Dibble

Veterans Memorial Phase II

Dibble CM provided construction management and inspection services for the Field of Honor at Veterans Oasis Park in Chandler, AZ.

The memorial includes an upper and lower level and was designed to represent six unique memorial themes: freedom, recognition, reflection, sacrifice, memories, and family. Designed to match the exact ratio of the American flag, the lower level depicts varying heights of stone plinths (columns) that imitate the flag’s stars and stripes. The plinths were constructed in a rolling landform emulating the flag as ripples blowing in the wind. 

The stone plinths, arranged in formation, signify soldiers marching in unison. The stones appear to disappear and reappear slowly within the rising and falling landscape, representing soldiers going to war and returning home. Twenty-one cubes were submerged below ground to symbolize a twenty-one gun salute for those soldiers not returning from war.

On the upper level of the elevated plaza, the stars and stripes of the memorial below depict the star-shaped Arizona state flag. Visitors can watch the soldiers honored below and stand in solidarity from this location while family and friends are away. The upper-level star represents the service flag of war mothers, which is hung in windows at home when an immediate family member is serving in the military.

In addition to the Field of Honor construction, a Korean War-era fighter plane was moved carefully from its longtime home in downtown Chandler to its new home in Veterans Oasis Park. The aircraft was restored and relocated in time for the Veteran’s Day 2021 opening.

Dibble CM provided preconstruction assistance, construction inspection, contractor oversight, public outreach, schedule review, payment review, and redline drawings review. Additionally, Dibble CM assisted in the decision-making process for the memorial’s concrete colors. We carefully tracked each step to ensure the cast-in-place concrete walls with layered colors, exposed aggregate concrete with inlaid exposed copper, and other specialty finishes were constructed as the architect intended. We also made suggestions regarding the plan for moving the F-86 jet to ensure public safety.