Lucketts Fire and Rescue Station

Serving Loudoun County, Virginia, the new Lucketts Fire and Rescue Station is a modernized resource for first responders and residents. To improve efficiency, effectiveness, and well-being, Moseley and the county collaborated to replace the original 60-year-old station with a new facility offering better resources for fire and rescue personnel. The resulting single-story, 18,010-square-foot building houses an engine, ambulance, tanker, and brush unit, as well as the county’s swift water rescue team, which comprises rescue boats and a support vehicle.

The Moseley team and Loudoun County also worked to blend the new station with the local architectural context, honoring its placement in a rural farming community. The final design successfully blends form and function, while fulfilling the county’s practical needs with an innovative, health-focused approach.

Designing Healthy Spaces

A fire station crafted to support the health of its personnel leads to higher morale, greater efficiency, and, ultimately, a safer community. With this in mind, the Moseley team incorporated design elements to promote overall wellness among first responders. Among these features is an outdoor dining space; a communal, well-lit kitchen; and indoor dining areas. The team also implemented measures to facilitate more restful and restorative sleep, including crew-based station alert systems; red night lighting, to protect melatonin production and aid a smooth transition between sleep and wakefulness; and bedroom quarters that are separate from the rest of the station.

It was also essential to focus on crew safety by including modern decontamination systems and other protective applications. These include exhaust capture filtration systems, to help remove harmful fumes from the environment; CO and CO2 sensors in apparatus bays; separation of residential quarters from high carcinogenic areas; and direct exhaust from the station’s decontamination room and gear storage, minimizing exposure to damaging airborne pollutants.

Meeting Challenges

The Moseley team had to navigate certain challenges when designing the new station. Namely, typical infrastructure, such as municipal water and septic, was not available on the site. To address this deficiency, the design includes extensive site infrastructure improvements that address the most basic needs that would not be an issue in an urban context. These improvements include a 20,000-gallon fire suppression tank and a 35,000-gallon fill tank that are fed by the on-site water well. These tanks provide both suppression for the building and a tanker truck fill area for both this station and other nearby stations in similarly rural areas. Finally, the team addressed septic needs through the addition of a sewer line that runs to the adjacent elementary school’s sewer treatment facility.

Sustainability

The station achieved LEED Silver certification in 2021 in recognition of several green initiatives integrated into its design. Key features that contributed to this milestone include landscaping over 50% of the site with native and adaptive plants, eliminating the need for site irrigation and promoting biodiversity. The design also used reflective roofing, light-colored hardscape, and permeable pavement, helping reduce heat gain in the facility.

The team incorporated low flow plumbing fixtures that reduce water use by 34% compared to baseline, enhancing water efficiency, while an energy-efficient building envelope, lighting, and HVAC systems optimize energy performance. This results in a 30% reduction in energy consumption.

The project further prioritized sustainability by utilizing recycled and regionally sourced materials, with over 70% of wood-based products being certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Moseley diverted over 90% of construction waste from landfills by recycling and salvaging it, further emphasizing our dedication to environmental stewardship.

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