Exclusive | Damage report is in on fire-ravaged 115-year-old Kennewick building
Officials say the Cascade building may have a second chance at life after a devastating fire two weeks ago.
Engineers have a plan to brace the exterior brick wall of the historic downtown Kennewick building, providing a path for it to eventually be restored.
City and fire officials were unsure if the building was too badly damaged to salvage after the fire, but Kennewick building official Tony Osteja told the Tri-City Herald on Wednesday that he has been provided with a design for bracing the top wall of the building.
The 115-year-old building, at the corner of North Cascade Street and West Kennewick Avenue caught fire before dawn on Feb. 4.
It took crews from several agencies to put out the fire and keep it from spreading to other nearby businesses. Fire officials were concerned that an exterior second-story wall could collapse.
That also means a restaurant next door can safely access their building again.
Engineers have determined that Foodies Brick and Mortar Restaurant is outside of the area of concern for damage is the second-story wall was to fall.
But it’s unclear what the restaurant will do next.
In a social media post after the fire, the owner said staff had been moved to their Richland location and that the interior had significant smoke and water damage.
Foodies also has a new food truck, “Foodies on the Go.”
But Osteja said the other next door tenant, Desert Gem and Appraisal, still cannot return to their storefront.
“Desert Gem is being held out until the bracing is done because they are in the fall zone and that wall is extremely heavy,” Osteja said.
Once the brick wall is braced, Desert Gem should have access to its shop.
Osteja said the work to brace the wall will require some prefabricated materials, which could take some time to build.
Once the bracing work is done, the city will move the temporary fencing back to the sidewalk and reopen the parking spots currently blocked off.
Building owner Gary Earp was not immediately available Wednesday about the damage report.
He previously told the Herald that he hopes to restore the building. He said the roof and entire second floor are destroyed, and the basement and first floor have extensive damage.
Long history
“I’m pretty passionate about the downtown historical value of the whole area and the building, and always have been,” he told the Herald at the time.
It would not be the first time Earp has restored the building beyond what others thought was feasible.
In 2007, he won the Downtowner Award for his first restoration of the building.
Ironically, just a few years before Washington State University History Professor Robert Bauman performed an inventory of downtown Kennewick for the city, and lamented that the building was so extensively renovated that it was unrecognizable, and likely unable to be completely restored.
According to Bauman it was called the King Building when new in 1907, but a new owner gutted it in the 1930s, converting the mercantile into a two-story professional/medical building.
More changes came after World War II, and it was eventually turned almost entirely into apartments.
Photos from the era, provided by the East Benton County Historical Society, show the building as the home of King Grocery Company, as the city first began paving roads.
The Cascade Building was last sold in 1970 for $170,000, according to data from the Benton County Assessor’s Office.
Building tenants
The building was home to six apartments with 10 tenants, as well as a handful of small businesses.
The Historic Downtown Kennewick Partnership has set up a fund for victims of the fire at 3 Rivers Community Foundation, which will go toward relief and recovery for the tenants and businesses that called the building home.
Brian Beardsley, an apartment tenant, was injured in the blaze, but his loved ones told the Herald it was not as bad as his friends first thought.
His ex-wife Danae Smith said he was doing well after suffering some minor burns and smoke inhalation. He was flown to a Seattle hospital to be treated.
Smith said he is recovering, and already back at work. They are thankful for the support the community has shown, and donations will help him replace clothes and items as he works to get back on his feet.
All of the businesses that were in the Cascade building are currently displaced. The Lady Bug Shoppe appears to be a total loss. Its owner will be hosting a final sale this weekend, according to social media.
The “Final Sale at the Lady Bug Shoppe” is set for 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb 18, and Saturday, Feb. 19, at 304 W. Kennewick Ave. in front of the fenced off area. Items for sale will include metal home decor, purses, wallets and miscellaneous items
Store fixtures also be available.
