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| New fire station. Photo by Jerry Pickard. |
Fire Chief magazine announced that the Northshore Fire Department’s new headquarters fire station located at 7220 NE 181st Street in Kenmore received the bronze award in their 11th annual Station Style Fire Station Design Awards. The program recognizes outstanding architecture and design from fire departments nationwide. This year there were 37 applicants in the “career” category,
“This is a very competitive process”, said Janet Wilmoth Editorial Director of Fire Chief magazine, “you should be very proud to be in the top three of this category.”
The competition was judged by a panel that included four fire chiefs, one firefighter/architect and three architects. The design of the Northshore station was led by Brian Harris and Forest Hooker from TCA Architecture and Planning with input from department employees and the building construction committee.
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| Training tower. Photo by Jerry Pickard. |
The station is located on a 2.5 acre site that includes a 55-foot high, 5-level training tower. The main building houses five main components; Public Meeting Area, Administration, Training, Fire Prevention and Emergency Response Operations. The design allows the autonomy of each area while facilitating easy interface between them. The project employed a high-performance building approach with high-efficiency systems, natural lighting, and a selection of sustainable yet durable finishes. Art work is incorporated into the lobby which is open to the public and provides access to a large community meeting space and department services. With emergency response prioritized, the design successfully bridges the complex programmatic requirements of the department with the needs of the community.
The project required years of planning and design work before a shovel of dirt was turned on the nearly two years of construction.
“We are fortunate to have a very supportive community,” said Fire Chief Tom Weathers, “this building was designed to support life safety and emergency response services and to serve as a hub of the community for decades to come.”
Ah yes, the Taj Mahal. Meanwhile, while 57 resides in a flood plain and needs a wall of concrete to keep it from flooding again . . . seriously folks. Four refrigerators in the kitchen at taxpayer expense? A 60 inch TV room with loungers, again at taxpayer expense?
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