This station received the Satellite Gold award in Firehouse's 2016 Station Design Awards. Find the full list of winners here.
This new 23,600-square-foot facility, built on the same site as the previous 4,000-square-foot station, is the first multi-story fire station in Dallas in more than 100 years. Responding to an exceptionally tight urban site, a vertical solution was developed. A secure parking garage for personnel vehicles is below grade. At ground level are the main living areas and the drive-through apparatus bays. The second level houses sleeping quarters, and an innovative fitness room solution set within a glass-encased truss that hovers dramatically above the apparatus bay.
The design reestablishes a strong civic presence for the firehouse. Volumetric separation between the firefighter living area and the apparatus support area is created by a glazed atrium. Defined by a two-story-high “story wall,” this atrium brings natural daylight deep into the building and celebrates the history and legacy of firefighting in the service of community. Those who enter the space will find a museum with displays that describe and illustrate the history of the fire service and Engine 27.
Along a balcony above, etched into the red metal panels that wrap the facade, are silhouetted portraits of significant figures in the history of the fire service, among them the first female and minority firefighters, and Captain Ralph Lack, a Station 27 captain who was killed while responding to an apartment fire two days before Christmas in 1975.
Station 27 will be a LEED Gold Certified building. The facility incorporates high-performing systems and materials to reduce long-term operational costs. A 7,500-gallon storage tank was installed below the parking garage, which captures rainwater for irrigation and water closet use, contributing to a nearly 80 percent water savings for the project, and a rooftop-mounted solar PV array has also been installed to offset the operational loads.
Architects: Perkins+Will and TCA Architecture + Planning
