Two years after an early morning fire at the Kenwick high-rise apartment building in downtown Sarnia sent 16 people to hospital, two with critical injuries, the last of the damaged units are ready for occupancy.
Steeves and Rozema CEO John Scotland says the eight units on the fourth floor and three on the third sustained primarily smoke damage, but big changes in building code regulations and the sheer size of the building saw a delay in restoration.
"The building has 243 apartments and 50,000 sq ft of commercial space built in the mid-80s," says Scotland. "Although it was a well-built building, building codes and fire codes have changed several times since then. Making sure that part of the building was brought up to the current code requirements was challenging."
Repairs and restoration cost about $2-million to complete.
Scotland says the 11 units will be opened up for rent to the general public.
The fire November 22, 2015 sent residents from the 243 units scurrying into the street.
The blaze was traced to an electrical failure in a heating cable in the third floor hallway.
