Press Center

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 1, 2009

HBI TO RESTORE ROXBURY FIRE HOUSE FOR NEW HEADQUARTERS

Historic Boston Incorporated recently won a bid to renovate the Eustis Street Fire House, one of the city’s most deteriorated landmarks, and will turn the Roxbury structure into its new headquarters.

HBI is planning to restore the exterior of the red brick building and reconstruct a two‐story wood‐framed addition. Once it is complete, the organization will move into the space from its current home in the Old Corner Bookstore in downtown Boston.

“This is a watershed moment for Historic Boston,” said Executive Director Kathy Kottaridis. “It is an important opportunity for us to lead by example and demonstrate our commitment to redeveloping valuable historic resources for new uses in Boston’s neighborhoods.”

The city’s oldest surviving fire house has seen years of neglect. The distinctive Italianate style building features a granite arched entry and hand‐carved brackets. It currently is propped up with wooden braces installed as part of an interim rescue project HBI supported 15 years ago.

“We’re proud to partner with Historic Boston on the restoration of the Eustis Street Fire House,” said Evelyn Friedman, Director of the City of Boston’s Department of Neighborhood Development. “Their ambitious plan to restore this important landmark will greatly enhance the quality of life in the surrounding community.”

HBI’s move into the building is intended to spur greater interest in preservation projects as catalysts for neighborhood revitalization.

“Our neighborhoods have many important historic buildings that could become the cornerstone for revitalizing key areas of the city,” Kottaridis said.

As a future resident in the neighborhood, HBI will be able to more closely assist neighborhood advocacy organizations there with planning for historic preservation. It will also be an on‐the‐ground resource for property owners and local organizations for the preservation and rehabilitation of important historic places.

“Historic Boston is gratified to be given the opportunity to return this almost‐forgotten architectural gem to active use as our home,” said HBI Board President Matthew Kiefer. “We are eager to work with our preservation partners to make this catalytic project a reality.”

This project incorporates safe access to the adjacent Eliot Burying Ground through the fire house property. This will be the first time in decades that people with limited physical abilities will be able to enter the 1633 cemetery without assistance.

HBI will also train staff to provide interpretation of the Eustis Street Architectural Conservation district, which includes the fire house, burying ground and Owen Nawn Factory (1870). The organization will support and coordinate with tours and presentations given by other groups in the neighborhood.

The project is expected to take two years and will be conducted in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s rehabilitation standards. It will be funded by a combination of public and private grants and loans. HBI will lease the structure from the City of Boston for 99 years.

Historic Boston Incorporated
HBI is a not‐for‐profit preservation and real estate organization that rehabilitates historic significant properties in Boston’s neighborhoods so they are a useable part of the city’s present and future.

HBI works with local partners to identify and invest in historic buildings and cultural resources with unique characteristics whose re‐use will catalyze neighborhood renewal. HBI projects benefit from a complete menu of high‐quality support from technical expertise, site acquisition, financing, and access to local, state and federal preservation resources.

We preserve historic buildings because they give evidence of culture and continuity to successive generations of Bostonians. HBI projects demonstrate that preserving historic properties is economically viable and that they can be useable and functioning assets in a community.

The Eustis Street Firehouse
The Eustis Street Firehouse was built in 1859 when Roxbury was still an independent municipality. After Roxbury’s annexation in 1868, the City of Boston built an addition for stables and more modern equipment. That addition was demolished in 1991 due to concerns about structural stability. The fire house served "Hook and Ladder Co. No. 4" until 1881. During that time, the company was called in to help fight the Great Boston Fire of 1872. From 1889 until 1916, the building housed "Chemical Wagon No. 10.” The Fire Department abandoned the building in 1926 and leased the building to a Spanish‐ American War veterans post until 1954.

###

If you'd like more information about this topic, or to secure photographs of the fire house, please call Margo Mosher at 617 227 4679.