spin_the_wheel

This is the station as it looked before circa 2002 or so...

Nyack is not unlike many, many older East coast volunteer depts. where there are many firehouses, some around the block from one another. This exists in part from the formation of the towns themselves and the fire departments way back when. The center of town needed the fire protection and companies would form, rivalries were heated and individual companies would form to "compete" with each other where the "action" was...the center of town with the most structures. As towns grew and areas were built up other companies would form to protect these new areas, so you look on a map and there is a cluster of houses in the center of town, then other stations near the borders and outlaying areas of the districts.
Another thing to note in many cases these houses are owned by the individual companies. My dept. is like Nyack, 7 stations, 4 are owned by the individual companies, you cant just close them down, especially without an uproar from the residents in the area, it's not easy to close down a firehouse that has been in a neighborhood for 100 years.