A fire investigator ruled the cause as “undetermined” of a fire at a downtown Kent empty commercial building once proposed as a potential homeless shelter.
Firefighters responded at about 4:25 p.m. on March 25 to the fire at the single-story building in the 300 block of Lincoln Avenue South and saw smoke coming from the interior, according to a Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority media release.
Crews found fire in the loft area and smoke throughout. It took about 20 minutes to extinguish the fire. Nobody was hurt in the fire.
The building contained materials brought in by squatters, who occupy the building periodically, according to Kent Police.
“There was a lot of material brought in by the homeless that made it impossible to specifically determine a cause,” said Kent Fire Department spokesman Kyle Ohashi in an email.
A witness saw a person leaving the area near the fire. Police contacted that person and gave information they found to fire investigators.
Kent Homelessness Partnership Effort (KentHOPE) and Seattle’s Union Gospel Mission officials proposed last May during a public comment period at a City Council meeting to use the old Command Labor building as a 24/7 homeless shelter. The facility sits across from the James Street Park and Ride lot.
City officials never took any action on the proposal. KentHOPE continues its efforts to find a homeless shelter.
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