geothermal systems are often hidden from view once construction is complete, but their performance can impact a building for decades. At the 2026 ASHRAE Annual Conference, HGA’s Andy DeRocher will explore how design teams and commissioning providers can improve quality control throughout the planning, installation, and commissioning of geothermal heat exchanger systems.
The session will cover best practices for commercial ground loop installation, inclined borefield design, long-term system performance, and common issues that can be avoided through careful coordination during design and construction.
HGA’s Jim Shields celebrates 41 years at UWM School of Architecture
Over the last 41 years, Jim Shields taught and mentored countless architecture students at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Among them are many HGA employees who first knew Jim as a professor, critic, or mentor before eventually joining him as colleagues.
Few educators have the opportunity to see their students become peers. Fewer still get the chance to collaborate with them every day. As Jim retires from teaching at UWM’s School of Architecture & Urban Planning, we’re celebrating not only his extraordinary career in education, but also the generations of architects he helped shape and the lasting influence he continues to have across our profession.
Congratulations, Jim, and thank you for inspiring so many of us throughout our careers.
HGA at 2026 ASHRAE Annual Conference
How can schools pursue net-zero energy goals without increasing project costs? At the 2026 ASHRAE Annual Conference, HGA’s Drew Dillman will share insights from Maplewood Middle School in Menasha, Wisconsin, a 222,000-square-foot facility designed to be net-zero-energy ready.
The presentation explores how geothermal heating and cooling, rooftop solar, battery energy storage, and strategic funding opportunities were integrated to support long-term energy performance while maintaining budget goals. Attendees will also learn about the operational and organizational challenges that influence successful net-zero-ready school projects.
HGA at MiAPPA
How can universities make smarter decisions around deferred maintenance while still investing in the student experience? HGA’s Adaheid Mestad and Melissa Wolter will explore that question at the Michigan Association of Physical Plant Administrators (MiAPPA) 2026 Summer Conference – Mission Critical in their session, “Value Meals: Prioritizing Deferred Maintenance and Student Experience in the UWM Student Union.”
Using the renovation of the UW–Milwaukee Student Union as a case study, the presentation shares how engagement, prioritization strategies, and post-occupancy evaluation helped guide investment decisions and support student-centered outcomes.
HGA at AIA26
HGA is proud to have Taruna Gupta presenting at AIA26 on a topic close to the heart of our firm’s values: advocating for women and diverse leadership in architecture and design. The session will explore creating pathways for emerging leaders, addressing barriers to advancement, and developing strategies for more inclusive and representative leadership — because our profession is strongest when leadership reflects the communities we serve.
Taruna brings a perspective shaped by HGA’s own culture of inclusive leadership, working alongside exceptional women leaders from the CEO level to practice groups across the firm. We look forward to the conversations ahead at AIA26 and the collective work of building a more equitable future for our profession.
HGA at MiAPPA
At the The Michigan Association of Physical Plant Administrators (MiAPPA) 2026 Summer Conference – Mission Critical, HGA’s Joe Lilly and Adaheid Mestad will explore the power of adaptive reuse in “Making the Case for Reuse: The Transformation of Marquette’s College of Nursing.”
Through engagement strategies, structured evaluation tools, and transparent decision-making frameworks, the session highlights how institutions can maximize existing assets while creating meaningful, student-centered learning environments.
The Fitz Apartment Building wins 2 AwardsThe Fitz Apartment Building in Milwaukee, designed by HGA’s Jim Shields, FAIA, has been recognized with multiple honors for its exceptional masonry craftsmanship and contextual design. The project received the Wisconsin Masonry Alliance’s “Excellence in Clay Masonry Award” and “Dennis Wilichowski Craftsmanship Award,” along with Milwaukee’s “Best New Building in a Historic District” award. This video highlights the thoughtful detailing, material expression, and craftsmanship behind the award-winning project. |
HGA is #20 on the Milwaukee Business Journal List
Recognition like this goes beyond a single metric. HGA‘s #20 ranking among Wisconsin’s largest engineering firms highlights the depth of expertise across our teams and the value of interdisciplinary collaboration.
