Mark Wilhelms of Midwest Block and Brick says that expansion includes several additional fire stations to protect new homes being built in the area.

“The city of Wentzville needed to build a number of firehouses to keep pace with the residential growth in the community, so they hired an architecture firm to develop a number of new firehouses to be placed around the city in neighborhoods and commercial areas,” says Wilhelms.

The Wentzville Fire Protection District is now served by five station houses which are fully-staffed 24 hours a day. One of the newest facilities is Station #2 at 1855 Peine Road which entered service in October 2016.

Special Emphasis on Well Being

FGM Architects, with offices in St. Louis, was chosen to design the new facilities with a special emphasis on creating interiors which foster the well-being of the fire crews.

“These are work environments that are critical to the functioning of a community, but it's also where the fire crews live. These new stations have living quarters with a much different feel than what many people might think of, the old fire house with the brass pole firefighters side down. These have outdoor living spaces with grills and patios,” Wilhelms says.

That residential look and feel carries over to the exterior design which follows today’s style trend of combining brick and stone. Wilhelms says architectural representative Danielle Bach worked closely with designers to choose appropriate materials to fit their vision.

Getting a Feel for the Design

“It's important us to sit down early on in the design process and really look what’s important to the architect,” says Wilhelms. “We try to get a feel for the design. In this case, what was really important on these fire houses were the big red fire doors. So getting materials that work with that red color was important to the design team and we had the right color combinations.”

Wilhelms says since Midwest distributes brick as well as stone, they were able to provide the right combination of materials that fit the design requirements but at a price point appropriate for the public safety project.

“Natural stone on fire houses can can be a little cost prohibitive. So in this case we used a veneer masonry unit called Waterford Stone. We were able to work with the designer to get the right color brick and the right color stone to really make an impact on the exterior of these firehouses.”

Provider of Solutions

The Wentzville Fire Station project is yet another example of how Midwest Block and Brick is a provider of expertise and solutions. “Since we're working with manufactured materials we are able to give them a consistency in each of the firehouses they build. Each building is immediately recognized as the firehouse goes toward that brand image that really build the Wentzville Fire Protection District.”

As of June 2017, a similar station was being constructed at 8210 Orf Rd. In Lake St. Louis.