Excerpts from nadignewspapers.com:
A redevelopment proposal for an approximately 112-year-old former firehouse in Jefferson Park calls for two floors to be added to the two-story building, with a brewery on the ground floor and nine apartments above.
“I am pleased to announce an exciting development proposal for one of the oldest remaining firehouse buildings in the city. The development would mean an expansion of local craft beer brewer Lake Effect Brewing Co. and would restore historic details to the former Jefferson Park firehouse, which sits on the southeast corner of Ainslie and Lipps. Lake Effect would be the ground-floor tenant, brewing beer on-site and offering a tasting room. The developer, Ambrosia Homes, plans to invest $2.4 million in the city-owned property, which was built in 1906,” Alderman John Arena said in his weekly newsletter.
The 45th Ward sanitation services had been located in the former fire station until a few years ago. Several developers have looked at purchasing the building from the city, but the high cost of bringing it up to building code standards reportedly turned away some potential buyers.
“The nine apartments would be two-bedroom, attracting professionals who seek easy access to the nearby Jefferson Park Transit Center. The design would retain the current building while adding two floors and re-installing some architectural elements that were previously removed.” Arena said.
Arena will hold a community meeting on the proposal at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 8, in King’s Hall in the third floor of the Copernicus Center, 5216 W. Lawrence Ave.
thanks Dan
#1 by John Antkowski on March 1, 2018 - 7:39 PM
CrabbyMilton, You can reach me at jantko@milwaukee.gov I would love to hear from you. John Antkowski
#2 by CrabbyMilton on March 1, 2018 - 6:17 AM
Thanks John. I knew it was open the first Sunday of the month in the past but I just wondered if that had changed.
Yes, I’ve been having trouble on here both my phone and pc’s.
Forgive my ignorance but I can’t find your email since I would like to contact you at some point.
#3 by Bill Post on February 28, 2018 - 9:15 PM
Dan the Flying Manpower Squads as they were originally called in Chicago, was an idea that was recommended during a 1968 study known as the 1968 Maatman Report.
The need for them began during mid 1967 when the City of Chicago reduced the overall time and working hours for firefighters by giving them what was called a Daley Day off. The problem was that the city didn’t want to add more positions to the payroll and they ordered the consulant to figure out how to run the fire department with the same manpower.
Before the hours were reduced, all of the engine and truck companies normally had five assigned. There were also 11, six-man squad companies, 3 seven-man Snorkel squads as well as 6 three-man Snorkels in the beginning of 1967.
By 1968, 7 of the 6-man squads were taken out of service. The engine and truck manpower assignments were uncertain on a day-to-day basis. On a given day if a company would have 5 or only 4 assigned.
Gerald Maatman, the consultant hired by the city in 1968, recommended that engines and trucks in the busier areas and downtown should have 5 assigned and all others a crew of 4. As a rule the companies that averaged over 1,500 runs a year would have a crew of 5. Close to 75% of the companies that had 4.
In order to make up for the 5th man, the consultant recommended creating 6 Flying Manpower Squads with a crew of 6 , They would have districts designated to follow only the 4-man companies to Still Alarms. As a rule, the 5-man companies did not have a Flying Manpower Squad run with them.
The 6 Flying Manpower Squads were put in service in 1969 and 2 years later in 1971 a follow up study recommended that a was added.
After the firefighter strike in 1980, the 5th man was restored to all engines and trucks so there was no longer a need for the Flying Manpower Squads. In October of 1980 the remaining ones were taken out of service and replaced by 5 and then 6 squad companies that would respond on working fires. The squads also responded to pin-in accidents and other special duty runss.
#4 by Hunter on February 28, 2018 - 3:28 PM
Admin yes one of the issues is Clicking on any department or Mabas is very slow loading clicking on the page
#5 by John Antkowski on February 28, 2018 - 12:00 PM
CrabbyMilton, Last I checked the MFD museum is open on the first Sunday of every month. They just celebrated the return of the restored 1949 Mack marked Engine Co. 9. I have yet to see it and being only a few minutes away from old Engine 23. I hope to see it soon. If you wish to contact me personally just reply to the above email site. I would like to talk more about CFD and MFD history. Thank you. John. P.S. has anyone been having problems downloading this website? Maybe it’s my phone. Been getting errors or just slow. Thanks again. John
#6 by Admin on February 28, 2018 - 2:59 PM
lots of issues with the site currently, trying to work through them but the hosting company denies anything is wrong
#7 by CrabbyMilton on February 27, 2018 - 8:51 AM
MFD has a nice museum as well. (old engine 23 on 16th and Oklahoma). Given what’s going on around here with MFD, I don’t even know if it’s open on a regular basis now.
