Architect David Shambach, in background, works on-site at the new Rincon Valley Fire District station, which when completed will have a variety of energy -saving features. In the foreground are piping loops that eventually will provide thermal heating through the floors of the station near I-10 and Arizona 83.

photos by benjie sanders / Arizona Daily Star

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The fire engines are still red, but the buildings that house them are going green.

The city of Tucson, under a mandate from the City Council to build to a "silver" standard set by the U.S. Green Building Council, has completed its first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) fire station and is building a second one Downtown.

Two suburban fire districts are also going green — proof, says architect David Shambach, that the quality and energy efficiency of green design justify the additional costs.

Shambach, principal designer for projects under way in the Rincon Valley and Corona de Tucson fire districts, said it makes economic sense to pay a bit more for the building when you recoup the costs in energy savings and easier maintenance.

Fire Chief Karen Lundberg has gotten into the habit of pinching pennies over her 23-year career with the Rincon Valley Fire District, where she's been chief since 1990. She isn't about to splurge now, she said, just because the district has grown up and residents have given it $17 million in bonding authority.

However, Lundberg said she recognizes the value of spending a bit more on her newest fire station if it will pay off later in reduced energy bills and easier maintenance.

That made her susceptible to architect Shambach's suggestion to build a certified "green" fire station alongside Interstate 10 at the Arizona 83 exit.

The 16,000-square-foot building rising there will be a far cry from the district's earlier homes.

Lundberg has commanded her department, as it grew from a volunteer force to 34 full-time professionals, from a variety of less-than-perfect buildings. They included a fifth-wheel travel trailer in a parking lot and a mobile home parked in a stable.

By the end of the year, Lundberg will move her office to Rincon Valley's newest fire station on the south side of the 50-square-mile district. Station 2 replaces temporary headquarters in a nearby metal building that formerly housed a winery.

Station 1 will remain in service on the North Side. The district is split by the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, and firefighters can't afford to "wait five minutes for the train to go by," Lundberg said.

"Here we did it just right," said Lundberg. "We upped on some things that'll give us more energy efficiency and prolong the life of the building."

Shambach and builder Jamie Olding haven't yet calculated the price increase caused by the building's green features, but both say costs are negligible and more than offset by savings in heating, cooling, lighting and maintaining the building over its lifespan.

This is the first green building for Olding and his partner Perry Pisciotta, who formed the construction company Building Excellence in 2006.

Shambach said the project will be kept within a $4 million budget established before the decision to go green.

Qualifying for LEED standards can seem like a lot if you're scrimping, said Shambach, but if you're already building a good building, it's a small step. "Building green," said Shambach, "is just another way of making sure the building is constructed properly."

This fire station's green features start with its insulating systems. The roof is composed of panels of foam sandwiched between plywood. The windows are double-paned, and the frames have an insulating break in them. Exterior shades are designed to keep out the sun on the hottest days.

The walls are made of concrete-filled foam forms. Olding said using the newer materials required more consultation and education of the subcontractors on the job, but did not appreciably add to the cost. The foam wall forms were purchased and installed for about the same price as conventional masonry walls, he said.

The building uses recycled steel and very little wood. The cabinets, yet to be ordered, will be from readily renewable or recycled wood, Shambach said.

"Daylighting" is a big building feature, with 28 solar tubes and three "Ciralights," which use mirrors to capture full sunlight when the sun is 15 degrees above the horizon. The three 4x4 skylights in the ceiling of the community room can be automatically shaded for movies and PowerPoint presentations.

Daylighting is also in evidence at Tucson Fire's Station 22, built by Sundt Construction south of East Valencia Road on South Alvernon Way.

Most of the building's rooms are lit in the daytime through shaded clerestory windows that run the length of the building and its bays. Interior rooms are on sensors that turn off lights when they are not in use.

Designers couldn't use waterless urinals in the gender-neutral bathrooms, said Capt. Roger Soriano, who calls the station home when he's on duty. So they installed dual-flush toilets — "up for liquids, down for solids."

In addition to well-insulated walls and ceilings, the roof has expansive overhangs, subscribing to the "big hat" theory of desert architecture.

Water for cooking and showers is heated by a solar system on the station's roof.

Soriano said he especially appreciates the building's segregation of truck bays and "turn-out rooms," where uniforms and equipment are hung. He said he has served in older fire stations that reeked of diesel exhaust and smoky clothing. "It's bad enough we do what we do and get contaminated with this stuff," he said.

Building to LEED standards also means reducing or eliminating the use of volatile organic compounds in paints, finishes and cabinetry.

José Carballeira, the city of Tucson's project director for the building, said the direct cost of LEED certification, which included additional paperwork and certification fees, was $71,800.

He hasn't computed other costs but estimates that LEED-required items added 2 to 3 percent to the $6.5 million cost of the station. "There is definitely a payback," he said.

Carballeira said the building's architects, Welman Sperides Mickelberg, now expect the building to qualify for gold LEED status, a step above the silver designation required by the city.

Creating a clean, comfortable environment for the firefighters is the most important aspect of designing a fire station, said Carballeira.

"This isn't just another facility. This is their home. These guys ... risk their lives every day. To me, you can't do too much for them."

Lundberg agrees. "We want to be able to give them a nice environment. Their jobs are stressful enough," she said.

She thinks her crew will especially enjoy the "day room," which Shambach designed on two levels so that each recliner will have an unobstructed view of the big-screen television.

At Fire Station 22, the screen is already in place, and the recliners, lined up on a flat plane, are dodged to create clear views.

Soriano went out of his way to mention that the television was not bought with city money, but with union funds, augmented by the firefighters who call the place home.