From healthcare and higher education to community and workplace projects, it takes engineers working alongside architects, designers, strategists, and support teams to move ideas from concept to reality. Congratulations to everyone who contributes to that work every day.
Elizabeth LeRiche at eSim 2026
We’re thrilled to share that Elizabeth will be presenting at eSim 2026, the 14th annual Building Performance Simulation Conference, on June 18th at the Université de Sherbrooke campus in Longueuil, Québec.
Her presentation, “Whole-life Carbon Assessment for Decarbonization Planning,” showcases a methodology developed by our team to evaluate both embodied and operational carbon impacts within campus-scale decarbonization planning. The work centers on building a replicable framework for multi-building planning efforts — helping teams better understand the long-term carbon implications of design decisions over time.
We’re proud to have Elizabeth representing HGA in these important conversations around sustainability and climate resilience.
HGA & Groundwork Milwaukee
HGA recently partnered with Groundwork Milwaukee, the City of Milwaukee, and leaders of the Amani neighborhood for a day of action that featured the planting of 9 trees and the revival of 12 garden beds. HGA provided pro bono services to Groundwork where we help select the types of trees to be planted and their locations.
Tyler Smith in our Minneapolis group created a presentation that showed the residents of the neighborhood how the trees would look at different ages and in different seasons. We then went out on Arbor Day to help plant those trees at Moody Park in the Amani Neighborhood.
Connie Nankee Joins HGA
Constance Nankee, NCIDQ, WRID, WELL AP, has joined HGA as a Senior Project Manager focusing on corporate, government, and community work. She has more than 25 years of interior design and project management experience across a range of project types, including corporate R&D, science + technology, retail, and workplaces.
In her role, she will collaborate with project teams to ensure the project meets client needs through all stages of design, construction, and delivery.
Welcome Connie!
HGA at MSOE
HGA Engineers took their real-world expertise to the classroom, presenting the UPMC Presbyterian Tower Expansion to future structural engineers at Milwaukee School of Engineering.
It’s all part of HGA’s commitment to investing in the next generation of talent — one guest lecture at a time.
Paula Verboomen speaks at AIA in Madison
Award-winning architect Paula Verboomen, AIA, shared how curiosity and deep listening unlock clients’ true needs — and lead to architectural solutions that surprise and delight.
Drawing on 30 years of projects, she revealed how a client-centric, iterative approach transforms design into discovery.
HGA is #2 in the Largest Architecture Firm List
HGA Milwaukee is excited to be recognized as a Top Architecture Firm in Milwaukee! This list is compiled from firms across the local area and included on the Milwaukee Business Journal website and printed versions as well. Congrats Milwaukee!!
5th Annual Engineering Day for Kids
HGA’s Amanda Wendling and Ellen Skorpinski recently volunteered at the 5th Annual Engineering Day for Kids, hosted by the ASHRAE Madison Chapter and the Boys and Girls Club of Dane County. HGA led a “Building in Virtual Reality” activity, guiding kids through building blueprints before letting them explore architectural models in VR headsets.
Watching students engage with hands-on engineering — curious, creative, and excited — was a powerful reminder of why early exposure to the field matters. HGA is proud to support events that open doors for the next generation of engineers.
HGA wins Canstruction
HGA and Mortenson Construction won “Best Original Design” at Milwaukee’s 2026 Canstruction competition, recreating the Milwaukee Public Museum‘s beloved “Samson the Gorilla” from 3,200 cans. All donated food will support the Jewish Community Pantry in its 50-year mission to serve residents facing food insecurity.
Canstruction at MPM is in partnership with Women in Design, Wisco NOMA, AIA Milwaukee, and the Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center.
HGA at MMAC
What does it take to inspire the next generation? Sometimes, just showing up and being honest.
Last week, HGA joined MMAC‘s Be the Spark – Career Conversations at MIAD — connecting with 120+ Milwaukee high school students across 9 campuses about real career paths, real challenges, and what life after school actually looks like.
No scripts. No slide decks. Just candid stories and genuine connection.
Watching students have those “aha” moments — realizing the future is open and within reach — reminded us exactly why community engagement matters.
Grateful to MMAC for making it happen.