I think the muster is on hiatus but you run the risk of 3 people telling you 7 different stories if you ask given that the MFD Historical Society never seems to update their FACEBOOK page.
#8 by jsvens on February 27, 2018 - 8:19 AM
Chicago already has two fire museums, including E123’s old house and E61’s old house. There isn’t really a need for a third museum.
#9 by CrabbyMilton on February 26, 2018 - 6:19 AM
Dan, I think I flying squad is an unit that is designed to respond anywhere it’s needed in a city rather than a specific geographic area.
#10 by CrabbyMilton on February 26, 2018 - 6:17 AM
It’s always heartbreaking to see a fire station/house to be decommissioned then fall into neglect to the point where it has to be torn down. However, if it becomes private property, it’s the prerogative of the owner to do with what he wants. Thankfully, I can think of three old stations around Milwaukee that have been saved and converted to a house, restaurant, and one guy bought one for his glass business and he is a fellow apparatus and fire service fan so he has commemorative signage outside.
#11 by Dan on February 25, 2018 - 10:23 PM
What’s a flying squad?
#12 by Bill Post on February 25, 2018 - 7:42 PM
That firehouse should not be touched by developers, it should be made into a landmark.
Even though there is a Greater Chicagoland Fire Museum, Engine 108’s old house should have been made into the museum. It is a larger building with more room for apparatus displays and is in a better location. It is right off of the Kennedy Expressway, a block from the Blue Line and the Jefferson Park bus terminal where many routes converge, as well as a major Metra rail route that covers the Northwest suburbs and the Richard Ogilvie transporation center.
Perhaps it could be turned into a second museum which could incorporate a fire museum as well as a local neithborhood museum.
In Los Angeles there are two museums are dedicated to the history of the Los Angeles City Fire Department. Having more then one museum is not out of the question.
It is great that Chicago finally has a fire museum dedicated to the Chicago Fire department however not having Engine 108’s house as a museum is a big mistake. As Engine 108’s house was being used as a city department the museum had to settle for Engine 123’s old house. In terms of floor space and location Engine 108’s old house is more ideal.
If you have ever seen the fire museums in other cities like New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas, and San Diego, their museums have more floor space and are in larger buildings. So why not have more then one musuem? Or perhaps the museum could eventually relocate to Engine 108’s old house.
#13 by John Antkowski on February 25, 2018 - 3:02 PM
That’s super cool. I had looked at an old MFD boat house located on the milwaukee river near w.cherry st, but it turned out being bought by a local medical office area with clinics. It would of made it cool apartment along the river and the local night life. I love seeing life pumped back into these old buildings. John
#14 by Phil Stenholm on February 25, 2018 - 12:28 PM
Built in 1906 next-door to the former quarters (ex-Jefferson Township) of Truck Co. 23, this firehouse was in service for 75 year (1906-81) and had one of the largest apparatus floor plans of any of the two-bay CFD firehouses built in the horse-drawn era (E104/T31, E109/T32, and E10/T1 were slightly larger).
Prior to closing in 1981, this firehouse was often occupied by as many as five vehicles and was home to as many as 20 firefighters at a time, including an engine company, a truck company, a booster company, a squad, an ambulance, and a battalion chief:
Engine 108: 1906-81
Truck 23: 1906-81
Battalion 22: 1929-81
Booster 2: 1941-46
Ambulance 7: 1947-74
Booster 1: 1948-56
Squad 11: 1956-68
Flying Squad 7: 1971-80
Ambulance 47 (ALS MICU): 1974-81
Beginning in 1946 when the City of Chicago acquired the Douglas Aircraft Co. plant, facilities, and runways at Orchard Place from the War Surplus Administration, companies at this firehouse were first-due to what was initially called Chicago Orchard-Douglas Field (name later changed to O’Hare Field). Booster 1 had been assigned to Midway Airport during WWII and was equipped with Foamite, so it was the closest crash truck to ORD prior to the establishing of the CFD O’Hare firehouse (Combination Co. 10 plus several crash rigs) in October 1955.