Eastburg Community Alliance
On Track to the Future
Dansbury Depot
Preservation Project
A tribute to our Past,
an investment in our Future
News, Communication and Project Updates From the Eastburg Community Alliance
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- October: In October 2009: The Restaurant house in the 1864 Dansbury Depot Suffered a Major Fire October 15, 2010: The Depot Narrowly Escaped Demolition when the ECA successfully gained the building, land and raised funds neccessary to move the station to a new site just accross the tracks October 15, 2011: The ECA is hosting a re-dedication ceremony to celebrate our saved history! The station's exterior is rehabilitated and its interior well underway! Steamtown will be bringing a train of guests and local officials and dignitaries will be in attendence to share in the celebration! Click the image to enlarge or Download JPEG HERE
------------------------------------------------------------------------- September: MUCH PROGRESS has been made! Inside and out!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8.13.11 Help Wanted: The ECA is seeking volunteers interested in helping us to clean the smoke damage from the interior walls, floors and ceilings of the Historic Dansbury Depot in order to prepare the station for interior renovations. No experience necessary, just a willingness to put in some hard work and invest some old-fashioned energy and elbow grease into a very important historic preservation project in your community! Please email us (eastburginfo@gmail.com) with your name, contact information and availability if you are interested! Also please note any construction experience in your email, as we are seeking team leaders for this task. Feel free to pass this message along to other sites or organizations you feel may be interested; the more volunteers we get, the sooner the station's rehabilitation and adaptive reuse will be completed and her doors re-opened to residents and visitors. Thanks! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7.28.11 Want to participate in ECA's Dansbury Depot Re-Dedication and OctoberFest on October 15th?! Click the image below or follow the link to learn more and register to reserve your group or business's space and be a part of this historic happening!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7.25.11 Reconstructed windows replicating the existing historic windows of the depot are currently being installed into the upper level of Historic Dansbury Depot today. The larger windows are coming along nicely and will be installed shortly. Great work Mr. Harley D. Fish and co.!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7.19.11
The Eastburg Community Alliance (ECA) is pleased to announce receipt of a $100,000.000 grant award from the R. Dale and Frances M. Hughes Foundation in support of its Dansbury Depot Preservation Project. Given the history of Hughes Printing and the legacy of the Hughes family in this community the ECA is honored to have the R. Dale and Frances M. Hughes Foundation’s support and partnership in this meaningful historic preservation and economic generating rehabilitation and adaptive re-use project. This grant award will support interior rehabilitation work on the 1864 East Stroudsburg Railroad Station according to strict historic preservation guidelines. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 7.4.11 The ECA is keeping to our one year promise and will open the Depot to the public for our October 15th re-dedication ceremony. The Station's Museum and Coffee Shop may not be fully developed at that time, but we anticipate the full exterior and interior rehabilitated will be complete and the station accessible for our re-dedication on October 15th! Save the date! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6.25.11 . With the corner of the municipal parking lot the ECA disrupted in relocating the depot now graded, paved and relined, our contractual site work on the depot is now complete! At present, windows of the same 19th century era style and materials of the surviving sections of the station are currently being hand-crafted off-site by skilled artisan Harley Fish (both Sr. and Jr. are on the job and ironically also built the wood bar that once stood in the dansbury depot restaurant). Building these windows from scratch with authentic materials and historic style will take close to a month to complete. Replicated historic siding is being hand forged as well, which will also take several weeks. So although there will appear to be a lull in the action for the next few weeks on site, much progress is taking place off-site behind the scenes and we believe its worth the time to do things right and remain authentic and true to this station's history. Once the windows and siding are complete all will be installed onto the station and she will be given a fresh coat (or three) of paint). The ECA continues to move forward with great enthusiasm and excitement and is so pleased to be working with such skilled local artisans and such a supportive and positive community. Look for more updates as we forge ahead with this exciting historic preservation project in East Stroudsburg! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.25.11 After weeks of site work, the station is now firmly rooted in her new home! Site work through this past week has allowed us to remove the construction barriers and plant soil stabilizing grass. Windows have been measured for the rehabilitated section of the station and are being hand-crafted to match the historic windows that have survived through the century.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.19.11 The Handicap accessible walkway to the front entrance of the depot is now complete, as are the sidewalks and some additional site grading.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.1.11 Thank you to all the artists, poets, authors, and volunteers who came together to make Books, Brushes and Blooms a success! In addition to funds raised through vending fees the Exchange Club, the Association of University Women and Strauser's Nature's Helpers all came through with fundraising for the depot by donating the full proceeds from their books, food and plant sales to the cause! Thank you for your time, work, and support! Several hundred dollars were raised for the Dansbury Depot's rehabilitation through these efforts and the community was joined together in a great event promoting Arts, Music and Literature in the Poconos! This station has brought people together for over 100 years and with everyone's continued support, will continue to into the future!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4.22.11 After a busy week, the site is leveled and front canopy support footers are complete. Next on the agenda is creating a Handicap accessible walkway to the front entrance, extending the front canopy and re-integrating the historic materials we conserved including the historic columns and iconic arch work.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4.19.11 Community Fundraiser: ECA's next opportunity for community participation in the funding support of the depot's rehabilitation will take place on May 7th with all proceeds from our Books, Brushes and Blooms: Spring Arts and literary Festival going towards the project. Please join us for a great day of art, history, tours of the railroad swtiching tower and family entertainment! Iif you are non-profit, artist, craftperson, author, or gardner sign up to be a vendor and showcase your work for a great cause!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4.18.11 Today we are beginning to secure and repair of the front canopy of the depot! Currently, our excavator is creating concrete footings to hold the historic beams in place. Once complete we will bring in our framing team to carefully reconstruct the fire claimed section of the canopy and reincorporate all the original beams and unique ironwork we retained from the 1864 structure.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4.12.11 Water and Sewer provisions were brought into the station this week!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4.10.11 Another Community Fundraising Success! With two nights of incredible talent showcased at the Pocono Community Theater, Poconos Got Talent, not only selected the newest stars of the American Freedom Festival's Main Stage on July 4th, the event raised over $500 towards the ECA's Dansbury Depot Preservation Project!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4.8.11 A sneak peak at the interior
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4.5.11 Some images of the completed Roof and site work underway!
Heavy equpiment levelling the site!
Site excavation clearing the site and preparing for our next phase!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3.25.11 It's difficult to appreciate under the late March Snow, but the roof is nearly complete and is undergoing final touches at the hands of our dedicated local crew! As soon as the ground thaws we'll move forward with the excavating plans we had for this week before the blizzard hit!
3.17.11 New roof taking shape today!
3.16.11 Moving Along...
3.14.11
3.11.11 Full Steam ahead! Framing will be complete by the middle of next week. Roof work will begin immediately after!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3.10.11 Chugging along!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3.9.11 ECA will be at the Greater Pocono Chamber of Commerce Expo 2011 today and tommorrow at booth #56, promoting our work in the community and providing information on our Dansbury Depot Rehabiliation Project! Come by and see us!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3.8.11 With the break in winter weather, major work is taking place on the Depot as promised! We'll be rebuilding the fire-claimed corner all week.
2.26.11 Read the Pocono Record's story on ECA's work since the relocation! http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110 The ECA has made great progress despite such a harsh winter! Wait until you see how much we will accomplish in the absence of blizzards and ice storms! Look for framing to begin on Tuesday and the roof recovery to follow immediately after. ECA has a number of exciting projects on the horizon! ECA's Depot Preservation Committee is currently researching the integration of "green"/ energy efficient technologies to preserve not only our history, but also our planet!
Poconos Got Talent is taking place through March to showcase local talent and raise funds to help in the station renovations! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2.23.11 Removing all fire/smoke/water/weather damaged elements to make way for new framing! Permits and fees for framing submited, framing to take place next week! Expect major work and progress in the next few days!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2.18.11 Removing the bar to make way for our Museum and gallery space. No, the ECA will not be running a bar in the preserved station! :)
Despite the fear that holes in the roof have exposed the building to the elements, the holes do not penetrate all the way through to the interior ceiling. The station's interior has been well preserved and is dry and well despite such a harsh winter! All the attic wood work that was exposed is now removed to make room for new materials promising a long, prosperous future for the depot.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2.4.11 Pre-framing demo underway! Removing all ducts and eletrical work from the station. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1.29.11 ECA's future plans are posted. Check them out and please feel free to address any questions or concerns with the ECA directly at eastburginfo@gmail.com. We'd love to hear from you!
Clearing snow once again! ECA is happy to report that work on the station will commence this week. The small dely was the result of two large snow/ice storms. The team will begin removing the fire/ weather damaged elements this week so that new framing can take place and new materials can offer the Station a long and promising life -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1.11.11 Excavation work has filled in the foundation channels and leveled the site. Reframing of the fire claimed section and roofing work will begin shortly.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 12.30.10 Foundation/ crawl space tarred with weather/moisture seal.
