The Daily Dig
Thrivent, a Fortune 500 financial services company, held a ceremonial groundbreaking on September 23, 2026, for the Evergreen Operations Center in Appleton, Wisconsin. According to Thrivent, construction on the building began on September 8, 2026.
The new building is the first major development project within Wilden Portfolio Park, which Thrivent describes as an approximately 600-acre mixed-use vision surrounding their Appleton campus.
Flex Appeal
The Evergreen Operations Center will serve Thrivent's approximately 1,400 employees in the Appleton area. The building is designed to support hybrid, remote, and onsite work, with flexible spaces for collaboration, connection, and focused work.
"Appleton has been central to Thrivent's story for generations, making this an especially meaningful milestone for our organization," said Paul Johnston, Thrivent's Chief Legal Officer, General Counsel and Secretary. "Today's groundbreaking reflects years of collaboration with community partners and marks an important step forward for the Appleton property."
Plenty of Dirt Left
This building is only the first piece of a much larger plan. Future opportunities within the park include housing, businesses, and public spaces, along with other community amenities.
Thrivent says the vision for the park was shaped through collaboration with the City of Appleton and input from the community.
Snapshot:
Project: Evergreen Operations Center
Company: Thrivent
Location: Appleton, Wisconsin
Master Development: Wilden Portfolio Park
Master Plan Size: Approximately 600-acre mixed-use vision (per Thrivent)
Project Role: First major development project in Wilden Portfolio Park
Construction Start: September 8, 2026 (per Thrivent)
Ceremonial Groundbreaking: September 23, 2026
Employees Served: Approximately 1,400 employees in the Appleton area
Design Focus: Hybrid, remote, and onsite work; flexible collaboration and focus spaces
Future Park Uses: Housing, businesses, public spaces, community amenities
Master Plan Input: City of Appleton and community
Groundbreaking Attendees: Thrivent executives, Appleton mayor, city officials, project partners, employees
Development Updates: wildenportfoliopark.com
TheJobWalk Thoughts
Thrivent says construction started September 8, but on most commercial builds, buyout doesn't wrap up when crews mobilize. Packages are often awarded in waves, and scopes like furniture, AV, signage, and interior finishes commonly land later in the schedule.
Those later scopes deserve extra attention here. A building planned around flexible spaces for collaboration and focused work tends to ask more of its furniture, technology, and interior layouts than a conventional floor plan.
The bigger play is the park. Housing, businesses, and public spaces would call for a very different trade mix than one operations building, if those phases move forward.
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