ADG, working in association with a local architectural firm Thomas, Miller & Partners, provided planning and design services for the Williamson County EOC & 911 Facility. The project was initiated with a detailed spatial needs assessment and master planning effort led by ADG. The following elements were included: emergency communications center, office of emergency management agency, emergency operations center, multi-use (training) facilities, and fire administration. The facility serves the county’s 215,000+ residents, the design included an open dispatch floor that overlooks the incident command room and is separated by glass. The building design also featured many support areas including break out rooms, administrative offices, training classroom, server room, decompression area, break areas, dormitories, media briefing room, physical agility space, locker rooms, and a full-service kitchen / cafeteria.
The site area of 7.2 acres was part of a larger parcel of 27.4 acres being developed for public works operations. The master plan developed by ADG provides access by a connector road north to the public works complex and the potential for a future road that will provide a secondary means of access / egress. The master plan also provided expansion opportunities to incorporate future law enforcement (Sheriff) administration and training facilities. In an emergency, the facility is designed to operate completely off-the-grid for 72 hours. The building envelope is designed to withstand impact levels and wind speeds of an EF5 tornado (speeds more than 200 MPH).
