I would like to thank everyone who stood together and made this happen! Good work!
Tom Gray
District Director
City Council Member Bill de Blasio
(718) 854-9791
(718) 854-1146 Fax
City Takes Engine 204 In Brooklyn Off The Market
http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=69704#
After a long, hard fight by community members, the city said Tuesday that Engine 204 in Cobble Hill is no longer up for sale.
Brooklyn City Council members and residents have been fighting to keep the property out of the hands of developers since the firehouse closed in 2003. Now, they say, a compromise has been reached.
The city says it will lease the firehouse to a public agency for ten years. That means it could be used as a cultural center, a pre-K, or a Department of Education school annex.
City Councilman Bill de Blasio says the deal gives the city the option to change it back into the firehouse in the future.
"If this lovely, quaint building were turned into luxury housing, that would have been the worst outcome for our community, and thanks to the good work of everyone here, that didn't happen,” said de Blasio. “A sale, even to a non-profit, would not have allowed for future possibilities, so a lease is clearly better."
Mayor Michael Bloomberg has said he would not consider reinstating Engine 204.
“The compromise reached today is a paint-over, just to hold the communities back,” said Danny Murphy of the Uniformed Firefighters Association. “It's just a day that we really feel that it's not a win for the UFA, that's for sure.”
Residents – while disheartened to learn there are no immediate plans to reopen Engine 204 as a firehouse – warmed to the idea of using it as a community space.
“I think it would be a wonderful community effort and a community property if it can't be used as a firehouse,” said one local resident.
“A community center of any kind would be wonderful,” said another. “We don't have anything like that in this area.”
It will be a couple years before the process is finalized and someone can move in.
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Join Bill de Blasio Save Engine 204(299 Degraw St.)
Join Bill de Blasio Save Engine 204(299 Degraw St.)
Without you this historical building
could be lost forever!
Join your neighbors and City Councilmember
Bill de Blasio on the steps of City Hall to
protest the sale of the former
Engine Company.
Ask the City Council to send the application back to the City
Planning Commission and demand it stay in city hands!
Date: May 15th, 2007
Time: 12:30PM
Location: Steps of City Hall (R to City Hall Stop)
Contact: Tom Gray 718-854-9791 or Tagray1@gmail.com
Without you this historical building
could be lost forever!
Join your neighbors and City Councilmember
Bill de Blasio on the steps of City Hall to
protest the sale of the former
Engine Company.
Ask the City Council to send the application back to the City
Planning Commission and demand it stay in city hands!
Date: May 15th, 2007
Time: 12:30PM
Location: Steps of City Hall (R to City Hall Stop)
Contact: Tom Gray 718-854-9791 or Tagray1@gmail.com
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Landmark Engine 204
Fill out and send in this form to The Landmarks Preservation Commission and you local elected officals: http://www.nyc.gov/html/lpc/downloads/pdf/forms/request_for_evaluation.pdf
The Landmarks Law requires that, to be designated, a potential landmark must be at least 30 years old and must possess "a special character or special historical or aesthetic interest or value as part of the development, heritage, or cultural characteristics of the city, state, or nation".
There are four types of landmarks:
Individual Landmarks (individual structures that can range from bridges to rowhouses to skyscrapers; examples include the Woolworth Building, the Langston Hughes House in Harlem, and the Wonder Wheel at Coney Island);
Interior Landmarks (building interiors that are “customarily open or accessible to the public,” such as the Marine Air Terminal at LaGuardia Airport, the RCA Building Lobby, and the Ed Sullivan Theater);
Scenic Landmarks (city-owned parks or other landscape features, such as Prospect Park, Central Park, and Ocean Parkway); and
Historic Districts (areas of the city that possess architectural and historical significance and a distinct "sense of place," such as Ladies' Mile in Manhattan, Cobble Hill in Brooklyn, and St. George-New Brighton in Staten Island).
The LPC receives a steady stream of suggestions for designation from interested citizens, property owners, community groups, public officials, and others.
Landmarks Commissioners and staff also may identify potential buildings and areas of interest. The Commission asks members of the public who propose properties for potential designation to fill out a Request for Evaluation (RFE) form. This form requests the individual to provide as much information about the property as possible, including photographs and/or slides.
The Landmarks Law requires that, to be designated, a potential landmark must be at least 30 years old and must possess "a special character or special historical or aesthetic interest or value as part of the development, heritage, or cultural characteristics of the city, state, or nation".
