From Phil Stenholm:
Another installment in the History of the Evanston Fire Department.
The second phase of Chief Dorband’s modernization plan was put into action following the approval of a second bond issue in April 1953. This paved the way for the construction of three new fire stations at a total cost of $775,000 during the 1954–1955 period.
In its most recent inspection of the EFD in 1935, the National Board of Fire Underwriters (NBFU) had suggested relocating Truck Company 2 from Station #1 to a new Station #2 in South Evanston, which would accommodate an aerial ladder truck. It also recommended establishing a third truck company at a new Station #3 in North Evanston, with space for another aerial truck, and moving Engine Company 5 to a fifth station near Grant and Central Park in northwest Evanston. Chief Dorband took these recommendations very seriously when planning the new facilities.
The new Station #2 was built as a two-story, three-bay “headquarters†building with room for a tractor-drawn aerial ladder truck and EFD administrative offices. It was located on the southwest corner of Madison and Custer, just one block west of the old Station #2. The former Station #2 at 750 Chicago Avenue was later sold to a private buyer and converted into an automobile dealership, eventually becoming a restaurant about twenty years later.
Station #3 was a single-story, three-bay structure with one bay long enough to hold a tractor-drawn aerial ladder truck. It was built on a vacant lot owned by the Metropolitan Sanitary District and leased to the city. Located on the east side of the North Shore Channel, it was a block west of Evanston Hospital and about a mile from the Northwestern University campus. The site was at the northeast corner of Central Street and what was once Cooper Avenue before the canal was constructed in 1908. The old Station #3 at 2504 Green Bay Road was later sold and turned into a photography studio.
However, the construction of Fire Station #5 proved to be more complicated than expected. Chief Dorband's plan called for Station #5 to be built on what used to be Bennett Avenue, between Perkins Woods and Lincolnwood Elementary School. Although part of Bennett Avenue between Grant and Colfax streets had been closed when Perkins Woods was established as a Cook County Forest Preserve in the 1920s, the right-of-way remained under city ownership. Station #5’s first-due area would cover all of northwest Evanston and a large portion of the 5th Ward, including areas north of Church Street and west of the C&NW RR Mayfair Division freight tracks.
The planned station was designed as a long, narrow one-story, one-bay residential-style firehouse set back several hundred feet from the street. The single apparatus bay would be on the south side, with access via Grant Street. The living quarters included a living room, kitchen, dining room, bunk room, bathroom with a shower, captain’s office, large storage room, and a watch desk with a radio and telephone, separated by a long hallway. The front entrance and parking area would be on the Colfax Street side, with a street address of 2700 Colfax St.
But the Lincolnwood School PTA opposed the location, arguing that a fire station so close to the school could endanger children during emergency responses. The city council agreed, though Chief Dorband was upset, noting that the aldermen had previously approved the construction of Fire Station #1 on Lake Street in 1949, even though it was only a half-block away from St. Mary’s School.
After the Perkins Woods site was ruled out, the city proposed a park at the northeast corner of Simpson and Bennett (now Porter Park) as an alternative. However, local residents objected to replacing their park with a fire station. Additionally, the site was nearly two miles from parts of the High Ridge neighborhood in northwest Evanston.
Desperate for a solution, the city considered a vacant lot at the northwest corner of Central Park Avenue and the south alley of Central Street. While the site was affordable and suitable for a two-bay Chicago FD-style firehouse, Northminster Presbyterian Church raised concerns, fearing disruptions to Sunday services and other events.
Finally, the city council reluctantly purchased a lot on the south side of Central Street at Reese Avenue, despite the higher cost. The footprint was large enough for a two-bay firehouse. Though this location was half a mile farther from the 5th Ward than the original Perkins Woods site, it provided adequate coverage for northwest Evanston up to Crawford and Old Glenview Road.
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