There’s an important meeting coming up in Williamsburg about what used to be called “The People’s Firehouse.” Here is something from the email we got:
On Thanksgiving Day 1975, the City told the firefighters of Engine 212 in Williamsburg it was going to close because of the city’s dire fiscal crisis. Within hours, a crowd of 300 local residents gathered in front of the firehouse to prevent the city from removing the equipment from the firehouse to close it down. People stayed there around the clock for the next 16 months until the City agreed to keep it open. The firehouse was ultimately closed in 2003, but NAG and the People’s Firehouse have been awarded the building to develop it into a community center. We need your help to raise the funds to renovate the building and make the Northside Town Hall Community and Cultural Center a reality. When completed, the facilty will provide affordable office and meeting space for community organizations, create a street-level exhibition space for local cultural and arts organizations, and commemorate FDNY Company #212 and other local history.
The meeting takes place today (Tuesday, 2/3) at 6PM Union Pool, which is located at 484 Union Avenue at Meeker.
1 response so far ↓
1 bk // Feb 3, 2009 at 2:57 pm
This isn’t really “what used to be called the People’s Firehouse.” The space itself is the actual former firehouse on Berry that the city shut down. It is being developed as a community center jointly by NAG (Neighbors Allied for Good Growth) and the group known as The People’s Firehouse, which is a tenant’s rights group in the neighborhood. It is a little confusing.