If you are experiencing issues running this project, here are the exact steps I used to create and setup this project. It shouldn't be necessary for you to repeat these steps but I document here for reference.
Start the setup by running
%> firebase init
Then make the following selections for each question asked.
? Which Firebase CLI features do you want to set up for this folder? Press Space
to select features, then Enter to confirm your choices.
Select Emulators: Set up local emulators for Firebase features
? Please select an option:
Select Don't set up a default project
? Which Firebase emulators do you want to set up? Press Space to select emulators, then Enter to confirm your choices.
Select Authentication Emulator
? Which port do you want to use for the auth emulator?
Select the default 9099
? Would you like to enable the Emulator UI? (Y/n)
Enter Y
? Which port do you want to use for the Emulator UI (leave empty to use any available port)?
Enter 8088
? Would you like to download the emulators now? (y/N)
Enter Y