STROUDSBURG -- After 15 months of being closed, a firehouse in Stroudsburg is back up and running.
The fire station on Sarah Street closed in April of 2015 for major renovations, all because a new ladder truck wouldn't fit inside the garage.
Renovations for this project were long overdue. The building dates back to the 1930s and had not been updated in 30 years, but it was a piece of equipment that got the ball rolling on the project.
A fire truck is actually the reason why renovations had to happen. It was too big to fit inside the garage. But now that all the work is done, the truck fits and there is plenty of room in the back.
It became official over the weekend. Fire crews were taking calls at the firehouse on Sunday for the first time in quite a while.
"It's always nice to be back and have some kind of normalcy in our operation and this is it," said Stroudsburg Assistant Fire Chief John Stevens.
While renovations were underway for more than a year, fire crews worked out of a shed at the borough's maintenance garage. Now they're happy to be back in their original home.
"They put a new finish on the floors. They milled down the old finishes, raised the doors, removed the wall in the back to give added room behind the ladder," said Stevens.
Renovation work cost the borough $1.5 million. Work was only expected to take six months, but a few setbacks with mold added more time to the project.
The firehouse became fully operational on Sunday and fire crews are happy to be home.
"Right here, we are centrally located in the borough so this allows us to give the shortest timed service to anywhere in the borough," Stevens explained.
Residents are also happy to see the garage doors open once again.
"Our lives depend on it," said Carmen Franco. "If you have a fire or an emergency, where do you go? Police or fire department, so it is extremely important to have them back."
The assistant fire chief tells Newswatch 16 some work is also being done to the basement where they'll store some equipment and have space for training.
