Firehouse, Hook & Ladder Company 8


Firehouse, Hook & Ladder Company 8 is a New York City Fire Department fire station, located at 14 North Moore Street at its intersection with Varick Street in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Its exterior has become famous as the base of the Ghostbusters in the supernatural comedy film franchise of the same name.

History

The firehouse was built in 1903 after the establishment of the FDNY as the base of the formerly independent Hook and Ladder fire company 8. The building was designed as the first of a series of Beaux-Arts style firehouses by the city superintendent of buildings, Alexander H. Stevens. The building, which originally had two vehicle doors, was halved in size in 1913 after Varick Street was widened.
The firefighters of Hook & Ladder No. 8 were among the first responders to the September 11, 2001, attacks. In 2011, the firehouse was threatened with closure after the city administration planned to close 20 fire companies to save money. But after a public campaign to save it, supported by the later Mayor Bill de Blasio and actor Steve Buscemi, the firehouse remains in service. From 2016 to 2018, it was subject to a renovation costing $6 million.

Filming location

The firehouse was selected as the base of the "Ghostbusters" for the 1984 film after an early draft of the script envisaged the Ghostbusters as a public service much like the fire department. Reportedly, the firehouse was chosen because writer Dan Aykroyd knew the area and liked the building. While the firehouse served as the set for exterior scenes, the interior of the Ghostbusters base was shot in a Los Angeles studio, and in Fire Station No. 23, a decommissioned Los Angeles firehouse.
In the 2016 reboot of Ghostbusters, the firehouse makes two appearances.
The firehouse has also appeared in the 2005 film Hitch and in episodes of the television series Seinfeld and How I Met Your Mother. In 2015, Lego announced a 4,634-piece "Ghostbusters Firehouse Headquarters" set based on the building, released in January 2016. It is the third-largest set ever made by Lego.