Cortez Fire Protection District

New Station

The old Cortez, Colorado fire station was small, outdated, and didn’t have the necessary infrastructure to prevent carcinogenic cross-contamination or even house all of its equipment indoors. It was more cost-effective to build a new state-of-the-art station than to renovate the old one.

The City of Cortez owned a small, urban corner property that was a parking lot with a small building used for fire department administration. The design team coordinated demolition and asbestos abatement and provided the technical work to win a $2 million Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) grant. To accommodate the tight dimensions of the one-acre site, the design team created bays facing in two perpendicular directions, enabling first responders to direct emergency response onto two streets.

The station is certified LEED Silver and features native landscaping that can handle the arid climate and water use reduction measures.

Architect of Record – PRA | Photo Credit: Marona Photography

Awards
Firehouse Station Design – Notable Award 2019