Designed to harness the talents of Asheville, N.C., first responders, the brand-new, $14.7 million Broadway Public Safety Station was created with performance, health and safety in mind. Opened for occupancy in November 2023, this 21,800-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility is a multifunctional space that serves a wide range of needs.

          “We are proud to add the BPSS to our facilities inventory,” said Walter Ear, PE, public facilities manager for the city of Asheville. “It’s a great building that will serve our community for years to come.”

Closing the gap

          The seed that became the BPSS was planted during the 2013-2014 budget cycle when the Asheville Fire Department identified a service gap in the area and realized that the existing 1927-era, two-bay fire station could not be expanded and updated due in part to the age of the building and the size of its parcel. The Asheville City Council approved enough money to buy a parcel of land less than a mile away. It also approved the funds necessary to renovate the existing building — $2.5 million — in hopes that a small fire station could be erected for approximately $4.1 million, a figure based on the cost of a 12,000-square-foot fire station that was built in 2008.

          That’s when the plan shifted. While fire stations and emergency operations centers are constructed to withstand any natural disaster with larger foundations and stronger steel, architects and planners decided to create a building with health and safety in mind for the men and women who use it as their home away from home.

          The living quarters, including the kitchen, dayroom and sleeping quarters, were designed with mental health in mind using calming colors, finishes and sound absorption material in the walls to promote quality rest at night. The sleeping quarters, which are above the three-vehicle apparatus bay, can be quickly accessed via a fire pole to improve the station’s turnout time. They have also employed state-of-the-art alerting equipment to help firefighters get into the right mindset for response.

          “Instead of getting a lot of loud horns, the alert tones ramp up over time, and there is a visual display that gives them information about the call so that they know what they are facing. There are also LED lights that are color-coded and ramp up, so there are visual cues as well as audible cues for them to rely on.”

          When the call is over and the firefighters return, there is an area right off the apparatus bay that is dedicated to decontamination so that all the contaminants and carcinogens that come into the station can get processed out, preventing firefighters from carrying them into their sleeping quarters. In addition, the building is LEED certified with a high-efficiency variable refrigerant flow (VRF) HVAC system; a 67-kilowatt solar photovoltaic array; solar hot water system; a tight building envelope; and building materials that were sourced to meet LEED’s sustainability requirements.

          “This was the city’s first new public safety-oriented facility in 14 years, so it was all new to us,” Ear said. “We relied on the fire department’s expertise for design and performance criteria, the external architect (ADW) and an in-house architect to lead design discussions and decisions.”

A shared space

          Although the building was originally created to serve as a home for Fire Station 13, the BPSS became so much more when the fire chief identified a need to have an emergency operations center and the police chief advocated for additional facilities. By adding on the tools necessary to coordinate emergency response operations as well as a roll call room, body camera charging station, a wash station and a shared workout space, the BPSS also serves as a substation for the Asheville Police Department.

          “We don’t have purpose-built police substations, so this was the first,” Ear said. “The rest of them inherit existing and repurposed buildings. The police substation was the last component to be included, so it added 4,000 square feet to the project.”

          Ear said that when the project was first proposed, the neighborhood was initially concerned about noise, traffic and pedestrian safety. To alleviate the latter concern, architects added a dedicated crosswalk. Since operations began, neighbors have been pleasantly surprised at the level of noise generated by the BPSS, which has been less than they expected.

          “We’ve (also) received lots of positive feedback from neighbors and employees about the aesthetics of the building, so it’s something that they are proud of,” Ear said.

          Deputy Fire Chief Chris Budzinski said he is proud that both the community and the city recognize the importance of investing in the BPSS and prioritizing the well-being of Asheville’s first responders.

          “By combining advanced design with a focus on mental and physical health, alongside improved response times, this facility ensures our firefighters are optimally positioned to serve our community with excellence for years to come,” he said.

          While the BPSS is an exciting new asset for the city of Asheville, Ear said there is more work to be done when it comes to the state of city facilities. “We recently completed a comprehensive facilities study and know that we have many, many historic and aged facilities that haven’t received the love and care that they need to keep them running,” he said. “We hope to make investments in our facilities so that they can catch up, and better meet the needs of our growing community and the organization itself.”

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