In Quarters: Woodlawn Fire and Rescue Station #24

BKV Group, a holistic, multidisciplinary design firm, today announced the completion of the new Woodlawn Fire and Rescue Station #24 in Mount Vernon, Va., south of Washington, D.C. Designed in partnership with Pacheco Ross Architects, the two-story, 15,149-square-foot facility replaces a smaller outdated station that was built more than 50 years ago as the first fire station owned and operated by Fairfax County.

In overseeing the planning, pre-development, architecture, engineering and interiors for the Woodlawn Fire Station, BKV Group created a design that could be implemented in phases so the existing facility could remain operational throughout construction, which began in December 2019. The new station, designed for 24/7 operations, includes a brick structure containing four drive-through apparatus bays for emergency vehicles, as well as an adjacent two-story building, clad with metal panels and brick, housing the station’s administrative office, bunk spaces, kitchen and dining room, locker and shower rooms, physical conditioning facility, gear and medical supply storage, maintenance shop, and decontamination space. The station also includes a separate suite on the first floor for an EMS supervisor.

“Replacing a staple of the community that has stood for more than a half-century required collaboration with local officials and other stakeholders to ensure the new facility would be equipped to meet the needs of Mount Vernon today and in the future,” said Mark A. Manetti, AIA, government and education practice leader and partner at BKV Group. “Through careful planning, we were able to avoid temporary relocation costs, minimize service disruption, and attain the desired level of sustainability.”

The Woodlawn Fire Station was designed to achieve LEED Gold certification – above the minimum LEED Silver requirement established by Fairfax County. The project was able to attain the higher LEED accreditation through its exemplary score in water efficiency, on-site renewable energy and indoor environmental quality.

The project’s phased construction, contemporary design and congruency with the surrounding neighborhood contributed to BKV Group receiving a Merit Award as part of the 2021 James M. Scott Exceptional Design Awards for institutional design excellence, a Fairfax County program that raises awareness of outstanding planning and design projects. The Woodlawn Fire Station also received NAIOP Northern Virginia’s 2021 Build-to-Suit Institutional Award of Excellence.

“This new, enhanced fire and rescue station is designed to improve emergency response services in the Woodlawn community as it grows and as we embark on the 21st century redevelopment of Richmond Highway,” said Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck. “Fairfax County continues to improve services to our residents and businesses through new facilities like this, bringing state-of-the-art emergency readiness and enhanced emergency medical rescue services. I am also thankful to BKV Group for its dedication to designing our new building with energy-efficient systems to meet LEED Gold certification.”

Scheibel Construction, of Huntingtown, Md., served as general contractor for the development.

BKV Group is currently working on a similar firehouse replacement development for Fairfax County’s Seven Corners Fire Station in nearby Annandale, Va.

About BKV Group:

For more than 40 years, BKV Group has designed and delivered community-enhancing, award-winning projects across a multitude of sectors including market-rate multifamily, student living, senior housing, affordable housing, government and federal, education and library, corporate and commercial, hospitality and mixed-use. Throughout BKV’s history, the firm has grown from a sole proprietorship into a diverse partnership with practice sites in Chicago, Dallas, Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., and Hanoi, Vietnam. The firm’s holistic approach encompasses a variety of services including architecture; interior design; landscape architecture; mechanical, electrical and structural engineering; construction administration; and planning and pre-development. This integrated methodology ensures streamlined communication between disciplines to find the best design solutions under budget and time constraints while removing redundancies in the process and enhancing the design and function of each project. For more information, visit bkvgroup.com.