{"id":464148,"date":"2022-06-16T21:09:57","date_gmt":"2022-06-16T18:09:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/this-saint-john-fire-station-is-becoming-a-locals-dream-home\/"},"modified":"2022-06-16T21:09:57","modified_gmt":"2022-06-16T18:09:57","slug":"this-saint-john-fire-station-is-becoming-a-locals-dream-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/this-saint-john-fire-station-is-becoming-a-locals-dream-home\/","title":{"rendered":"#This Saint John fire station is becoming a local\u2019s dream home"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a407a536c75c\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a407a536c75c\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/this-saint-john-fire-station-is-becoming-a-locals-dream-home\/#%E2%80%9CThis_Saint_John_fire_station_is_becoming_a_locals_dream_home%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;This Saint John fire station is becoming a local\u2019s dream home&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CThis_Saint_John_fire_station_is_becoming_a_locals_dream_home%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;This Saint John fire station is becoming a local\u2019s dream home&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n                            As a kid, Jake Palmer used to pass the historic building each day he went to school. Now, he&#8217;s purchased it at a bargain price with plans to convert it into his family\u2019s forever home\n                        <\/div>\n<div>\n                                                                        <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In Saint John, New Brunswick unique properties have graced the real estate market, often with low prices yet necessary fix-ups. One property that caught real estate agent Jake Palmer\u2019s eye was a former fire station located near his childhood home.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the owner indicated an interest in selling, Palmer, 46, purchased the building for the fire sale price of $160,000. His vision? To renovate the brick beauty into an unconventional family home for him and his three children\u2014on top of creating a garage and storage space for his hobby collecting and repairing automobiles. Even after his planned three-storey reno, he still expects to spend less than the typical New Brunswick homebuyer. (The year-to-date average home price from the Canadian Real Estate Association is $306,176.)<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Palmer shares what it\u2019s like to fulfill a childhood real estate dream, and his plans to turn the old fire station from a rental in dire need of maintenance into a showpiece with some of the most vibrant views in the city.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My house burned down a few years ago. A running joke is that this one\u2019s going to be a lot less fire-prone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When I was in elementary school I moved to nearby Champlain Street. I used to walk by this building all the time as a kid. But I never wanted to be a fireman. Back then, one of my favourite comic books featured car mechanics who owned a building where they lived upstairs and kept their cars on the lower-level. When I passed the firehall, I used to think that I could do something like that, too, in a building just like this.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I\u2019m a romantic when it comes to properties. I\u2019m excited to be part of saving a building that\u2019s really important to people in the neighbourhood. The building stands high and proud on its corner, so everyone notices it when driving by. I\u2019ve had people reach out and say they\u2019re glad someone\u2019s taking care of the firehouse.\u00a0<\/span><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-sizes=\"auto\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1237533 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/PalmerHistoric.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"707\" height=\"398\"\/><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My new home hasn\u2019t been a fire station for years, but it has been through a lot of different hands. My best guess as to why is that people like the idea of owning unique buildings like this. But the reality is daunting; they don\u2019t realize the scope of the work needed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The building cost me $160,000. I could have moved in upstairs with about $1,500 of repairs. But I saw this as a $250,000 building. The buying process was super-straightforward as it was already zoned residential\u2014getting financing if it was still a commercial building would have been almost impossible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are three levels\u2014which is uncommon for a building like this\u2014including a full basement underneath the main garage level. I\u2019ve already stuffed one of my cars in there. When I finish renovating, I\u2019ll have a 600-square-foot rec room down there, too.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My family currently has a home in Kingston Peninsula, which is about 40 minutes outside of Saint John. I love that place, but the commute is a drag with three kids and the city has more activities for them anyway.. Besides, it will be great to be able to move some of my car projects into the garage at my new home.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On the main level, there will be a two-car garage where the fire truck doors are. In total, there will be about 2,400 square feet of living space and about 1,200 square feet of garage space split between two levels when I\u2019m finished. That includes an open-space living room and kitchen. The interior is going to be very modern, but I\u2019m going to replicate early Art Deco elements like trim, tilework and other finishes. With 11-foot ceilings on the main level, I\u2019ll have plenty of opportunities to create drama and play with lighting.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On the top floor, I\u2019m restoring the hardwood floors, which will have a full bathroom and four bedrooms, including a master with ensuite.\u00a0<\/span><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-sizes=\"auto\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1237534 size-full lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/PalmerView-e1655402779898.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"3255\" height=\"1648\"\/><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The views are phenomenal. From the top floor looking towards the backyard you can see underneath the Reversing Falls Bridge. From the building\u2019s east side, there\u2019s a view of Uptown Saint John. I\u2019d like to install a rooftop deck to take in the views.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The goal is to have the place ready to move-in by the start of the school year in September. My kids have had mixed reactions so far. One of my middle son\u2019s closest friends was the former tenant\u2019s son, so my son has spent a lot of time here and loves the building. My 13-year-old daughter called this place crusty. But in the last few weeks, she\u2019s starting to come around and sees how cool it is.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I\u2019m going to paint the garage doors red. I want it to look like a fire station again. I won\u2019t put a fire pole in there, though. I don\u2019t think my insurance company would be h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>y with that.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014As told to Rob Csernyik<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"under-article-widget-nl\">\n<p class=\"under-article-widget-title\">Looking for more?<\/p>\n<p class=\"under-article-widget-description\">Get the best of <em>Maclean<\/em>&#8216;s sent straight to your inbox. 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Now, he&#8217;s purchased it at a bargain price with plans to convert it into his family\u2019s forever home In Saint John, New Brunswick unique properties have graced&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":464149,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/PalmerMain-766x431.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[83684,71226,88367],"class_list":["post-464148","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-property","tag-real-estate","tag-renovations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/464148","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=464148"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/464148\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/464149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=464148"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=464148"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=464148"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}