Engine Company No. 2 firehouse

1. December 1908

   Engine Company No. 2's new firehouse went into service, replacing one that collapsed in the 1906 earthquake and set further up the Bush Street slope to spare the horses. Designed by the city architect Newton J. Tharp and built by Lamont & Beyer for $25,000, it was the first firehouse rebuilt downtown after 1906 and was hailed as the city's first thoroughly fireproof building since the fire: brick walls behind a Beaux Arts front of Vancouver granite, with a rusticated base and a colonnaded upper storey. It is one of three classical firehouses the city ever built.

   National Register of Historic Places nomination, National Park Service
2. 1912

   The company received the city's first motor-driven chemical engine, one of the first steps in the fire department's move from horses to motors; Chemical Company No. 3 had also been moved in from the waterfront to cover the shopping district.

   National Register of Historic Places nomination, National Park Service
3. 1915

   Built by Lamont & Beyer.

4. March 20, 1947

   Photographed.

   San Francisco Subjects Photograph Collection (SFP 162), San Francisco Public Library
5. June 18, 1970

   Taken out of service by the fire department. It was later a bank, from 1982, and an art gallery.

   National Register of Historic Places nomination, National Park Service
6. December 6, 1981

   Designated San Francisco Landmark No. 143 for its classical features.

   National Register of Historic Places nomination, National Park Service
7. Sep 1982

   Withdrawn Permit 8207427 $$$ $150,000

   Additions alterations or repairs.

8. Aug 1983

   Permit 8308605 $$$ $22,000

   Install a 3 stop elevator to provide hamdicae esses to build.

9. Jan 1984

   Permit 8400632 $$$ $75,000

   Construct non-bearing gych bd. and met stud office partition.

10. Apr 1989

    Permit 8906025 $$$ $15,000

    Demolition only of partitions, & removal of light fixtures.

11. May 1989

    Permit 8907646 $$$ $150,000

    Interior improvement. patch existing partitions.

12. Mar 1999

    Permit 9906070 $$$ $130,000

    One stop: seismic upgrade, new windows, rear facade.

13. Jul 2000

    Permit 200007316559 $$$ $75,000

    Relocate nonbearing interior partition walls relocate e track lights install n cabts /fix in e kitc.

14. 2001

    Carey & Co. renovated it as their own architecture studio, stripping out the bank's partitions and vault, putting back a mezzanine where the original stood, and restoring wainscot and windows from the marks they had left.

    National Register of Historic Places nomination, National Park Service
15. April 17, 2002

    Listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an excellent small civic building, the first downtown firehouse rebuilt after 1906 and a City Beautiful statement of the city's commitment to fire safety.

    National Register of Historic Places nomination, National Park Service
16. Oct 2006

    Permit 200610245949 $$$ $1

    Renew 200211010533, 200411189570, 200412171740, 200505313802 for final inspection.

17. Jan 2022

    Permit 202201216401 $$$ $250,000

    New partitions, gypboard and suspended ceilings, casework and finishes. new accessible restroom, new operatories and associated service rooms for dental office ti on 2/f. new partition at g/f for building lobby. mep, lighting, life safety and sprinkers under sep permits. no ext work. historical building.

18. Apr 2022

    Permit 202204122052 $$$ $1

    Revision to permit application 202201216401. change 4 of 6 dental exam rm show disabled access 36" wied side clearance at one side of exam chair per cbc 11b-804.1 exception for non-emergency settings. 1hr wall and 45min door and frame at med gas closet. sffd op permit for med gas submitted separately.

19. Apr 2022

    Permit 202204252887 $$$ $16,500

    Relocate (25) pendent sprinkler heads, (4) upright sprinkler heads, add (4) pendents, remove (1) pendent, (1) upright. ref permit application 202201216401.

20. Jun 2022

    Permit 202206236959 $$$ $1

    Reference permit application 202201216401 electrical/t24 work only.

21. Sep 2025

    Issued Permit 202509266247 $$$ $210,000

    Interior non-structural commercial tenant improvement on ground floor of existing historic building. selective non-structural demolition of existing partitions, doors & millwork. new partitions, doors, glazing, ceilings, millwork, finishes. no changes to exterior.

22. Nov 2025

    Permit 202511199994 $$$ $68,000

    Reroofing. no hot work.

23. Jan 2026

    Issued Permit 202601153897 $$$ $8,000

    Revision permit application 202509266247 1st fl: removal of ct scan dental equipment and casework and pantry from scope. revision to partition layout. reorientation of classroom space. no change to existing exterior, structural elements, or floor area. no change to existing occupancy or egress system.

DBI holds 27 permits for this parcel, most of them tenant improvements on individual floors. The timeline shows the 24 largest by stated cost, plus the earliest on file; the DBI query in the sources below returns all 27. 9 expired or cancelled permits are not shown. The assessor's roll gives 1915; the firehouse went into service in December 1908.