Broomall’s New Firehouse: A Modern Update Borrowed from the Past!

Our Community feature by Holly Stupak

Providing the community with the very best in emergency services and keeping its citizens safe has always been the #1 priority of the Broomall Fire Company. The new firehouse, the third in Broomall’s history, was built with safety and efficiency in mind. It was also designed for the future, but with a nod to the past.

The Broomall Firehouse Crew at the dedication ceremony

Photo courtesy of Broomall Fire Company

On November 2, 2019, Broomall Fire Company (BFC) members held a dedication ceremony, to give the public a glimpse of the new state-of-the-art facility. Designed by the Bernardon architecture firm, the firehouse is a 22,000-sf stone building with a cupola on top as its centerpiece. It contains a “museum,” which includes a 1948 Mack fire truck, an old locker with vintage fire gear, and lots of memorabilia.

Engaging Broomall Fire Station history in the new station design

Photo by Don Pearse Photographers, Inc.

The facade of the firehouse was designed to resemble and preserve the essence of the original station and to give it added character. Paul Andrew Sgroi, a Principal of Bernardon, plans to submit the Broomall Fire Company for Firehouse magazine’s 2020 Station Design Award program, which recognizes station designs that contribute greatly to the well-being of the responders and encourage interaction with the community.

The Broomall Fire Company was founded in 1923 and, in 1924, its members donated their own skills and talent to build the original Broomall Firehouse, a two-story stone building on West Chester Pike (now Drexel Hill Style Pizza). As apparatus and equipment needs increased in the 1950s, more space was needed, so in November 1957, a new firehouse was built on Malin Road at West Chester Pike.

View of new apparatus bays from training mezzanine

Photo by Don Pearse Photographers, Inc.

For the past 20 years, the Broomall Fire Company has needed to increase the size of the firehouse again, to accommodate more modern fire equipment and more fire trucks. With only one bathroom in the old station, there was a real need to add more facilities to allow crews to stay overnight. The new space enhances comfort and encourages interaction among the volunteers. Funding for the new firehouse came from a $3.25 million state grant and a $3 million contribution from the township, with the fire company responsible for the remaining costs. Next year, the Marple Ambulance Corps will move into the old firehouse.

“Plans for this firehouse were in the works for 20 years,” said Jim Capuzzi, BFC President. “The old station built in the 1950s was not designed to protect the safety of our volunteers and wasn’t equipped to support our fleet of eight trucks and our apparatus.

The new firehouse protects volunteers even further: The exhaust system safely sends diesel smoke out of the building; the living quarters are now separated from the gear, which can carry toxic fumes that have been known to cause cancer; and to avoid cross-contamination, the compressor system for breathing apparatus is now in a separate room.

“Our new fire station is light-years ahead of the previous one,” said Fire Chief Tom Dobbins. “It’s now a state-of-the art facility that will help support the Marple community for decades to come.

The new facility features an engine room, a multipurpose room, a fitness center with gym equipment donated by Planet Fitness, a day room, bunk rooms, and administrative offices. Three of the five dormitories are bunk style, and there’s an initiative to bring in local college students who could live there and volunteer. And although it’s not technically certified as a “green” facility, it was designed for energy reduction with LED lights on timers, insulation, and radiant floor heating.

Mack Room proudly show cases Broomall Fire Company history and memorabilia

Photo by Don Pearse Photographers, Inc.

With the new firehouse also came some new traditions. Traditionally during the holidays, Santa visited Broomall neighborhoods on one of the fire trucks. This past holidayseason, the Broomall Fire Company instead hosted “Santa Saturday,” attended by over 500 people. “Because of inclement weather or emergency calls, some members of the township often missed Santa’s neighborhood visits,” Capuzzi said. “Santa Saturday was a more personal experience because the children got a chance to meet Santa and tour the firehouse.”

Turnout gear room facilitates safe and ready access to serve our community

Photo by Don Pearse Photographers, Inc.

With BFC’s annual Spring Carnival cancelled and the Fall Carnival still pending, they won’t bring in additional funds to help with equipment maintenance and firehouse expenses. For information about ways to support Broomall Fire Company so their volunteers can continue to protect Marple residents, visit the SUPPORT page on www.BroomallFireCompany.com.