The Princeton Fire Department headquarters is under study for possible renovations and expansions to the building at 363 Witherspoon St.
The Princeton Council awarded a contract for $58,800 to Manns Woodward Studios, which specializes in designing public facilities, to examine the firehouse and prepare a concept plan at its Nov. 25 meeting.
The Baltimore-based architectural firm will study the current conditions at the firehouse, including the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system, environmental concerns and the electrical system, according to a memorandum from Deputy Administration Deanna Stockton and Principal Engineer Michael Grau.
Manns Woodward Studios will prepare a concept plan that addresses space needs for current staffing and equipment, as well as staffing and equipment needs over the next five years, the memorandum said. It would include accommodations for work spaces and equipment, plus room for memorabilia collected by the three volunteer fire companies.
The concept plan will evaluate the existing spaces to determine whether they can be repurposed or reconfigured to meet the fire department’s needs. An expansion of the building may be considered, as well. An estimated budget to expand or renovate the firehouse will be prepared.
The study and concept plan are expected to be completed within six months.
The Princeton Fire Department headquarters on Witherspoon Street consists of a commons room, a kitchen and four garage bays for the firetrucks on the first floor. There are bunk rooms, a meeting room and a gym on the second floor.
Mayor Mark Freda said a couple of things have happened since the Witherspoon Street firehouse was built in 1992.
For starters, the Princeton Fire Department had been an all-volunteer fire department that consisted of three fire companies – Princeton Hook & Ladder Co., on North Harrison Street; Princeton Engine Co. No. 1, on Chestnut Street; and Mercer Engine Co. No. 3 at 363 Witherspoon St.
But in 2020, the all-volunteer fire department became a combination volunteer/paid fire department. There are six paid firefighters, two of whom are assigned to a 24-hour shift on a rotating basis and stay at the Princeton Fire Department headquarters on Witherspoon Street. They are supplemented by volunteer firefighters.
Also, the town’s fire inspectors have moved their offices into the Princeton Fire Department headquarters. The town recently hired its first paid fire chief and a new fire official, whose offices are located in the fire department headquarters. There are still two staff members whose offices are in Monument Hall on Stockton Street, he said.
Consolidating all of those functions into one building was mentioned in an earlier facilities study. The new fire chief pointed out that in order to operate the Princeton Fire Department efficiently, there is a need for everyone to be under one roof – but the building was never designed for all of those uses to be located there, Freda said.
“We are pretty much looking at somebody to come in and research the entire building and figure out how we are going to put all of these uses into a building that was never designed for pretty much anything we want it to do,” Freda said.
Princeton Councilwoman Michelle Pirone Lambros, who is the fire commissioner, agreed that bringing everyone under one roof would make for more efficiency. There are under-utilized spaces in the building, she said.
Upgrades to the firehouse would help to attract and retain volunteer firefighters by creating a more comfortable place for them, Pirone Lambros said.
When Princeton Councilman Leighton Newlin asked why the study only looks forward for the next five years, Freda said the Princeton Fire Department is in a state of flux.
Volunteer membership is fairly low, and it is hoped that the new fire chief may be able to reverse that trend and expand the number of volunteers, Freda said.
“At this point, it is really hard to know what shape or form our fire department is going to be in, more than five years from now,” he said.
