Suffolk Fire & Rescue Headquarters (Original Name for Project: King’s Fork Public Safety Center)

City of Suffolk, Virginia

This $7.9 Million project included contract documents for the design of a 25,109 square foot joint Fire Station/Fire Department Administration Building/Emergency Operations Center. The Fire Station is 12,500 square feet, with the remainder of the space dedicated to Fire Department Administrative Offices and support spaces, an Emergency Operations Center, and plug-in capability for a Backup E-911 Center. Within the fire station are a fitness center, 18 individual bunkrooms, a decontamination area, and a large day room and commercial kitchen. Instead of the traditional locker room/shower area, the station offers individual shower rooms (separate from the restrooms in the administration side of the building) with a Turn-Out Gear room housing 54 individual lockers. The station includes three extended length drive-through apparatus bays, which are located between the bunk-rooms and the day room/kitchen area. A unique aspect of this facility is that the lobby displays an antique fire truck that was once used by the department. Since this is an essential public safety facility that will function as the City’s only all-departments operations communications center in the event of a weather emergency, the building was designed with several storm-hardening features including laminated, wind-driven projectile resistant window glazing, increased structural resistance to Category II hurricane wind loading, and tear-off roofing resistance. The first floor is significantly elevated above the 100-year flood plain, and the entire facility is served by an emergency generator. Site improvements included site grading, site entrance and site utilities (storm drainage, sanitary sewer connection). Additional work included street improvements, site landscaping and construction of a helipad for use by emergency officials in times of weather emergencies.