New ‘green’ house : City unveils new sustainable fire station
Posted on Saturday, May 10, 2008
From automatic overhead lighting and recycled wood countertops to reprocessed rubber flooring and waterless urinals - Fayetteville's newest fire station boasts all the bells and whistles of a contemporary "green building."
"I think it's the best fire station in the city and it cost less to build," Fayetteville Mayor Dan Coody said during a tour of the new station Friday. "It's also the greenest building. "
Located at 1050 S. Happy Hollow Road, construction work for Fire Station No. 3 is virtually complete with only a few loose ends to tie up, according to Fayetteville Fire Chief Tony Johnson. An official grand opening will likely take place sometime between mid-June and early July.
"I'd say it's about 99 percent complete other than taking care of a few details," Johnson said. "We'll probably do one last shake down late next week to make sure everything is functioning properly."
In addition to two spacious bays, the 6, 500-square-foot building has been constructed on time and under budget thus far, Johnson said. The building was designed by Don Spann and contracted under Don Heckathorn.
"Things are going really well," Johnson said. "We think we have a real good building."
Coody boasted about the fire station's "green"elements and sustainable design features, predicting maximum economic benefits in the future.
Improvements, he said, were strategically located to preserve existing trees and landscape. The building's two-story design minimizes the area of development, while landscape surrounding the facility includes drought-resistant plants and perennial ground covers to reduce the need for water and maintenance. Restoring paved areas to green space will also reduce the facility's overall energy consumption.
"The outside of this building is almost as amazing as the inside," Coody said, as he pointed to the location of an underground geothermal heating pump. "We dug about 60 wells with underground pipes that allow us to utilize the earth's thermal qualities."
Other elements that contribute to the building's high performance energy design include automatic and night setback controls for mechanical systems, waterless urinals and low-flow shower heads. Non-harmful, recycled building materials add to the facility's efficiency.
"Our design is to reduce our carbon imprint because we're taking the lead in green building," Coody said.
Once the new station goes on-line, Johnson said employees currently staffed at the facility's temporary location, 833 N. Crossover Road, will be transferred to the new facility.
The new station marks the fire department's third service expansion in three years. The city opened Fire Station No. 7 on Wedington Drive in 2005 and Fire Station No. 5 on Crossover Road in 2007. Station No. 5 is located two miles north of Station No. 3 's current site.
"They said the Crossover location (for Station No. 3 ) would be only be temporary in 1978," Coody said. "For two decades, the fire department was behind the curve. We just never kept up. We were collecting all this tax money and leaving it in the banks. It looked good, but it wasn't doing anything for us. It's going to be the job of the city's next administration to make sure we don't lose ground."
Environmental elements of the new fire station, Johnson said, aren't the only design features worth bragging about.
In addition to a day room, exercise space, office and laundry area, the first floor of the facility features a modern, retro-style kitchen, complete with stainless steel appliances, drop down lighting and a gas-powered stove. Sprinkler systems are installed throughout, as a precaution.
"The living quarters and the garage are two separate buildings," Johnson said. "Based on our statistics, we know that garages usually don't catch fire, but we do have threats in the living quarters. That's why we've installed sprinkler systems. We even have one over the stove."
Johnson said the stove is designed to automatically shut off whenever firefighters are called to duty.
The upstairs area features changing rooms, office space, a bathroom facility, a study area and an equipment testing room.
"We used to send our breathing apparatuses off to have them recharged," Johnson said. "Being able to do it ourselves will save us a lot of money in the long run."
The completion of Station No. 3 not only means added convenience for firefighters, but also added protection for Fayetteville residents. The new facility will enhance the department's overall Insurance Services Office rating.
A department's ISO rating is the common standard used to establish fire insurance premiums. ISO ratings measure fire fighting potential using information about equipment, fire station locations, staffing, training and other categories. Fire service ratings are based on a one to 10 scale: 10 meaning no fire protection and one being the best coverage. The Fayetteville department has a current rank of four. Johnson said he plans to petition the depar tment's insurance agency for a reevaluation.
"We're really looking forward to the grand opening of this facility," he said. "It's been built to stand the test of time, while also being functional. We're really happy with it."
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
