Judge expected to rule on legal challenge

A title expert hired by the City of Beacon testified in court last week that the municipality has owned the Beacon Engine Co. firehouse at 57 East Main St. since 1889, the year it was built.

Earlier this month, a group of retired volunteer firefighters asked state Judge Maria Rosa to pause an order by the city for them to vacate the former firehouse by March 31 because Beacon intends to sell the building. The firefighters challenged the city's ownership, saying it relied on "aged, handwritten deeds" and "incomplete searches and conclusory assertions." They asked Rosa to stop any sale until she determined their rights.

Paul Conrad, the president of Real Property Abstract & Title Services, a Poughkeepsie firm, testified on March 21 that, after surveying the site and conducting an "extensive, thorough review" of deeds dating from 1860 to 1921, "the city's ownership of the property is clear." Conrad said the volunteer Beacon Engine Co. "never came into ownership of such reserved land."

The 2½-story brick firehouse was conveyed to the Village of Matteawan, he said, which merged with Fishkill Landing in 1913 to become the City of Beacon. Property owned by the village was assumed by Beacon.

Rosa denied the firefighters' request for a pause on March 14. She is expected to rule on the ownership dispute next month.

The city intends to sell the empty Beacon Engine and Mase Hook & Ladder stations to offset the $14.7 million it spent on a central fire station that opened near City Hall last fall. According to an agreement filed with the court, Gate House Compass Realty will list Beacon Engine in May for $1.75 million and Mase, at 425 Main St., for $1.95 million.

Gate House will receive a commission of 2 percent of the sales - or $35,000 and $39,000, respectively, if the buildings sell for the asking prices. The agency's agreement with the city gives it exclusive listing rights until Nov. 1.

Any delay in marketing the properties could prevent the city from obtaining the highest price, City Attorney Nick Ward-Willis wrote in a memo to the judge. He argued that the retired firefighters have failed to produce any title reports, recorded deeds or certified surveys showing ownership.

The City Council voted in February 2020 to close Beacon Engine, one of two stations in the city that had been headquarters for volunteer fire companies for more than a century. At the time, it was believed that the volunteer company owned the 1889 station, with the city holding an engine bay that was added in 1924.

The city's plan was to modernize Mase and the Lewis Tompkins Hose Co. building, a third volunteer station. But by 2023, two things had changed: Beacon officials conducted a title search that they said showed municipal ownership of Beacon Engine. In addition, the city pivoted, opting to tear down Tompkins Hose and build the central station at the site. When it opened, the Beacon Engine and Mase buildings became surplus.

According to testimony by Mayor Lee Kyriacou, the retired volunteers offered in 2023 to lease or purchase Beacon Engine. The city rejected that offer but the mayor said he told the volunteers they could use the station rent-free as a social hub and to coordinate charitable campaigns. When the central fire station was completed, they were welcome to meet there, he said.