By Briana Waris

After over a year of planning and coordination, the Hughes Marino Construction Management team was honored to take part in the groundbreaking ceremony for the Bayside Fire Station in downtown San Diego earlier this month. As a company, we couldn’t be happier to be leading this important project in our community, working together with the City of San Diego, Civic San Diego, the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department and Barnhart-Reese Construction on the three-story, 25,000 square foot fire station.

Designed by Rob Wellington Quigley, FAIA, the architectural powerhouse behind the San Diego Central Library and New Children’s Museum, the new fire station will be truly one of a kind. Complete with a roof garden, green wall, solar panels, and other sustainable features, the station has been designed to achieve a LEED Silver rating or higher. It will also serve as a community landmark, adding architectural flair and a park-like signature to the foot of Cedar Street.

Located on Pacific Highway across from the San Diego County Administration Center, the new Bayside Fire Station will represent an important development for the safety of businesses and residents west of the railroad tracks. “As more businesses locate here and more visitors come to the harbor, it’s critically important that we have the ability to respond quickly – an ability we will have with an engine company that doesn’t have to wait at the rail crossing,” said San Diego Fire-Rescue Department Chief Brian Fennessy.

After the news conference, Mayor Kevin Faulconer, Councilmember Todd Gloria, and members of the fire department and project team broke ground with golden shovels, officially marking the start of construction.

Next time you’re in Little Italy, be sure to keep an eye out for this up-and-coming fire station!