14 Bright St.
former Passaic Hose IV Firehouse
The gorgeous details on the facade of this firehouse are a gold mine for architecture history geeks. I noticed it on a walk home from the Downtown Taqueria and immediately went home to look up information about the building and Passaic Hose on the internet. My dreamhouse is a repurposed building that can hold an automobile on street level and hold living quarters on the upper floors. This location isn't ideal for a residence (the firehouse is on an odd block where Bright St. dead ends into noisy Grand St.), but someone should have the joy of passing under this beautifully sculpted hat everyday.
Some websites tell me that the building is a Jersey City Child Development Center (!) and others think it's part of a firehouse-themed sub sandwich chain. This February 2009 article from the Jersey City Independent acknowledges that the empty building is quite stable and even has new plumbing and a new roof. J City theater, a live-performance group, lobbied the city to renovate and use the building as a performance venue. The city chose to auction the property in March 2009, but I can't find the results of the auction online.
Whether it becomes a theater, a restaurant, or even a lucky person's home, this building should become something. soon.
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