Fire Station 2 Replacement

Accessibility

From Nicole M.'s comment: "[F]inding ways that local bike paths and pedestrian walkways can connect to the Community Health and Safety Center could help further integrate it into the community" is key. One of the strongest critiques that I've heard in regard to the Southeast Quadrant focuses on the lack of equitable resources and/or challenges regarding inclusion and/or access for families with small children, particularly those without automobile transportation. The only reason my family has been to Edina Fire Department, Station 1, is because we were playing at Countryside Park and walked over. I think whether or not these types of easy, organic, happenstance opportunities are able to happen will greatly inform the culture of the space.

Community-Oriented Space

I appreciate how both of these renderings but particularly the first take into account the need for community spaces -- indoor and outdoor -- in this area of Edina. It will be important that the spaces can actually be utilized regularly by the community (and not always booked up by the City for meetings/trainings). I could see spaces being used for ECFE pop-ups, neighbor swaps, wellness clinics, and gatherings to connect building personnel with community members. I appreciate ensuring there is a visible, welcoming, and accessible main entrance. Integrating spaces so that members of the community can interact with firefighters and building staff outside of emergencies, while also providing personnel with the non-public spaces they need to do their jobs effectively, matters. While is may lay beyond the scope of this project, finding ways that local bike paths and pedestrian walkways can connect to the Community Health and Safety Center could help further integrate it into the community. It appears that this building -- in its design and materials — considers the goals of the Climate Action Plan. And it should embody the goals of the plan as much as possible. I definitely want to see bottle refill stations, visible landfill/recycling/compost stations, energy efficiency. Public art is a wonderful thought (Mason City, IA could be a model?)

My only request is for a public water fountain in the area for pedestrians, cyclists and runners. That alone would be a nice feature.

I like this plan because the outdoor area seems to be somewhat more private.

The low area in the SW corner offers a great opportunity to create a rain garden / nature area with a boardwalk. Plant trees for 100 years.

The building's ability to withstand a serious tornado should be incorporated into the design.

Serious consideration should be given to relocating the ladder truck to this site, given the location of past and projected calls.

This should be a fire station first and foremost, not a rain garden with water bottle refill stations. One Edinborough Park is enough.

Let's really lean into the spirit of community

As John McKnight of Asset-Based Community Development fame has said, I also believe our neighborhoods and associational relationships are the primary source of our health. How long we live and how often we are sick is determined by our personal behavior, our social relationships, our physical environment, and our income. As neighbors and community members, we are the people who can change these things through our associated activity. The Community Health and Safety Center should have a focused space for residents to gather, socialize, celebrate, and exchange. I realize that there has to be a fire station and public health services at this location. And that's great! How about reservable community rooms that are open 24/7 as well? How about flexible, open space where residents can exchange their own offers and needs? Besides Southdale library public use rooms, which are not generally available unless you reserve a month in advance, this part of Edina has almost no access to community space. I'm talking *real* community space that's not an afterthought, but designed specifically for potlucks, holiday celebrations, a casual place to hang out when the weather is rough, and other day-to-day things that people in the surrounding neighbors do.