ABODE [Transformations] From the Ashes Towards the Future A devastating fire destroyed the historic Alvarado building in old downtown Monterey. the event is serving as a call to action for city officials, property owners, and merchants to bring something good out of the ashes.

Rick Johnson

Starting city renovation projects with a calamitous fire is an ancient Monterey tradition going all the way back to 1818 when the French pirate, Captain Hipólyte Bouchard, burned presidio houses in a fit of pique after not finding caches of Spanish treasure that an unfounded rumor had spoken of. Our latest fiery event began February 7 when an unprotected light bulb apparently ignited nearby papers causing a conflagration that filled the night with sound and fury.

As I stood in the darkness watching flames devour a place that was dear to my heart and consuming business establishments that I loved and frequented, the thought kept whirring through my mind, "This must not happen! Not on my watch!" But it did happen, of course. Before the ashes cooled, the historic Alvarado building, which was built in 1916, had been completely destroyed taking with it 22 businesses.

A much greater disaster was averted because local firefighters were on the scene almost immediately and waged a heroic battle against the blaze. A total of 31 fire units, from as far away as Soledad in the south to Aptos in the north, eventually worked together to keep the fire contained to the one location. Otherwise, we might have lost blocks.

The fierce determination of the dedicated firefighters served to set the tone for all of us as we face the task of rebuilding. City officials, property owners, and merchants are throwing their energies into the process of bringing something good from the ashes of that disaster.

The OMBA (Old Monterey Business Association) is providing assistance to business owners and helping displaced employees find work. Following the fire we called the downtown banks together to discuss what resources could be made available to support the merchants who had been affected, and the banks stepped forward with a number of opportunities including such things as reducing rates, extending loans, and offering money to support a downtown advertising campaign. Out of that meeting came OMBA's theme. "We welcome you to old Monterey with open arms and open businesses."

Some people got the wrong idea believing that the entire downtown burned when, in fact, 455 downtown businesses never shut their doors. Six days after the fire the Farmers Market that meets every Tuesday on Alvarado Street carried on without missing a beat.

Our energies are being directed to deconstructing the burned building piece-by-piece and reopening the street as quickly and safely as possible. For a time we covered the opposite sidewalk against the possibility of damaged façade from the Alvarado building falling onto the other side of the street. That danger has passed permitting pedestrians to once again savor our Peninsula's sunshine and fog.

The property owners will work in partnership with city officials to submit a design for architectural review and city approvals.

The goal will be to create a mixed-use building that will serve to reflect the historic aspect of the city while, at the same time, providing significant retail and office space, perhaps including housing.

Fortunately, the Saucito Land Company people are long-time downtown property owners who have respected and enhanced the historical aspects of the city in previous development projects.

We are expending every effort to get the burned area back up and running. Three years from now a new building will have risen on the site and the fire will be a fading memory.

Opportunity is often born from the ashes of crises. We wouldn't have chosen for the opportunity to come in this way, but the result will be an even more beautiful downtown Monterey.

For more information see www.oldmonterey.org or call Rick at 831-655-8070, 321 Alvarado Street, Ste. G, Monterey, CA 93940