DeBaliviere area businessmen are hopeful that a new building will be constructed in place of a neighborhood landmark at 433 DeBaliviere destroyed by fire early Sunday morning, March 1.
The general alarm fire spread from two fires apparently set in the basement and quickly covered the entire building.
Many businesses and community organizations, including the Skinker-DeBaliviere Community Council, were located in the building.
Byron Tompras, owner of Garavelli’s Restaurant and head of the DeBaliviere Area Association, the street’s businessman’s organization, said that he “would like to see a new structure go up on the premises.”
Other persons indicated that at least part of the land would probably be set aside for parking, to serve the street’s businesses, in particular the large number of students attending the Technical Education Corporation.
Joseph Meyer, executive secretary of the DeBaliviere Area Association, said that he hoped that an office building housing 8 to 10 businesses would be constructed on the site.
Meyer said that many of the twenty-two businesses and associations located in the building would stay on the street. Three had moved in the day before the fire broke out.
“This is an unfortunate incident, which was not in any way involved with racial tensions,” Meyer said, “but was probably caused for other reasons.”
The building’s owner, Francis Doll, stated that the fire was “probably an accident.” Doll stated that as soon as a final insurance adjustment is made, the building will probably be demolished.
Doll said that hopes for putting a new building on the site would probably hinge on finding a satisfactory long-range tenant.
James L’Ecuyer, executive secretary of the Skinker-DeBaliviere Community Council, stated that virtually all of the files of the Council were saved from the fire.
New furniture for the new office across the street was donated by Washington University and Grace Methodist Church.
