‘Suspicious’ hearth destroys 116-year-old Riverside packing home

A historic, century-old Riverside packing home was destroyed Friday, July 12, by what an investigator mentioned was a “suspicious” hearth.

The Strachan Fruit Co. constructing at 3496 Commerce St. caught hearth round 11:15 p.m. Friday. It housed Gilmore’s Truck Parts & Accessories.

The constructing, erected in 1908, was a complete loss, mentioned Capt. Ray Mendoza, the Riverside Fire Department’s lead arson investigator.

“It does look like suspicious,” Mendoza mentioned Tuesday.

The hearth drew 24 firefighters, 4 engines and two ladder vehicles. Mendoza mentioned investigators try to find out the place the fireplace began and the way, and after that can concentrate on the why and who.

This was at the very least the second packing home in a metropolis to burn up to now three years. In April 2021, the 98-year-old Riverside Navel Growers/McDermont/Sunkist Packing House, at 3141 ninth St. close to University Avenue and Vine Street, went up in flames. The reason for the fireplace was thought-about suspicious as a result of the constructing was not in use on the time.

Riverside was based in 1870 and have become the birthplace of the state’s citrus business.

Growers from Arlington and Victoria avenues in Arlington Heights to the south, and from Highgrove and Grand Terrace to the north, introduced wagon a great deal of oranges, limes, lemons, grapefruit and kumquats to the packing homes till at the very least World War II, Kevin Hallaran, a former archivist at what’s now known as the Museum of Riverside, mentioned in a 2016 interview.

Riverside metropolis leaders and enterprise house owners have been for years discussing redeveloping the packing home district.

But no growth was proposed for the Strachan property, in accordance with metropolis spokesman Phil Pitchford. There is a proposal for an adjoining property, the Iron Lofts, Pitchford mentioned.