At the Fire Industry Equipment Research Organization (F.I.E.R.O.) Fire Station Design Symposium, there was more than just learning going on. Architects also competed in the second-annual fire station design awards program. Out of 31 entries from 19 architecture firms, 14 awards were given: two Honor Awards, six Merit Awards and six Recognition Awards.
Honor Awards
- Hamilton Fire Hall, built for Richmond (B.C.) Fire Rescue, by Johnston Davidson Architecture + Planning Inc. Jury members commented the station features “a very clear public entry point without being overbearing, cleverly achieved by turning one of the three plan boxes at a slight angle to the other two. The project is also noteworthy for the sod roofs over part of the building, the solar collectors and the water runoff collection cisterns.”
- Charlotte (N.C.) Fire Department Station No. 39, by Atkinson/Dyer/Watson Architects. Jury members commented the design was “a responsive design proposal for an ‘infill station’ to be constructed in an established neighborhood. The design, which references a 1920s Charlotte station that was also inserted into a neighborhood, was instrumental in overcoming neighborhood objections to the station’s proposed location.”
Merit Awards
- American LaFrance Fire Apparatus Corporate Office and New Apparatus Delivery Inspection Station, Summerville, S.C., by Merriman-Schmitt Architects. The building was noted as being “a nice salute to the firefighting profession and celebration of the company’s 175-year heritage and lineage.”
- Firemen’s Association of the State of New York Firemen’s Home, Hudson, N.Y., by Bergmann Associates. Jury members commented: “A noteworthy first-phase of an ambitious reinventing and rebuilding of a most unusual fire service facility.”
- Pendleton (S.C.) Fire/EMS/Police Station, by RSCT Architecture + Design. This project was noted as unique for the “studies that the designers did to show the clients how to effectively increase the buildable ‘footprint’ available.”
- Peoria (Ariz.) Fire Department Jomax Station 7, by LEA Architects. Jury members called it “an interesting transformation of the ‘three-box’ floor plan by the use of roof form, material selections, material assembly and color.”
- Watercolor Fire House, South Walton Fire, Seagrove, Fla., by DAG Architects. Jury members commented, “A colorful adaptation of a ‘coastal vernacular’ to the fire station for this award-winning, planned community.”
- San Luis Obispo (Calif.) County Fire Station 21, by LEA Architects. The design was noted for “an appropriately industrial-strength aesthetic for an airport crash-rescue facility. The designers made the most of materials selected by the clever use of construction details.”
Recognition Awards
- Bluffton (S.C.) Township Fire Protection District Station 37, by Stewart-Cooper-Newell. The design “thoughtfully continues the architecture theme of the community and will contribute to the architectural language of the ‘low county’ community’s vernacular.”
- Evanston (Ill.) Fire Department Station 3, by YAS Architecture. Jury members noted the design reflects “a very modern design language, yet it clearly ‘reads’ as a fire station.”
- Hemby Bridge Volunteer Fire Department Fire Station 23, Union County, N.C., by Garner and Brown Architects. “A well done fire station with careful attention to the relationship of one line to another in the exterior elevation,” noted jury members.
- Montrose (Colo.) Fire District Station 2, by Cole + Russell Architects and Motly Architecture and Design: “A very cost effective, yet creative use of the basic metal building à‚… a design that is durable and appropriate for the site location.”
- Waynesville (N.C.) Fire Department Station No. 1, by Atkinson/Dyer/Watson Architects. Jury members noted the design “Exhibits an effective use of a constricted site. Good ‘flow’ to the apparatus floor while maintaining opportunities for expansion.”
- Yuma (Ariz.) Fire Station No. 1, by Perlman Architects of Arizona. One of several “themed” entries, this design was noted for its “adaptation of the ‘territorial style’ vernacular to the exterior skin of the proposed fire station.”
For more on the F.I.E.R.O. Fire Station Design Symposium, visit www.fierofirestation.com.
