Duluth Fire Station No. 11

The design of a new Fire Station No. 11 in Duluth began with an intensive study of different sites. Fire apparatus needs, infrastructure requirements, traffic counts and patterns, and response call locations and times were examined for each site. A final site was selected for testing a preliminary schematic design for the facility. The facility was designed around “Hot,” “Transition,” and “Cold” zones to address the hazardous materials that firefighters and emergency response teams encounter daily. The goal was to isolate the contaminated apparatus in the hot zone, create a transition zone where individuals and gear can be decontaminated, and provide a cold or clean zone of contamination-free office and living space. In addition to careful space planning, the design required sophisticated mechanical system controls and zoning to maintain the integrity of each area. TKDA embraced the City’s net-zero energy design goal. Strategies include active and passive solar design, ground-source heat pumps, rigorous facility commissioning, and energy performance metering. Other strategies are locally manufactured building products, collecting rainwater runoff from the roof in a cistern to wash trucks and equipment, and optimizing the indoor air quality for health and safety.