New Westminster’s resiliency has shone through in the past – and shows every indication of doing that again.
The 600 block of Columbia Street, home to some of the city’s most revered heritage buildings, suffered a fire on Oct. 10 that destroyed two buildings and closed dozens of business – at least temporarily.
“It’s not about the buildings, it’s about the people,” said local historian Jim Wolf. “It’s about how people react in the face of this.”
Wolf said the resilience of New Westminster residents has shone through in the past, and he’s hopeful it will shine through again.
“It speaks to the human spirit. People recognize you can’t go back and you have to go forward,” he said. “New Westminster has a long history of that.”
Before the flames had been extinguished on Columbia Street on Oct. 10, the City of New Westminster was already reaching out to the 30-plus businesses located in buildings that were either destroyed or damaged in the fire.
“These things do happen. Now it’s our job as a city to help,” said Lisa Spitale, the city’s chief administrative officer. “We are here to help. That’s how we pull together. Everybody is here to help those property owners and those businesses – and help each other.”
According to Spitale, the city’s top priority will be to help in the aftermath of the fire.
“It has to be,” she told The Record. “There are a lot of people who have lost a lot. We recognize that we have a significant role in getting them assistance.”
Blair Fryer, the city’s manager of communications and economic development, said 23 businesses were directly impacted as they were in the two buildings destroyed by the fire. Issues such as soot and smoke damage impacted an additional 25 businesses in the block, and a further 75 had their power shut off while firefighters extinguished the blaze.
While police and fire departments investigate the cause of the fire, staff from other departments are working with business organizations and reaching out to businesses impacted by the fire.
“The city has a significant role in coordinating all of that,” Spitale added. “There are permits to deal with. There is all of that. We can take the lead on that end.”
City officials met with the Downtown New Westminster Business Improvement Association on Oct. 11. The New Westminster Chamber of Commerce and River Market were among the groups offering to help.
“We are here to help. Let’s join forces, let’s coordinate efforts and let’s go from there and do what we all need to do,” Spitale said. “That’s really is what the next focus is about. That starts now.”
Property owners in other parts of the city quickly offered to help with relocation efforts.
“There has been a flood of assistance by all sections of the city, which is really heartening,” Fryer said.
According to Fryer, the Downtown New Westminster Business Improvement Association will be coordinating efforts to assist businesses.
Five Stones Church, located in the building at 612 Columbia Street, is inviting community members to attend a service on Sunday, Oct. 13 at 10:30 a.m. in River Market.
“River Market has been so nice and is hosting the service,” said Keziah Cho, creative director at the church. “We are hoping to make it a community event where people can rally together.”
