Project of the Year Finalist, Best Government/Public Building: Fire Station No. 5 of the city of Boise

Although the original goal of this project was to remodel an existing 73-year-old fire station to bring it up to code, the team quickly discovered that the structure was beyond repair. After a year of information gathering, the old facility was demolished and in its place is a two-story, 15,000-square-foot fire station that features a three-bay apparatus area and support spaces, along with a large public lobby that doubles as a security room with an activated lockable entry door.

The project team knew that because of the emotional attachment to the fire station, they had to include current and retired firefighters from Fire Station #5 in the new building design. They took several guided tours of the old station to hear the stories and find out how best to preserve its legacy, and this input was incorporated into the project’s concepts, designs and mock-ups.

As the team got to work on the new building, they also helped No. 5 firefighters move into their temporary quarters down the street. A former funeral home was converted into living quarters, office/work space, equipment storage area and a bay for a fire apparatus. The team made structural modifications and poured a new concrete floor to adapt this decades-old building to keep up with an above-average pace of operations.

Photo courtesy of Tobin Rogers

After fire crews settled into their temporary home, the construction team had another opportunity to collaboratively solve problems as utility crews began work on major fiber optic upgrades and other infrastructure improvements around the project site. Air utilities in and around the site presented the biggest challenge and coordination effort to resolve, which affected the schedule.

Idaho Power was eventually able to come on site and relocate these power lines, but the team was able to accomplish as much as possible in the interim through extensive planning and adjustments to the work sequence. Consistent communication and daily coordination saved both teams time and headaches as they completed their respective areas of work with minimal impact on the overall schedule.

Elements from the old fire station were incorporated into the new building, including a section of wood flooring from the old station that now serves as a wall and accent piece, along with bricks that can be found inside the new station.

Photo courtesy of Tobin Rogers

Elements of energy saving and environmental sustainability were also incorporated into the design, with 100 solar panels on the roof capable of maintaining operations 24 hours a day.

The ESI security team used the project as an opportunity to expand their library of training videos. In this case, the Fire Station no. 5 was the ideal project to capture ceiling penetration training. The construction crew prepared the location for filming and was also used as “talent” during the production. This training video is now used to complement ESI’s robust training programs and is routinely shared with business partners and subcontractors.

From creating temporary housing for equipment and personnel to installing solar panels on the roof to meet the city’s green building standards, the project team made sure first responders kept up their pace of operations at the busiest fire station in the state of Idaho.