Fires in Construction: No Big Deal
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — Curbed posts about a fire at Ralphs this morning. A welding job set a small blaze, put out before fire trucks arrived.
It turns out small fires during construction are pretty much par for the course. Our office is above the Roosevelt, a structure that's had two fires during its conversion. The first last February and the second in October, when a diesel generator produced flames. Neither case delayed the conversion process in the least.
Exactly one year before that first Roosevelt fire the Barry Shy structure at 548 S. Spring caught fire during renovation.
In less relevant news, I'm sitting at Logan right now waiting to fly back to LA. Expect regular posting to pick back up tomorrow.
The roof of the Staples Center was the scene of a fire during its construction but the blaze did little to slow the completion of that project.
As for the Ralph's, I'm a little more concerned about the possibility of supermaket employees facing another lockout/strike. The last work stoppage also spelled at least a yearlong delay in the construction of the Market Lofts. The residential units could open without the promised accompanying supermarket if Ralph's corporate parent, Kroger Corp., suspends the finishing work pending the end of a prolonged strike. Let's all hope local grocery workers and store ownership come to a fair settlement so this scenario does not come to pass.