FORKS — The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has concluded that the Oct. 29 fire that destroyed the city-owned Rainforest Art Center at 35 N. Forks Ave. in the heart of downtown was not criminal in nature and was caused by a faulty electrical conduit — but that more investigation is warranted.
The fire also destroyed the Tienda Latina Latin American foods grocery store at 21 N. Forks Ave., housed inside the art center building, and the adjacent former Dazzled by Twilight store, formerly Olympic Pharmacy and Fern Gallery, which was vacant.
The art center building, also home to the Rainforest Players theater group, was the former International Order of Odd Fellows Hall.
The landmark structure was built in 1925 with old-growth fir and without a fire sprinkler system. It was donated to the city in 1997.
There were no injuries or deaths, but the community lost a center of theater and art activity that residents grieved over to the extent that a wake-like remembrance meeting was held in February.
City Attorney Rod Fleck said Thursday the agency became involved after, according to the report, a nearby resident at 71 E. Division St. “heard [someone] running outside her residence, but she believed that it may have been the fire department,” at about 3:42 a.m. Oct. 29, about the same time a 9-1-1 call was made reporting the blaze.
“A consistently reasonable conclusion on known facts is that the prominent conduit arc, found near the northeast corner of the structure . . . is a credible source of ignition,” Seattle ATF Agent Dane Whetsel said in his Cause and Origin Report, which city officials received this week.
“As the current weight of evidence is suggestive of an accidentally caused fire, there is no salient criminal conduct implicated on current known facts [and] the purview of what follows properly falls within the civil realm.”
Whetsel also recommended that the city hire an electrical engineer specializing in fire investigation forensics to further investigate the fire.
“The purpose of such a technical evaluation would be to rule out the possibility that the obvious arc melting on the conduit is consistent with external heat/fire impingement,” he said.
Fleck said the city is focusing more on building a new performing arts center at the site — a process in its infancy — than on hiring an electrical engineer.
“Because it wasn’t criminal, we turned it over to our insurance companies to pursue the investigation as they see fit,” Fleck said.
The city received $2.65 million in insurance for the loss of the building through an Association of Washington Cities’ Risk Management Service Agency pool that will be paid to the city as rebuilding costs are incurred.
“They might be able to request other insurance companies, if there is potential liability, to pay portions to reimburse them,” Fleck said.
“We’ve been moving forward.”
Fleck said about 150 people Saturday viewed nine proposed renditions for the new center that were depicted on design boards at City Hall, and another 100 saw them at a weekend baseball tournament.
“A lot of folks said that’s cool, we can do something there,” Fleck said.
“I think folks are on the upbeat to see what comes about.”
The plans continue to be on display at City Hall, 500 E. Division St.
An architect will be hired by mid-July to present two or three design concepts to the City Council by early October, Fleck said.
A construction contract should be signed by the first part of February and a new building built by late 2014 or early 2015, Fleck said.
It will be a similar square shape and height as the former IOOF Hall and probably be built of wood but unlike the old structure will have a fire-sprinkler system and a modern, working elevator.
City Councilwoman Juanita Weissenfels said Thursday the City Council did not take action to acquire the adjacent Dazzled by Twilight property, which she said had an asking price of $76,000, about double its assessed value.
The parcel could have been used for parking for the performing arts center, but the old center had only on-street parking, too, she said.
“There’s sort of a feeling by the council that we shouldn’t be taking Main Street tax base away from the situation,” she said.
“Yeah, if it’s raining sideways like it does frequently nine months of the year, someone will have to drop Mom off and walk, but it’s never going to be that far.”
Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5060, or at paul.gottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
