By Robin Sattler
The Hour
NORWALK, Conn. — For years, Norwalk Fire Captain Jonathan Maggio and the firefighters at the East Norwalk Fire Station dreamt of renovating their historic firehouse, but were bound by budget woes.
Stuck between waiting for possible funding from the city or taking on the job themselves, Maggio said he and his group of firefighters decided to roll up their sleeves and get to work.
“It’s a collaborative effort from all of the guys assigned to the station,” Maggio said. “Lefty (Elefterios) Petrides, one of our firefighters here has been the driving force behind the project to get it going. There’s been a lot of initiative and pride from the guys here.”
Maggio said the crew began the restoration project last summer by offering free labor, craftsmanship and care to protect the firehouse’s historic elements.
With many of the firefighters doubling as skilled electricians, plumbers and carpenters, Maggio said the quality of the work is top notch.
“Everyone that is working on the project is licensed and everything is being done with proper permits,” Maggio said. “We just want to bring the building back to its original character.”
One of the first items on the agenda for the remodel, Maggio said, was to rework the layout of the space. The tiny outdated kitchen, which was previously located in the rear of the main space, has been relocated to the front of the building, while the “day room” or lounge area was relocated to be next to the kitchen in the former “bunkroom.”
The old kitchen space will now serve as the new bunkroom, which will have two remodeled bathrooms adjacent to it, as well as the captain’s quarters.
“We used to have a drop ceiling in what is now the new kitchen, which was an ugly greenish white color,” Maggio said. “When we pulled it down, we discovered a 100-year-old tin ceiling that we cleaned up. And the floor was covered in asbestos tile, so we ripped that up and cleaned up the wood floor that was underneath.”
Now freshly painted, the room features shining wood floors and a brand new kitchen consisting of granite countertops and green cabinetry. A new refrigerator is on its way and the kitchen, Maggio said, is expected to be up and running in a few days.
One of the features in the new kitchen is the relocation of the fireman’s pole, which is housed in the corner of the room. Two artifacts found in the attic of the building have been placed next to it, which read, “Fireman’s annual bazaar, 10 cents.”
“We found a ton of artifacts in the attic, a lot of them are in storage during the construction, but we plan to bring them back and decorate the building with them,” Maggio said. “We actually have more than we decorate with!”
Built in the late 1890s, Maggio said the Van Zant Street building is the oldest firehouse in the city and chock full of character behind every corner.
“We found some pocket doors when we took down a wall, recycled some wainscoting and are in the process of trying to find some antique chandeliers to keep with the historic feel of the building,” Maggio said.
As the group of firefighters (16 total, with four on duty at each time) continued their work, Mayor Harry Rilling stopped by for a visit to see how the project is progressing.
“This is great,” Rilling said as he looked around the space. “You guys have really put a lot of energy and effort into this, so I wanted to come by and check it out.”
Maggio estimated the total cost of the project to be in upwards of $200,000, an amount the city would most likely not have been able to shoulder.
“The Connecticut Avenue project was just being completed when we started this, so to do two major projects at the same time would have been just too much,” Maggio said. “The guys here come in on their days off and I can’t say enough about how hard they’ve worked on this project.
Rilling said the next fire commissioner’s meeting will be held at the remodeled Engine 3 space, which is part of an initiative to involve all firehouses in the city.
Engine 3 is also home to the Marine Unit.
“We want to move the meetings around to different stations in the city to interact with everyone,” Rilling said. “We want firefighters to feel a part of the meetings and that’s really important.”
Aside from using some of the funds from the station’s building maintenance budget, Maggio said The Royal Closet, Steve’s Custom Ironworks and Select Plastics, LLC have donated materials.
“One of our guys is an installer at Home Depot, so we got good prices on the kitchen equipment and installed it ourselves,” Maggio said. “The project wouldn’t have been possible without all of the help. Everyone has pulled out all the stops and really came together on this project.”
The project, which will also revamp the hallway and apparatus room, is expected to be finished around Memorial Day.
___
(c)2015 The Hour (Norwalk, Conn.)
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC