Grace Hebert Curtis Architects completed a new fire station for the Wooddale community of East Baton Rouge. The one-story fire station employs sustainable and energy-saving design concepts that reflect the site and surrounding context.

Taking into account the two non-perpendicular street frontages and a predominantly north/south-orientation, the design team introduced a simple yet elegant rotation in the floor plan. This powerful design rotation also affords picturesque views of the site’s mature oak grove to the northwest, where firefighters can barbeque or relax. Importantly, this structural realignment passively cools the unconditioned apparatus bay through cross ventilation via prevailing southeastern winds. The angle also provides the added bonus of minimizing the turning radius for truck drivers.

The building’s alternate communications center allows the station to function as a scaled down emergency operations center to provide continuity of services in the event of a crisis. The building shares a site with the Louisiana State Police complex and the state Fire Marshal’s Office.