First opened in 1902, the old Summit firehouse, located at 396 Broad Street, has gone through multiple renovation projects. However, as the city of Summit continues to expand, the space has simply grown too small and outdated to accommodate the residents. After years of planning and voting, the new firehouse, located at 281 Broad Street, just down the road, began construction in October of 2021. The 32,000 square foot space boasts many new additions to better serve both the city of Summit and the firefighters themselves. From updated crew living areas to a fire prevention education room and a larger firetruck bay, the new space is a big upgrade from the old firehouse. The most important additions, however, are the decontamination features, aimed at helping protect firefighters from developing cancer from the toxic smoke. To counter this, there is a decontamination room, fitted with showers and a state-of-the-art air filtration system. An opening ceremony for the firehouse took place on November 24th, 2024.
Although the new firehouse is running and serving Summit constituents, the question still remains of what will happen to the old location of the firehouse, 396 Broad Street. Located behind the YMCA, its position is right in the center of downtown. Referred to as the Broad Street West Redevelopment Plan, which encapsulates neighboring property, there has been controversy, intense discussions, and lawsuits between town residents, the Summit council, and developers. The L & M and Toll Brothers Developers’ plan was debuted in 2022 to residents, who immediately criticized the large size of the redevelopment, and called for a drastic downsize of the building, parking, and virtually all other aspects. Just about a year later, after numerous special town meetings and proposals, the Summit Common Council unanimously put a stop to the development talks, ending the agreement with the contractors. A few months later, the area’s zoning, which was considered “redevelopment”, was switched back to the zoning that was in place before the proposals started. Since then, no definite plans have been shared with the public about what 396 Broad Street will be. It is known that the city of Summit needs to build housing on the property, and there are talks of a much smaller apartment building being developed on the location. Any redevelopment proposals will face critiques and aim to win the support of Summit residents.
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