Fire Station No. 4 (former) Improvements – Birmingham AL

Description

Birmingham Fire Station 4 is a retired fire station that served the “East End” and Terminal Station area from the 200 block of 24th Street North. It was one of several stations constructed in the mid-1920s by the city of Birmingham for the Birmingham Fire Department. Station No. 4 was designed by architect Bem Price. The two-story brick building featured two large truck bays flanking an entry door. A recessed balcony on the upper level was ornamented with Italian Renaissance-inspired terra-cotta arches supported on thin colonnettes and provided with projecting terra-cotta planter boxes. The pediment roof was provided with a short sloping facade of barrel tiles between two projecting piers at the corners. In 1960 Company No. 4 operated one 1,000-gallon pumper truck and a hose tender from the station. A second 1,000-gallon pumper truck was also kept at the station in reserve.

The Owens & Woods Partnership purchased the building from the city in 1981 and housed their architectural offices there. In 2010 the property was sold to Sheppard-Harris and Associates accountants. They commissioned renovations designed by architect Jeremy Erdreich.

The CWA Birmingham Public Buildings Project 37-C-715 classed No. 4 as Class “A” “Those needing general minor repairs, having sufficient sound value left in them to justify a thorough repairing, on which buildings was included painting inside and outside where needed, general carpentry repairs, including doors, windows and repairs to floors, or new floors; general repairs to masonry work and plaster or stucco, repairs to roof and sheet metal work, or new roof and sheet metal work installed. Plumbing, heating and wiring were put in good state of repair, and all minor changes such as moving partitions, or relocation of doors or windows were made.” 23 fire stations in Birmingham were included in this CWA project.