"10-10" Firehouse to get $1.45 Million for Post-9/11 Restoration By Shams Tarek After 10 months of petitioning by firefighters, Battery Park City residents and local politicians, the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced July 16 that it will spend $1.45 million to help reopen the "10 House," the Liberty Street firehouse closed since Sept. 11 when it was badly damaged by the collapse of the World Trade Center. FEMA officials said the firehouse, which held Engine 10 and Ladder 10 and served all of Battery Park City and much of the financial district, could reopen as early as the end of this year, several months earlier than expected.   The house was used as a command post from the day of the attack until the end of the recovery effort, scattering its almost 50 men to three nearby firehouses. Residents in the area said they worried about response times to their buildings and called for a temporary house in Battery Park City. Complaints diminished after the two companies got new trucks and were responding to calls again. On Sept. 11, smoke and debris funneled into the tiny firehouse next to the south tower. Scores of people filled its bay for shelter and treatment, while five of its members died in the wreckage across the street. Capt. Gene Kelty of Engine 10 said the firehouse is structurally sound but does need new plumbing, electrical and ventilation systems. Interior ceilings, walls and floors also need to be repaired or replaced. "FEMA was pretty much calling the shots and the only way we could get the money was to be rebuilding in the location where we were," Capt. Kelty said. Kelty called the federal funding a "big morale boost." "We have the money, commitments have been met and are going forward," he said. "Ten House will survive. We'll be like the phoenix coming out of the ashes."