Maximizing Operational Capacity at City of Shavano Park Fire Station

Architecture, Civic Building, Fire Stations

Sometimes, our opportunities are not centered on unique design expression, but rather on a highly responsive solution to a client brief. In the case of our expansion to the City of Shavano Park fire station, we designed to prioritize the client’s programmatic needs, seamlessly integrating a significant addition. This 2010 project is a prime example of a tailored response to client requirements, an elegant solution at home in its residential neighborhood context.

The project scope included renovation and new construction, doubling its number of apparatus bays and prioritizing operational efficiency. A renovation to the second floor and re-roofing of the original 2,300 SF facility provided upgraded interior spaces. The 4,310 SF addition expanded the Fire Station’s emergency response capabilities. The addition incorporates industrial building materials, for cost-effectiveness and durability over time. We added new apparatus bays, constructed using a pre-manufactured metal building with a smaller steel framed addition at the front of the existing building (lengthening the existing bays by 15 feet). The metal building’s crisp lines, neutral exterior color palette, and quarry stone trim fit comfortably in context – a quiet, suburban residential street.

Adding a practical measure of sustainability, site design included a 7,200-gallon cistern to capture 95% of roof storm water, mitigating run-off into the aquifer. The captured water supplies landscape irrigation in select planting areas. Xeriscaped landscape beds further conserve water resources, and the landscape plan protected existing clusters of mature live oak trees.

Storage and support spaces in the existing building are air conditioned, however all apparatus bays and the support spaces in the new construction are unit-heated only. Key features: