Firehouse Magazine Announces National Station Design Award Winners

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Firehouse Magazine announced the winners of its ninth annual Station Design Awards program, which recognizes outstanding architecture and design from fire departments and emergency facilities nationwide. Peter Matthews, Firehouse Editor-in-Chief said, “This is the ninth year of the awards, and we are excited to see the advances in fire station designs. It’s wonderful to see the coordination between fire departments and architectural firms to design stations with a focus on keeping firefighters trained and healthy to better serve their communities. As fire departments become true all-hazard response agencies, their training and equipment needs grow, and the new facilities offer improved opportunities for firefighters to hone their skills.”

Winners were selected by a panel of seven judges, including fire chiefs and architects experienced in recent design and construction. Liollio is honored to announce that The City of Charleston Fire Station #11 received the Firehouse Station Special Design Award and James Island Public Service District Fire Station #1 HQ received a Notable Award.

Fire stations are essential public buildings that serve as critical infrastructure for emergency response services, and designing them requires careful consideration of operational needs, efficiency, and aesthetics. Receiving this award highlights Liollio’s commitment to creating spaces that not only meet the functional requirements of a fire station but also contribute to the community's architectural landscape. It recognizes Liollio’s dedication to designing buildings that enhance the well-being of the firefighters and the surrounding community while promoting safety and efficiency.

Showcasing and recognizing both projects is a tremendous honor and the Liollio team would like to thank Firehouse, the jurors, and our clients and project team. Congratulations to our clients at the City of Charleston, Charleston Fire Department and James Island Public Service District!

About Firehouse
Firehouse is the leading fire and emergency services brand, reaching more than 1.5 million visitors and subscribers monthly and thousands of attendees annually via its live events and media portfolio. The Firehouse brand encompasses Firehouse Magazine, Firehouse.com, Firehouse Expo, Firehouse Station Design Conference, Station Design Awards, and many print and digital products targeting fire and emergency services personnel. Utilizing its multiple platforms and unparalleled reach, Firehouse sets itself apart from the competition by fostering a culture that encourages innovation and the use of the latest digital and database technologies to best serve its audience and companies serving the marketplace.

STUDIOLLIO

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#Studiollio - In the Fall of 2019, Liollio Principals Andy Clark and Jennifer Charzewski co-taught a firm design studio as lecturers for Clemson University’s School of Architecture at the Clemson Architecture Center in Charleston. Students experienced an academic design studio through the lens of a professional teaching studio.  The studio explored the City of Charleston and it’s grappling with change due to climate, technology, population, economics and mobility. Students investigated critical issues with a focus on how design can improve resiliency and cultural connectivity within a city.

A vibrant city is a living, breathing organism, and the civic infrastructure and architecture connect the identity, aspirations, and human story of the occupants to each other and to the past, present, and future. Architecture is intrinsically linked to landscape architecture and site in a hybrid conversation, rather than two separate entities. Similarly, the infrastructure that connects and moves people should participate in this hybrid conversation, and can reveal the opportunities that exist to grow in healthy ways.

Programmatically, Charleston is also confronting a tenuous balance between the tourism industry which undergirds the city’s economy, and the desire to be a livable city for all residents. Whereas development in housing, retail, food service, and offices is booming, it is often the cultural institutions and public parks that really bring a city to life and give it depth and a voice to residents.

Charleston is home to many preeminent programs and buildings for the visual and performing arts, and includes an aquarium, a history museum, and a children’s museum. However, there is a notable absence of a museum or center for nature and science –which are both integral to life in the Lowcountry and to supporting workforce development and STEM education.

The design projects provided the students with an opportunity to investigate these ideas and opportunities, further refine their critical and strategic approach in an iterative design process across a variety of scales, and develop requisite design and presentation communication skills. As a firm-led studio, the unique perspective of a practicing firm provided opportunities to intersect the academy with practice, including connecting students to professional mentors and enriching the firm with academic investigation.

Liollio Architecture Elevates Andy Clark, AIA, to Principal

Andy Clark, AIA, LEED AP, Principal

“It’s an honor to be part of a talented and dedicated team of design professionals that take pride in their work and make even the most challenging days fun and rewarding.”

— Andy Clark, AIA, LEED AP, Principal

Liollio Architecture is pleased to announce the elevation of Andy Clark, AIA, LEED AP, to Principal. Liollio celebrates Andy’s accomplishments and is proud to have him as a firm leader!

Andy is passionate about design and the value it brings to our clients through successful collaborations. As part of Liollio's third generation of ownership, Andy leads the educational market and has a diverse portfolio spanning educational, municipal, commercial and healthcare. “It’s an honor to be part of a talented and dedicated team of design professionals that take pride in their work and make even the most challenging days fun and rewarding.” A graduate of Clemson University, with a Master of Architecture and Bachelor of Science in Design, Andy is currently serving as the State President of AIA South Carolina, where he organized the Community: by design Conference in conjunction with ArtFields in Lake City. He has served on the Clemson Architectural Foundation Board, volunteers as a student mentor, and is a Past President of AIA Charleston, where he co-founded a free public lecture series to elevate the design dialogue in our community.

LIOLLIO ARCHITECTURE ELEVATES JENNIFER CHARZEWSKI, AIA, LEED AP, TO PRINCIPAL

Liollio is pleased to announce the elevation of Jennifer Charzewski, AIA, LEED AP, to Principal. As part of Liollio Architecture’s third generation of ownership, Jennifer promotes both the well-being of our design studio and the communities that we serve. Jennifer believes that architecture is about people, and designing places to gather, learn, work, and play is an opportunity to celebrate the pride and the story of a community. “ Liollio Architecture is a family, in every sense of the word, and the talent, enthusiasm, and commitment of our team makes our work a joy.”

A graduate of Texas A&M University and the University of Minnesota, Jennifer is a past President of AIA Charleston, a member of the AIA South Carolina Disaster Assistance Committee, a volunteer with ACE Mentors of Charleston and is currently working with an AIA South Carolina group to establish a committee for Equity in Architecture in South Carolina.

Jennifer has been part of the Liollio team for nine years and her design leadership spans from the award-winning St. Helena Library at Penn Center, Rock Hill’s Main Street Children’s Museum and Charleston International Airport to current projects including Richland Libraries, Charleston Fire Station #11 in West Ashley, James Island Town Hall, SCPRT State Welcome Centers, Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry and College of Charleston Simons Center for the Arts.

Panelists Say Recession Created Pent-Up Demand For Projects

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Principal Dinos Liollio joined panelists at the Charleston Regional Business Journal's Power Breakfast last Thursday. Panelists discussed how the Lowcountry seems to have recovered from the recession and is now seeing the effects of pent-up demand for capital projects.

From Charleston Regional Business Journal
By Liz Segrist
Photo: Kim McManus

Several years after the recession, construction is booming and cranes are looming over new developments throughout Charleston.

The demand for buildings in the multifamily, residential, commercial, higher education, health care and mixed-use segments remains high as the region’s population grows, according to several panelists at the Charleston Regional Business Journal’s Power Breakfast on Thursday in North Charleston.

“Charleston has been so blessed,” said Dinos Liollio, principal of Liollio Architecture.  “We have been greatly insulated — if not isolated to some extent — from the recession that the country as a whole has felt. ... I think what we’re seeing now is all of the pent-up demand that has been created over the last five to six years as a result of the down economy. We are seeing it in higher ed, particularly now that so many people can go forward with their capital campaigns.”

Janette Alexander, a design and construction project manager for Charleston County, said she believes Charleston is out of the recession, although she said the region did not reach the same depths of economic crisis as other cities.

“We were very, very busy pre-recession and it does feel like we’re back and beyond that,” said Alexander, also a member of Charleston’s Board of Architectural Review. “Beyond the dam bursting of pent-up work that needed to happen, it seems like there is a lot of optimism on where Charleston is going.”

Chappy McKay, development vice president and partner at Trident Construction in Charleston, said the Lowcountry is “somewhat in a sprint between cycles.”

Although he has seen a lot of need for new construction in the last two years, he said some segments are slowing down. A somewhat muffled economy is buoyed by the region’s manufacturing sector, tech industries and the region’s ability to attract new businesses and residents, McKay said.

Melissa Polutta, owner of Trash Gurl LLC, a waste management business, said Charleston’s ability to draw new industry, tourists and residents enabled many construction companies to get back on their feet post-recession.

Her company, which she co-founded with her husband, Jeff, in 2009, has expanded with new services and new projects, including work on Volvo Cars’ new automotive campus under construction in Berkeley County.

Phillip Ford, executive vice president of Charleston Home Builders Association, said permits are up and demand is strong for new housing and residential communities.

Ford said the region faces a major challenge regarding adequate infrastructure — such as more highway capacity and improved roads — to handle the growth.

Finding enough skilled workers to meet the region’s housing needs is another major hurdle for the homebuilding and construction industries.

“Our concern is can we keep up with demand? There is a lack of trained labor. We can’t find anyone to frame houses or plumb houses,” Ford said. “So you can sell houses, but if you can’t build them, that’s a problem. Selling them is not a problem. Building them is, at the moment.”

Visit the CRBJ article here.

FAM JAM 2016, A FREE Family Festival in Marion Square

FAM JAM 2016, a FREE family festival in Marion Square, is this Saturday, September 17 from 10am - 2pm!

Join the Children's Museum of the Lowcountry, in partnership with the Charleston Farmers Market, for a free day of play in Marion Square! The 12th annual FAM JAM will have live music, 30+ community partners, CML's own Imagination Playground, a climbing wall and more! Plus, all families who play at FAM JAM will receive free admission to the Children's Museum on the day of the event!

Why do we celebrate PLAY? Research shows that young children develop social, cognitive and motor skills through meaningful, supported PLAY and that, in fact, this is the best way for children to learn these skills. So bring your family out this Saturday , and don't miss this exciting event!