Conway SC Public Safety Facility

The new two story structure houses the Fire Department Headquarters on the first floor, and the Police Department Headquarters on the second floor. Combining the two departments into a single Public Safety Facility, allows for a joint use of common areas such as training rooms, conference rooms, day room, physical fitness area, and communications.

Additionally, the shared Facility utilizes a joint public entrance and lobby. The design helped the City to save a considerable amount of money and space over having two separate facilities. This Fire Department houses five truck bays with a work shop and a mezzanine for equipment storage.

This Design-Build project began with the demolition of a dilapidated hospital. Site considerations were paramount to the design. Great care was taken to preserve the heavily wooded lot of old-growth Live Oak trees. During the design process, it was decided that the new structure would need to closely mirror the L-shape of the original hospital, to preserve the natural beauty of the site.

The Public Safety Facility showcases the region’s ‘low-country’ style and character, while giving the City a state-of-the-art Fire and Police complex. Due to its coastal location, the structure is designed to withstand 130+ mile-per-hour and has impact resistant glazing and hardened exterior walls to resist damage by hurricanes. The elevation of the site was raised to prevent the possibility of flooding.