All of the salvaged signature original hoops and arches of the Station's front canopy supports are now in the ECA's possession. Rear canopy completion may occur pending financial support. In the interim, the ECA is moving ahead with the rehabiliation aspects we are currently funded and contracted for. Excavation and land development will transpire through the week. Re-framing of the fire-claimed corner of the station will begin thereafter. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12.29.10 Crawl space/foundation completed Favorably warm temperatures this week have allowed us to pour the concrete floor to the crawl space. The foundation walls will be completed and secured! Thank you Northeast Masonry for a job well done!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12.22.10 Station now resting safetly on new Foundation! Today the Steel colums and support beams used for stabilizing the Station for transporation were carefully removed from the Depot and she now rests freely upon her new foundation. This marks the official end of the station's moving days and the beginning of her rehabiliation on her new, permanent site.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12.20.10 Work progressing on Foundation of Dansbury Depot!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12.8.10 DANSBURY DEPOT MOVED AHEAD OF SCHEDULE! Wolf House and Building Movers and local construction Visit ECA's Official Facebook page for more photos of the rotation and move! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12.7.10 DANSBURY DEPOT'S FINAL MOVE Scheduled for Friday, Dec. 10th!
Once secured in its new site, exterior rehabilitation will commence, ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 12.5.10 Thank you to all who joined the ECA for our Tree Lighting Ceremony and enjoyed the night together as one community. Also a very special thanks to SANTA, Mrs. Claus and all the ECA elves for coming down from the North Pole to help us raise funds for the Dansbury Depot Project!
We were even treated by a passing train at the evening's end. A perfect end to a perfect Holiday celebration! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 11.28.10 Even Santa wants to see the Dansbury Depot rehabilitated and is travelling all the way from the North Pole to help us out! Please join the ECA on Friday, Dec. 3rd at 5:30pm for our Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony where we will be hosting Photos with Santa to help raise funds for the Dansbury Depot Preservation Project! All ages are welcome; whether you're a kid or just a kid at heart Santa would love to have his picture taken with you and your family to help raise funds for this great cause!
As you can see we have been very busy this Holiday beginning site preparations for the depot's foundation and final location. Site development and excavating will continue to take place all week and we anticipate having Wolfe House and Building Movers back to town in the next 7-14 days to move the Station to its permenant home. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11.8.10 After extensive research and analysis, as well as historic consultation, the ECA will be rotating the Dansbury Depot 180 degrees before situating it in its final location. Turning the station retains its historic trask-side orientation and authenticity. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.27.10 The Engineering and Site Development Plan for the permenant location of the Dansbury Depot is near completion. ECA is also completing a mandatory traffic study. Once all permits and requirements are completed, our plans will go before the Planning Commission on November 9th and Borough council on Nov 16th for approval. Once approved by both parties, we will begin excavation and the new foundation immediately. It's ECA's goal to have the station in her new location by the first week in Decemeber. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.23.10 ECA's OctoberFest Celebrated our Community, as well as the Halloween and Harvest Season. With Live bands all day long, a costume parade, and over a dozen craft vendors, it was a good old fashioned celebration to remember! Our scarecrow building, raffle and bake sale benefit helped raise funds for the Depot rehabiliation fund!
Thanks to all who came out and had so much fun ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 10.15.10 The Dansbury Depot Successfully Relocated to its temporary site! Land development of the permenant site will begin as soon as permits and engineering allow, with exterior rehabilitation to follow.
The ECA is extremely excited for the opportunity this project presents for the social & economic benefit of our community as well as the sense of 'place' and local history that comes with preserving this unique historical structure. This station has played an integral role in defining this area's past and the ECA will keep it on track for Eastburg's future.
Image Courtesy Mike Piersa. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.11.10
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.10.10 HELP WANTED: Historical Consultant, ECA's East Stroudsburg Station Relocation and Rehabilitation Project: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.8.10 RR Crossing Contracts, permits and fees are being processed and the sub contractor (wolfe house and building movers) is coming to town for the relocation to begin on Monday, Oct 11th...Columbus Day. The actual lift and move will take place later in the week, the initial work and site prep will begin on monday. If you have not yet made your donation NOW is the time as the rail crossing is going to cost over $7,000 in fees and insurance is over 3 grand for 3 months! There is nothing cheap nor easy about saving and rehabilitating this sacred station and we need your help on this long, hard road to recovery and renewal. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.7.10 ECA has met the terms of the County Commissioners for payment requisition for our Grant Award from the Hotel Tax Fund! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.6.10 ECA has met all requested terms and criteria and recieved an OFFICIAL letter of approval for our grant application in the amount of $200,000 from the ESSA Bank and Trust Charitable Foundation! Thank you! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.5.10 The Borough of East Stroudsburg Approved the official land lease between the ECA and the borough for both a temporary and permenant location for the East Stroudsburg Station! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.5.10 The ECA Board of Directors Approved the land lease between the borough and ECA after several weeks of perfecting and the hard work or our attornies! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.4.10 ECA's First Community-wide Public organizing meeting on the Depot Relocation and Restoration Project to take place Wed, October 6th from noon-1pm at the Pocono Community Theater, 88 S. Courtland Street, East Stroudsburg. JOIN US! Click here to view the event flyer --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- While there are still many steps to take, legally and otherwise, we are slowly approaching a possible moving date, pending contractual agreements and borough approval. Read More. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski has pledged to support restoring the building's interior, pending borough approval of its permanent relocation. Read More.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Monroe County Commissioners have approved a $100,000 grant to the ECA from the Hotel Tax Allocation in order to support the relocation of the East Stroudsburg Station. ECA expects to recieve an additional grant award from the ESSA Trust and Charitable Foundation pending Borough Support and action on a zoning and lease agreement with ECA. Read more --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The ECA has received hundreds of emails from people all over the country expressing their support of our relocation and rehabilitation project. We've also received emails and phone calls from residents offering their time, money and services to see this project succeed. THANK YOU! Please continue to communicate your support and pledge of time and/or money to this project and encourage others to do the same. ECA is beyond greateful for the outpouring of support from the community. Please follow the ECA on facebook for up-to-date requests for information and volunteer help. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Photo David Kidwell, Pocono Record 
ECA members and local film-makers are producing a full-length documentary film covering the incredible station story and documenting our community's creation of history in the course of its preservation! Look for its fundraising red carpet launch party at the Pocono Community Theater as well as historic theaters through the region within the year! 
