June 18--Engine 46, a distinctive and familiar 19th-century firehouse that survived the construction of I-95 through South Philadelphia's Pennsport neighborhood and the subsequent deindustrialization of the Delaware waterfront, is now in danger of demolition by a New York real estate developer.
Members of the Pennsport Civic Association say they learned last week that the company, Cedar-Riverview, had just renewed an existing demolition permit for the old firehouse on Reed Street, along with an adjacent one-story commercial building on Columbus Boulevard. The firehouse, once home to a popular steak restaurant, has been vacant since 2006.
Leveling the redbrick firehouse, which opened in 1894, would erase one of the most unusual landmarks from the rapidly reviving Pennsport neighborhood and would "be a huge loss" for the city, said Ben Leech, director of advocacy for the Preservation Alliance.
Designed in a Flemish revival style, the two-story firehouse would easily fit in on the streets of Amsterdam. It sports a crenellated, octagonal tower, stepped gables, and an elaborate chimney. Because of its location a few feet from I-95, the tower seems to hover over the elevated highway. It can easily be seen from surrounding neighborhoods.
"You can't miss it," Leech said. "It's iconic."
The president of Pennsport's civic association, James E. Moylan, said he reached out last week to officials at the development company to discuss the plan for the firehouse, but never received a response. Calls placed yesterday to the developer in Port Washington, N.Y., were not returned.
It is possible that the owners do not intend to level the building. Demolition permits are sometimes issued when an owner simply wants to gut the interior.
Moylan and others said they were surprised to learn that the firehouse is not listed on Philadelphia's historic register, which protects buildings from demolition.
Perhaps fearing that the vacant firehouse might be endangered, a resident in neighboring Queen Village, Noelle Beaumont, submitted an application last July to nominate the firehouse for protection.
But just two months ago, the Historical Commission kicked back her application, saying it needed more details about the site, architectural design, and historical significance. The architect of the firehouse is unknown.
In her rejected application, Beaumont, who is a member of the Queen Village Neighborhood Association history committee, argued that the firehouse was built when Philadelphia's firefighting brigades were making the transition from a purely volunteer corps to professional status.
Because Philadelphia's volunteers had a reputation as a "rowdy menace," the city brigades favored dignified architecture that conveyed their new professionalism. Like so much architecture of the times, the firehouse design borrowed from a well-known historical style.
In 1985, state preservation officials included the firehouse on a long list of Philadelphia buildings that were eligible for the National Register. The suggestion was never followed up, however. Because there are so many old and interesting buildings in Philadelphia, many never have been cataloged and given official historic status.
Although the steak house closed seven years ago, the firehouse is not in poor condition and there are no outstanding building violations. It was valued at $1.26 million in the latest property-tax assessment.
News of the impending demolition began to filter through the neighborhood after a demolition permit was posted on the building. Cedar-Riverview originally obtained a demolition permit in February, but no Pennsport officials noticed it at that time.
It is not clear how the company plans to use the site if the firehouse is demolished.
Contact Inga Saffron at 215-854-2213, [email protected] or on Twitter @ingasaffron.
Copyright 2013 - The Philadelphia Inquirer
