Chief Sam Chapman of Goose Creek, S.C., wanted more information about training rooms in fire stations and how "not to build an ugly station." Tom Neary of the Mill Creek (Del.) Volunteer Fire Company wanted us to change the location of the conference each year and to tour different fire stations, while many others attending our Station Style Conference last year wanted the pre-conference session broken up into "starting from scratch" and "beginning construction" sessions for more individual time with architects.

We heard you and we did it.

When we started preparing for our 2007 Station Style Conference, to be held April 29–May 1 in Denver, we tried to incorporate as many suggestions as we could.

There are many great topics this year. The architect of our 2005 Station Style Platinum Award–winning station, Lawrence Enyart, FAIA, LEED AP, will present "Public Safety Facilities and Public Safety Training Centers." He also will present examples of regional fire training and joint-use public safety training centers that he says "can combine resources to leverage more bang for the buck."

Ratcliff Architects' Mary McGrath, AIA, LEED, is back by popular demand with more "Operations-Based Designs." Two other popular speakers — Dennis Ross of Pacheco-Ross Architects and Brian Harris of TCA Planners — also are back with new topics.

Rick Tripp and John Noble from Michael Schuster Associates in Cincinnati will focus on strategies aimed at establishing departmental service levels and resultant master planning concepts in "GIS Mapping for Fire Departmental Master Planning and Response Protocol." Tripp and Noble will use several case studies to communicate the value of GIS technology and its role in the planning process.

David Fergus is in a unique position. As fire commissioner for Central Kitsap (Wash.) Fire & Rescue and a partner in Rice Fergus Miller Architecture & Planning, he can see both sides of the coin. "When planning and designing a fire station, there isn't a decision made that doesn't have a bearing on costs — some big, some small," Fergus says. His "Building the Firehouse with Dollars and Sense" will help keep your budget under control with common sense and simple principles.

These speakers are only the tip of the iceberg. We're also adding a session to review the 2006 Station Style Award winners with two of the judges: Chief Mike Baker of the Elgin (Ill.) Fire Department and Paul Erickson, AIA, of LeMay Erickson Architects.

Last year's conference sold out two weeks in advance, so this year we've added more space. There's a maximum of 350 attendees, so don't miss out! Register here. We're listening to you.