Preservationists critical of firehouse closure

Preservationists are criticizing the closure of the Governors Island firehouse, to be shuttered January 17, claiming that the fire department’s plans to respond to fires on Governors Island with fire boats from several firehouses in Brooklyn and Manhattan won’t keep the island’s historic buildings safe. The oldest buildings in the Governors Island historic district date back to 1805, and other houses in the area were built in the 1870s. These structures are not fireproofed.