There are four types of landmarks:
Individual Landmarks (individual structures that can range from bridges to rowhouses to skyscrapers; examples include the Woolworth Building, the Langston Hughes House in Harlem, and the Wonder Wheel at Coney Island);
Interior Landmarks (building interiors that are “customarily open or accessible to the public,” such as the Marine Air Terminal at LaGuardia Airport, the RCA Building Lobby, and the Ed Sullivan Theater);
Scenic Landmarks (city-owned parks or other landscape features, such as Prospect Park, Central Park, and Ocean Parkway); and
Historic Districts (areas of the city that possess architectural and historical significance and a distinct "sense of place," such as Ladies' Mile in Manhattan, Cobble Hill in Brooklyn, and St. George-New Brighton in Staten Island).
The LPC receives a steady stream of suggestions for designation from interested citizens, property owners, community groups, public officials, and others.
Landmarks Commissioners and staff also may identify potential buildings and areas of interest. The Commission asks members of the public who propose properties for potential designation to fill out a Request for Evaluation (RFE) form. This form requests the individual to provide as much information about the property as possible, including photographs and/or slides.
Monday, May 7, 2007
http://www.southbrooklyn.net/haparchive4.html
The End of an EraCaptain Brenda Berkman (far left) gathers the crew of Engine Company 204 for a final portrait before the doors of the firehouse are shuttered by budget cuts.
All photos ©Mark D. Phillips, 2003
Engine 204 was cleaned out on Friday, May 30. The firehouse, which stood guard in the neighborhood for nearly 150 years, stands silent.The fire company was formed in 1855 as the Montauk Hose Company, later becoming BFD 4 in the Brooklyn Fire Department prior to Brooklyn joining New York City. The Degraw firehouse was originally the stables and the men lived across the street. It's long history will not be forgotten.
For many Cobble Hill residents, Sunday, May 25, 2003, will be their main memory of the firehouse. For a short, intense time, residents stood united against the city in a battle of wills over a local firehouse.The closing of Engine 204 ended the long history of a fire company just shy of its 150th anniversary. Formed in 1855 as the Montauk horse and hose company, it later became Company 4 of the city of Brooklyn Fire Department.Incorporated into the New York Fire Department even before Brooklyn became part of the city in 1899, Engine 204 was the last firehouse in the Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens neighborhoods. The firehouse on Degraw Street was the stable for the original fire company in 1855.
As the morning progressed, the crowd of protestors grew in front of the stationhouse. Captain Berkman watches from the roof of the stationhouse.
Cobble Hill councilman Bill DeBlasio (L), actor Steve Buscemi, and NY Assemblywoman Joan Millman help form a human chain outside the distinctive red door of the firehouse. Eventually, they would be part of a group that gained entry to the stationhouse. In the end, the three of them would be charged with trespass and disorderly conduct.
Produced by The South Brooklyn Network. All material ©2003. No reuse without permission.
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All photos ©Mark D. Phillips, 2003
Engine 204 was cleaned out on Friday, May 30. The firehouse, which stood guard in the neighborhood for nearly 150 years, stands silent.The fire company was formed in 1855 as the Montauk Hose Company, later becoming BFD 4 in the Brooklyn Fire Department prior to Brooklyn joining New York City. The Degraw firehouse was originally the stables and the men lived across the street. It's long history will not be forgotten.
For many Cobble Hill residents, Sunday, May 25, 2003, will be their main memory of the firehouse. For a short, intense time, residents stood united against the city in a battle of wills over a local firehouse.The closing of Engine 204 ended the long history of a fire company just shy of its 150th anniversary. Formed in 1855 as the Montauk horse and hose company, it later became Company 4 of the city of Brooklyn Fire Department.Incorporated into the New York Fire Department even before Brooklyn became part of the city in 1899, Engine 204 was the last firehouse in the Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens neighborhoods. The firehouse on Degraw Street was the stable for the original fire company in 1855.
As the morning progressed, the crowd of protestors grew in front of the stationhouse. Captain Berkman watches from the roof of the stationhouse.
Cobble Hill councilman Bill DeBlasio (L), actor Steve Buscemi, and NY Assemblywoman Joan Millman help form a human chain outside the distinctive red door of the firehouse. Eventually, they would be part of a group that gained entry to the stationhouse. In the end, the three of them would be charged with trespass and disorderly conduct.
Produced by The South Brooklyn Network. All material ©2003. No reuse without permission.
close window
SAVE ENGINE 204 at 299 Degraw Street, Brooklyn
SAVE ENGINE 204 at 299 Degraw Street, Brooklyn
Contact your local elected officals to show support for Engine 204!
If you would like to help with outreach please contact:
Tom Gray
District Director
City Council Member Bill de Blasio
(718) 854-9791 (718) 854-1146 Fax
To Post on this blog email tagray1@gmail.com
Contact your local elected officals to show support for Engine 204!
If you would like to help with outreach please contact:
Tom Gray
District Director
City Council Member Bill de Blasio
(718) 854-9791 (718) 854-1146 Fax
To Post on this blog email tagray1@gmail.com
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