Domusstudio-designed Encinitas Fire Station

San Diego Architecture Firm Contracts With Encinitas for Four of Five Fire Stations

Because of its many distinct neighborhood identities, the City of Encinitas can’t easily be defined architecturally. So Domusstudio Architecture had the pleasure of creating four different designs for fire stations throughout the coastal Southern California city about 25 miles north of San Diego.

Recently completed Encinitas Fire Station No. 3 is the newest example, a two-story concrete masonry structure with curving rooflines.

“With its oversized apparatus bay, the building would be easily identified as a fire station in any community,” said Wayne Holtan, a principal at Domusstudio Architecture in San Diego. “Yet by incorporating eclectic architectural features, like horizontal lapsiding juxtaposed with the masonry block and a standing seam metal roof, the overall effect is unique to Leucadia, a complement to the beach neighborhood of Encinitas.”

Located west of Interstate 5, off Leucadia Boulevard at 801 Orpheus Ave., 1970s-era Encinitas Fire Station No. 3 was completely demolished last year so that it could be replaced with modern, expanded public safety facilities. The new station spans 7,256 square feet, more than double its original size, and has the capacity to house extra engines and firefighters in the event of large-scale disasters like flooding or wildfire.

Built with an eye toward the future, the station’s normal capacity is for three firefighters and a battalion chief. Currently there is a firefighter, captain and engineer. The first floor of the station includes offices, a training classroom, physical fitness area and three oversized bays for emergency equipment. In addition to the main fire engine and one reserve engine, Station No. 3 is home to a rescue trailer specially suited to confined space emergencies. This type of rescue equipment is not readily found in fire departments in surrounding communities like Del Mar, Solana Beach or Rancho Santa Fe.

The firefighters’ living area is upstairs, including four bedrooms with two beds each, a dining area, kitchen and day room. The station’s design also includes a deck for outdoor living space. In addition to stairs, which firefighters typically would use to respond to an emergency, the station also features a firefighters’ pole.

“It’s an interesting building,” said Encinitas Fire Department Division Chief Scott Henry, who is project manager. “I think the uniqueness – not at all cookie-cutter square – speaks to the character of our city.”

Domusstudio Architecture’s design incorporates numerous sustainable elements, adding to the efficiency of the station, even though it was conceived many years in advance of current “green” building standards.

“Our firm has always been driven toward naturally green practices, which result in high efficiencies and sustainability for our clients, without the hype,” explained Domusstudio’s Holtan. “We don’t have to spend a lot of money to get the right results.”

In place since construction started and for everyday use going forward at Fire Station No. 3, sustainable systems include erosion control measures, storm water management, low water use landscaping, and highly efficient irrigation and water heaters. The station features storage and collection areas for recyclables.

Energy efficiency also is evident in the lighting utilized at the station, including use of LED exit signs, compact fluorescent lighting fixtures and occupancy sensors, which automatically turn out lights in rooms when they aren’t in use.

Architecturally, the station utilized recycled building materials and use of regional materials, including the masonry block. Low emitting/low VOC materials, finishes and coatings were used for the building’s flooring, paints and sealants.

The windows are tinted, dual glazed and operable for maximizing natural coastal breezes. This also reduces the air conditioning and heating loads for the facility. Installed A/C and heating equipment is very efficient and sustainable, with an energy efficiency ratio of 13. The refrigerant, R-22, has an Ozone Depletion Potential of less than 4 percent and the gas furnace has an efficiency above 92 percent with very low emissions. All of this meets and exceeds the California Energy Commission standards. And much of the fire station’s equipment prior to demolition has been refurbished for reuse today in the kitchen and laundry area.

Like Fire Station No. 3, Encinitas Fire Stations No. 1 and No. 2 will be replaced in a multi-phased design and construction schedule stretched out over the next several years.

“We will have four stations less than 10 years old, and four out of all five of Encinitas’ fire station are Domusstudio designed,” said Chief Henry of the Encinitas Fire Department. “That says a lot for Domusstudio and their way of doing business. Their attention and interest in the project from beginning to end ensures we get a quality product.”

Fire Station No. 2, in Cardiff, is currently in the planning process. Designs call for a new 6,330-square-foot facility to be built by 2010 on a bigger site just east of the existing fire station off of Birmingham Drive, west of Interstate 5 in Cardiff-by-the-Sea. The station’s design is intended to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) silver certification standards.

Holtan noted that design of downtown Encinitas Fire Station No. 1 also is under way.

In addition to the professional design services of Domusstudio Architecture, other fire station reconstruction project team members include Douglas E. Barnhart, Inc. construction manager, and Syska Hennessy Group, MEP engineers.

Encinitas Fire Station No. 5, on Balour Street, also was designed by Domusstudio Architecture, then known as Dominy + Associates Architects, and opened in 2003. That station was named Best North Coast Fire Station in the San Diego Architectural Guide.

Domusstudio Architecture is a 22-year-old award-winning architectural design firm specializing in religious facilities, fire stations, educational buildings, senior housing and custom residential projects. Founded in 1986 as Dominy + Associates, the firm strives to enhance the lives of people through architecture, interiors, planning and service. For more information about its projects and services, call 619-692-9393 or visit www.domusstudio.com.