Tune in for progress as we continue to work hard for our community to see our treasured Dansbury Depot Rehabilitation and re-programmed to serve the community and pay homage to Eastburg's local art, artifacts and railroad-rich local history! 
Through cold and snow, our construction team has been forging ahead and much progess is being made on the Station's Foundation. Shorty, we will be abe to remove the steel transport beams and secure the station to its foundation so that exterior renovations may take place. 
Serious about our one year turn-around look for work to take place all winter long. Your support is key! Please make a contribution to this vital project and be a part of history. 
support returned to East Stroudsburg today to prepare the Dansbury Depot Station for its second and final move. And although the move was originally scheduled to take place tomorrow, Friday, December 10th, Wolfe's dedicated work team was able to successfully rotate and complete the 
move all in one day. The Eastburg Community Alliance (ECA) is extremely pleased with the relocation and is eager to begin building the foundation and crawl space from the ground up, below the currently elevated station. Now that the station is safely relocated to its new home, ECA's next phase will include the complete reconstruction of the large section claimed by last October's fire as well as full redevelopment of the station's exterior. Interior 
redevelopment will follow. The ECA ambitiously aspires for the station's completion and opening in as little as 12 months. Once rehabilitated, the Dansbury Depot will serve the community as a living museum, housing art and artifacts relevant to the local history of both the Railroad and East Stroudsburg. It will also house a small coffee shop and serve as the new home and headquarters of the ECA, who owns the station and will administer its new use. The ECA plans to host numerous events and community engagements 
in and around the station to help feed the economic and cultural needs of East Stroudsburg and its surrounding region. In addition, the Dansbury Depot will once again greet visitors and serve railroad passengers from time to time as the ECA is coordinating several seasonal excursion train stops to and from the Steamtown National Park in Scranton. 
After working hard through cold weather, our construction team has excavated the foundation area and prepared our site for the Station. On thursday, Wolf House and Building Movers will return to prepare the station for its second and final move, which will take place on Friday morning. 
including: rebuilding the areas claimed by fire, repairing the remaining structure, replacing any fire, smoke and water damaged materials, replacing the entire roof, restoring all doors, windows and siding, repainting to historic hues and bringing to current code. From there we will waste no time and begin interior rehab and re-programming. 
Today, Wolfe House and Building Movers and Papillion Construction spent the day preparing the Depot's foundation and inserting the first 30ft steal beam beneath her foundation to prepare the station for her lift. Preparation will ensue through the week, with the lift scheduled for Oct. 15th, unless weather or some other variable interferes between now and then. If you'd like to help out on Moving Day please Follow the link below and Sign up for the job and shift that best suits your interest and schedule.
hotels in the area. The number of tourists increased yearly and the railroad expanded the station in 1883 to handle the traffic. The station at East Stroudsburg was one of two major stations in Monroe County, hence it boasted a larger and more complete facility than many other stops on the route between New York and Pocono Resorts. The station was again remodeled in 1915. At this tim e colored glass windows were added to the waiting room area and minor alterations and cosmetic repairs took place, but the station and freight office remained unaltered. 
building, commercial and tourist activity dropped off significantly in East Stroudsburg’s downtown. Local Business owners on Crystal Street reported sizable losses in terms of consumer volume and sales figures following the loss of the Dansbury Depot from the Crystal Street family. Additionally, quality of life components suffered by measurable increases in crime and delinquency surrounding the abandoned structure and darkened streetscape. 
