York Region Paramedic Satellite Station 13

As northern York Region and the south end of Simcoe County continue to be developed, the Region of York identified the need for more emergency stations to speed up response times and offer service in the new communities that are being established. Through round table meetings Paramedic Station #13’s site and building were developed from the Region’s green design standards along with sustainable building performance features, with the final design determined by a large panel of stakeholders including; Paramedic Response Station (PRS) staff (at various levels); Regional Staff (multiple branches); authority decision-makers and the full consultant team.

The site had greenfield and brownfield development principles, as a portion of the site had a residential dwelling located on it that was demolished prior to this project being awarded to our firm. It was designed with two access points, one specifically for the exiting of ambulances, and one for the return of an ambulance along with staff and public access. An outdoor patio space, which is adjacent to the kitchen, is tucked in behind the facility to provide adequate privacy while still being connected to views of green space.

The one-storey Paramedic Services Station incorporates a staff facility consisting of a write-up office, staff lounge, kitchen, eating area, and locker room with adjoining male and female shower/washrooms. The four-bay ambulance bay area and staff facility area are divided by a spine of service spaces that offers an efficiency in design for both service delivery to the whole facility and storage solutions. The central spine includes a separate IT room, oxygen storage, medical storage, and combined electrical/mechanical utility room.

The goal of the interior design was to create a home for the crew while providing the highest level of function for their working practices. A wood slat “Friendly Wall” wraps the walls of the lounge area to bring warmth to the interior spaces with a soft blue pallet to create a calm environment.

The exterior of the building is made up of linear brick, aluminum composite material (ACM) panels, and precast concrete features. Carrying on with the calming soft blue pallet and wood features, the front entrance is signified with a blue ACM feature wall, and the canopy soffits receive a natural exposed wood deck. Bi-folding doors and a clerestory window directly below the ambulance bay roof on the east, north and west walls bring a vast amount of natural ambient daylight into the space. Large windows and high-level clerestory windows (where visual privacy was required) allow the same quality of light into the staff facility.