FIRE CHIEF Wraps up Station Style FIRE CHIEF’s second annual Station Style Conference drew more than 320 attendees and exhibitors. This year’s event was held in Denver from April 29 to May 1 and concluded with a tour of South Metro Station 34.

Some speakers, such as Mary McGrath of Ratcliff Architects and Dennis Ross of Pacheco Ross Architects, were brought back from last year’s conference in Phoenix. McGrath spoke on designing a facility based on a department’s operational needs.

“How do you see women continuing to participate in your department?” McGrath asked. “Talk to your architect about restroom facilities and how to provide adequate facilities so that you don’t have to adjust staffing if you have two or more women on a shift.” One solution that more departments are turning to is having private sleeping quarters with toilets.

Like other speakers, McGrath touched on the importance of designing the building so that it meets both Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Americans with Disabilities Act standards. The ADA, she said, is not a building code but a federal law, which is enforced by the Department of Justice.

Dom Dommer of Dom Dommer Associates and Dwight Kroll, the city planner for Clovis, Calif., discussed their experiences building a new station in Clovis. The goal of that project was to create a fire station that also functioned as a civic building.

Ross opened his presentation with a picture of the Taj Mahal and the warning that this was how community members saw firehouse projects. Ross spoke on how to communicate the fire service’s needs to the community. Among Ross’ advice was to plan a facility that will last 50 years, lobby prospective supporters and keep the process open to the public.

Elgin, Ill., Assistant Fire Chief Mike Baker and Paul Erickson of LeMay Erickson Architects were both judges in the 2006 Station Style Fire Station Design Awards. They reviewed previous winners and spoke about what it took to win. Elgin’s Fire Station #6 won a silver award in 2005. Their advice included having photos and a floor plan and telling how the station will fit into the neighborhood.

Mark Shoemaker of Cole and Russell Architects discussed how to design a facility with training exercises in mind. Many of the newer stations, such as the South Metro 34, have areas for stair training and indoor and outdoor repelling. South Metro was a notable design winner in the 2006 Fire Station Design Award.

Richard Tripp and John Noble, both of Michael Schuster Associates, paired up to talk about Geographic Information System mapping and the role it can play in a department’s master planning and response protocol. GIS mapping is a tool for analyzing existing stations and the placement of new ones by examining things like the call volume by type and location and the response times. Tripp and Noble presented three case studies. In one, they used GIS to determine that a new joint facility with the school district was needed.

Attorney Kinnon Williams with Williams and Williams talked about the ways to acquire property and when and how to use eminent domain. He said that he’s not aware of any case denying a public entity from acquiring property through eminent domain for a firehouse. This, he says, is because it is truly for public use. However, Williams advised to always seek a voluntary transfer by working with property owners.

Dave Fergus is a fire commissioner in Central Kitsap, Wash., and a partner in Rice Fergus Miller Architecture & Planning. He talked about how to stay on budget and get the most station for the money. He said to pay close attention to quantity, quality and costs.

“Quantity is defined by operations — that’s the square footage and is measurable,” Fergus said. “Quality is your choice of materials — define quality. Costs are defined by quality and quantity. You can control two, but you’ll lose the other one.”

Brian Harris, a principal and partner with TCA Architecture Planning, and Herb Roth of Roth Shephard spoke on the trend to co-locate fire facilities with police and EMS. “Perhaps the biggest feature, as land costs go up, the land costs are certainly a reason that facilities should be shared,” Roth said. “Lobby and physical fitness are the ones that can also be shared. Customers from police departments are completely different from fire departments, and they don’t want to see those customers get too close to each other.”

Retired Air Force Gen. Larry Enyart of LEA Architects wrapped up the conference presentations by looking at what it takes to use sustainable building in new fire stations. He addressed a question he said is frequently asked about environmentally correct or green buildings. “When should we start a LEED building?” he rhetorically asked. “We should really start immediately because the longer you wait, the harder it becomes and the more expensive it becomes.”

This year’s sponsors included AirMation, Cole & Russell Architects, Door Engineering & Mfg., Electric Power Door, GearGrid, Locution Systems, Michael Schuster Associates, Pacheco Ross Architects, Plymovent Crop., ReadyRack, Stewart Cooper Newell Architects, and Westnet Inc.