The eight burned-out townhouses at Evergreen Terrace are being demolished and owner B.C. Housing has no plans to rebuild the units in the nearly 50-year-old subsidized-housing development.
“Due to the age of the Evergreen Terrace development, the decision was made to not replace the units at this time,” B.C. Housing said in a statement Thursday.
It’s unclear when the future of the overall site will be decided.
“As we move forward, we will be looking at the entire Evergreen Terrace site to determine how we can best meet the needs of our current and future tenants,” the agency said.
In the meantime, grass, trees, shrubs and fencing will be installed where the eight units once stood, ensuring privacy and noise reduction, B.C. Housing’s statement said.
The eight units were seriously damaged when fire ripped through the 1970s-era wood building at the corner of Blanshard Street and Hillside Avenue on Nov. 18, 2016. More than 180 units were built in what was originally called Blanshard Court.
One woman jumped from the second floor into her boyfriend’s arms after she became trapped in her smoke-and fire-filled unit.
The blaze and explosions that went with it displaced 35 people and caused more than $1 million in damage. Four three-bedroom units, three four-bedroom units and one six-bedroom unit were destroyed. Tenants of the eight units have been relocated, B.C. Housing said.
Timbers were installed after the fire to prop up the damaged building. Demolition work began on Monday and is expected to be completed in September, B.C. Housing said.
The cost of the work is not yet known, it said.
As for what caused the fire, the investigation was inconclusive, B.C. Housing said.
“The fire compromised the structure of the building and created safety issues that prevented members of the fire department from entering the building.”
Orange fencing about 1.5 metres tall surrounds the construction area and a sign warning of asbestos is posted along the fence. Anyone inside must wear a respirator and protective clothing. Sprinklers are sending mists of water over the site.
Meanwhile, permits for $1.3 million in repairs due to fire damage have been taken out at city hall for 760 Queens Ave., with 87 rental units and an office, according to city hall records.
The three-storey wood-frame building was severely damaged by a suspicious fire in March 2016. About 60 of its units were occupied.
