City Scoop: Construction Starts in Albany/Troy, New York

Firefighters facility — “A major trend is the collaboration of different companies, consultants and other types of specialized firms for local and out-of-town projects. This trend has become a standard for H2M, specifically in the emergency services division,” says Dennis Ross.

*IMAGE COURTESY TECTON ARCHITECTS*

City Grill

Dennis Ross
Dir., Emergency Svs. Market, Albany
H2M Architects + Engineers

“A major trend is the collaboration of different companies, consultants and other types of specialized firms for local and out-of-town projects. This trend has become a standard for H2M, specifically in the emergency services division,” says Ross.

He says H2M and Pacheco Ross Architects P.C., Latham, N.Y., recently worked together on fire stations in Schenectady, N.Y., and Lexington, Mass., the latter with Tecton Architects.

“When fire responders return from a call, they may be covered in toxins and carcinogens from smoke, blood-borne pathogens or other contaminants. Additionally, diesel soot from apparatus is a carcinogen that must be captured and exhausted from the station,” Ross explains.

“In these stations, they have created transition zones that safely permit responders to move from ‘hot zones’ such as the bays to ‘cool zones’ such as the living or office areas. These transitions, zones and exhaust extraction areas control how personal protective equipment gets handled, cleaned and stored. The efforts of both firms created facilities that pave the way for continuing to protect our firefighters.”

Firm in Focus

Mosaic Associates Architects
2 Third St., Suite 440, Troy, N.Y.
Principal-in-Charge: John Onderdonk
Founded: 1865
What’s New: The Gene Haas Center for Advanced Manufacturing Skills, scheduled to be completed in 2019, is a $14.5-million, 37,000-sq-ft training and education facility at Hudson Valley Community College’s Troy campus. Mosaic’s design houses student machining labs in the two-story west side of the building, which is flooded with natural light from clerestory windows. In the east wing, technical labs occupy the first floor and computer-aided design (CAD) labs fill the second. A center atrium connects the formal south entrance to the campus quad entrance and provides visual transparency from north to south through the building. Highlighted within the center core are student capstone projects and donor displays. Glazing also brightens the faculty and academic adviser offices and conference rooms at the north facade.