La Mott Fire Company in Cheltenham Township filed plans with Montgomery County in early September to build a 3,000-square-foot, four-unit apartment addition behind its Penrose Avenue firehouse, with a door connecting directly to the station. The plan is now moving through the township approval process after the county issued its initial review letter. Each unit would have its own bedroom, bathroom and sitting room, with a shared kitchen, laundry and communal area. The company expects to offer free or reduced rent to firefighters who take on a set share of calls and other duties. Leaders say the goal is to recruit and retain volunteers, since most of the company’s roughly 30 active members are volunteers, and to improve response times, which averaged six minutes across all call types in 2025 against a national benchmark of under nine minutes for low-hazard structure fires. The company previously paid $3,000 a month to house two firefighters at Lynnewood Gardens Apartments but ended that effort in 2025, saying it was too costly.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 10/26/2026