New Headquarters for Pecos River Hotshots Crew
New Mexico Forestry Division, EMNRD | Las Vegas, NM
Project Description
new headquarters campus for the New Mexico Forestry Division's Pecos River Hotshot Crew.
Design Team
Formative Architecture
Status
In progress
This project aims to support their critical mission of protecting and restoring our state's natural landscapes.
Formative Architecture has designed a new headquarters campus for the New Mexico Forestry Division's Pecos River Hotshot Crew, located in the Las Vegas district of EMNRD.
The project site is situated directly south of Storrie Lake, with a gentle slope leading to the water's edge, offering stunning views of the Pecos Wilderness and its mountain peaks. Our design centers on a new 7,500 sq ft multipurpose hotshot building, accessible from an existing dirt road. To the south of this central fire cache building, the design includes new gravel and covered parking, along with pull-through drive aisles, forming a secure yard.
Flanking the main building, bunkhouse-style housing is located to the east and a small RV village to the west. The bunkhouses are strategically sited to maximize lake views to the north and feature shaded porch entrances facing south. These premanufactured buildings will be constructed offsite and connected to site-built foundations and utility infrastructure. These five-bedroom bunkhouses are supported by a central paved patio with a built-in grill and fire pit.
The RV micro-village includes six RV parking spaces, each with water and electrical connections and dedicated vehicular parking. These spaces share a concrete patio with a shaded pavilion, picnic tables, and a grilling area. Adjacent to this is a full-sized paved basketball court for recreation. To ensure privacy for existing staff residences to the east, the new site design incorporates earthen berms and transplanted evergreen trees for visual screening.
The multipurpose hotshot crew fire cache building features a stepped mass, with a tall, pull-through engine room on the west and a lowered classroom volume on the east. The classroom connects directly to an open kitchen/break room, the main entrance, and a wrap-around shaded patio. A hallway leads from the classroom to a workroom, toilet and shower facilities, and the engine room beyond, which includes space for a caged gear cache, open equipment cache, fitness/locker area, workbench, and laundry.
Interior finishes prioritize practicality and durability. The engine room will feature galvanized metal wall panels with mirrors in the fitness area. The classroom walls and ceiling will be clad with plywood sheathing, with areas for tackable and dry-erase presentations. Wood wall paneling will be used in the hall and workroom, while toilet and shower rooms will have durable solid surface cladding.
Overall, the building design incorporates environmentally responsive strategies such as rusted metal cladding for durability, rainwater collection systems, and high-volume, low-speed fans to minimize heating and cooling loads.
Services Provided
Architecture
Interior Architecture
Programming
Comprehensive Planning
Environmentally Conscious Design
Renderings
Formative Architecture
Design Team
Formative Architecture
Cobb Fendley
RME ABQ
CEEC, LLC
Procurement + Delivery
Design-Bid-Build
Year
In progress