Sitting on the northeast corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Van Ness Avenue in Hollywood, Calif., the new Los Angeles Regional Fire Station No. 82 is the “gateway” to Hollywood Boulevard at the Highway 101 interchange. Architects at RRM Design Group, San Luis Obispo, Calif., designed the station to fulfill the fire departments’ operations and functional requirements, while fitting into the surrounding community’s architectural context.
The station’s Engine Company 82 was established in the midst of World War II, and for its first seven years, was housed in the overcrowded LAFD’s historic Fire Station 27. On March 2, 1951, a 7,145-square-foot single-bay neighborhood station opened on Bronson Avenue, becoming an integral part of the largely residential community.
The contemporary, three-story, 32,000-square-foot fire station combines elements, materials and proportions from the Art Deco and Moderne styles, adding to the eclectic blend of architecture found along Hollywood Boulevard. Featuring underground parking, the fire station houses three heavy apparatus bays, three paramedic bays on the first floor, and administrative offices and a conference room on the second floor. Split between the second and third floors, the living quarters include a kitchen, dining room, dayroom, dormitories, restrooms, locker rooms, exercise room and handball court.
Serving an area of almost 2 square miles, the energy-efficient station incorporates a variety of sustainable materials and systems, including a vegetated roofing system that captures and treats on-site rainwater before it is piped to the storm drainage system.
The building exterior is made up of smooth and ribbed insulated metal panels from Kingspan Insulated Panels Inc., Deland, Fla. Metal awnings from Kawneer Co. Inc., Norcross, Ga., provide a functional shade feature for windows, while also protecting the main entry. The project utilizes galvanized sheet metal parapet caps and flashing from Weiss Sheet Metal Inc., Avon, Mass. The stair tower on the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Van Ness has a standing seam roof from AEP Span, Fontana, Calif., while custom-fabricated metal screen walls from Industrial Louvers Inc., Delano, Minn., hide the mechanical equipment on the roof. Custom-fabricated insulated steel sliding doors from Raynor Worldwide, Dixon, Ill., are utilized in the apparatus bays, while insulated steel coiling doors and grilles from The Cookson Co. Inc., Phoenix, are on the rear apparatus bay doors and underground parking. High-efficiency glazing and aluminum curtainwalls and windows from Kawneer are located throughout.
Inside, smooth metal soffit panels from AEP Span are used to finish the lobby ceiling and entry awning. Additionally, the ceiling of the stair towers and underside of the stairwells feature smooth metal soffit panels from Indianapolis-based Citadel Architectural Products. While the majority of the materials specified use manufacturers’ headquarters outside of California, almost all of these installed materials were manufactured from plants local to California.
“To truly appreciate this building, one would have to look beyond the brick and metal façade, and appreciate the complex design and construction process that weaved together a dedicated consultant team, a detailed contractor, an engaged community and city agency,” says Candice Wong, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, associate at RRM Design Group. “All these elements came together to create a gateway for this Hollywood community. Fire Station No. 82 now proudly represents the surrounding neighborhood with its strong, modern aesthetic that will continue to be a source of pride well into the future. A LEED Gold certified building, it was designed with firefighters and sustainability in mind, reducing the consumption of energy and water and producing a state-of-the-art facility for public safety.”
Los Angeles Regional Fire Station No. 82, Hollywood, Calif.
Awards: 2012 Charlie Award for Architectural Arts from The Hollywood Arts Council, 2012 Green School/Green Government Award from the USGBC C4 Chapter, and the 2012 Station Style Fire Station Design Silver Award for Career Stations
Owner: City of Los Angeles Fire Department, Los Angeles
Architect/landscape architect/LEED: RRM Design Group, San Luis Obispo, Calif.
General contractor: Morillo Construction Inc., Pasadena, Calif.
Cost estimation: Currie & Brown, San Francisco
Civil engineer: KOA Corp., Los Angeles
Electrical engineer: Thoma Electric, San Luis Obispo
Mechanical engineer: Brummel, Myrick and Associates, San Luis Obispo
Structural engineer: Cornerstone Structural Engineering, San Francisco
Awnings/curtainwalls: Kawneer Co. Inc., Norcross, Ga., www.kawneer.com
Canopy/stair tower smooth metal soffit panels: Citadel Architectural Products, Indianapolis, www.citadelap.com
Insulated steel coiling doors and grilles: The Cookson Co. Inc., Phoenix,
www.cooksondoor.com
Insulated steel sliding doors: Raynor Worldwide, Dixon, Ill., www.raynor.com
Metal screen walls: Industrial Louvers Inc., Delano, Minn., www.industriallouvers.com
Sheet metal parapet caps and flashing: Weiss Sheet Metal Inc., Avon, Mass., www.weiss-sheetmetal.com
Smooth and ribbed panels: Kingspan Insulated Panels Inc., Deland, Fla., www.kingspanpanels.us
Standing seam metal roof/smooth metal soffit panels: AEP Span, a Division of ASC Profiles LLC, Fontana, Calif., www.aepspan.com