Less than 15 years ago, Amanda Kieffer was one of 5,000 Minnesota 4-H youth members displaying their projects in the 4-H Building at the Minnesota State Fair.
Today, the St. Anthony Park native oversees the ultimate 4-H project — a massive two-year, $35 million remodeling of the venerable building itself.
Amanda is a senior engineer for TKDA, a St. Paul-based engineering, architecture and planning firm. 4‑H and the Minnesota State Fair Foundation chose TKDA to oversee the first major remodeling on the three-story structure since it opened in 1939.
“We did a building assessment a few years ago, so I knew it was on our radar,” Amanda said. “Our client services manager knew of my excitement about the state fair and 4-H, so when we got the contract, he reached out and asked if I wanted to manage it. Of course, I said yes. It’s my dream project.”
4-H experience provides keener insight on building project
This first year of the project will focus on the structure’s exterior. Fairgoers who pass by on Cosgrove Street will notice new windows, a new roof, fresh paint and new signage.
But the real fun for Amanda and crew starts after this year’s fair ends, when work begins on the interior. That’s where her experience as a 4-H’er herself will have an influence.
Yes, they’ll do the usual updating of infrastructure with better sprinklers, energy-efficient ventilation and more reliable Wi-Fi.
But they’ll also modernize the first-floor demonstration areas and the third-floor dormitories, where Amanda spent a good deal of time in the summers between third grade at Adams Spanish Immersion School and her first year of college at North Dakota State.
“Staying in the dorms was so much fun,” recalled Amanda, who began doing overnights as a sixth grader, even though she lived less than five miles away on Hampden Avenue. “You’re meeting kids from all over the state, up to 700 in the building on a given night. Every encampment included a dance party. It makes you feel really grown up.”
The only downside she recalls was the curfew, which forced youth members inside before the fair’s nightly fireworks happened, usually around 10:30 p.m. They still watched them, but from small windows in the third-floor dorm.
Being in charge of the TKDA team gave her a chance to make sure the next generation could enjoy the fireworks in greater comfort.
“The project team wanted a lounge on the third floor, so I suggested we make sure it has access to big west-facing windows, so the kids could get a good view,” she said. “I thought that was important.”
That’s the kind of insight 4-H leaders were hoping for when they learned Amanda was TKDA’s team lead.
“When we found out she was a 4-H’er and an arts person, we were thrilled,” said Jennifer Skuza, state 4-H director. “She has an intimate understanding of the building, from the third-floor dorms to the cafeteria to the stages and project display areas that the fairgoers see. Sometimes it’s hard to describe all the activity that goes on, but nothing is lost in translation with her.”
Case in point: The planned shifting of the first-floor performance stage from the center of the building to a spot that can accommodate a “green room” or waiting area and provide ample space to move easily on and off the stage.
“Because she performed here as a young person, she had an instant understanding of how we wanted to change it,” Skuza said.
Updated building will lead to more programming on fairgrounds
When completed in time for the 2027 fair, the revamped first floor will have — in addition to the main stage — a second, smaller stage for speeches, along with learning zones — flexible spaces that can be used for workshops or where 4-H'ers can meet with judges and peers. There will also be a teaching kitchen for them to explore culinary arts. There will even be places for them to engage in podcasting and filmmaking.
Most significantly, the improvements will make the building usable from April through October — not just during the fair. This will be a return to form for 4-H, which years ago held day camps and overnight experiences there all summer long.
“We expect to bring programming back that had moved off the fairgrounds,” Skuza said.
With 58,000 participants yearly, 4-H is Minnesota’s largest youth organization. While two-thirds are first-generation 4-H’ers, Amanda Kieffer was a legacy member. Her parents, Bruce and Alisa Weber, both participated while growing up, and so did her grandmother and great-grandmother. All of them spent overnights in the 4-H Building.
Amanda is already passing on the 4-H tradition. Her young sons, Oliver and Ethan, are both in Ramsey County 4-H, and her daughter, Laura, soon will be.
Check out the renovation's progress
Crews are hard at work giving the 4-H Building a much-needed refresh.
Check out the renovation's progress on our 4-H Building campaign updates page, or stop by during the Minnesota State Fair to see the progress for yourself!