Developer files lawsuit over Joel Building blaze
Suit against Dorian Studios blames fire on employee acts
The developer of a downtown loft project is seeking damages from the photography studio where last year’s devastating Joel Building fire is believed to have started.
In a suit filed Friday in Spokane County Superior Court, the Lofts at Joel LLC, co-owned by developer and architect Ron Wells, of Wells & Co., sued Dorian Studios for “economic losses” to be determined at trial.
The cause of the July 24, 2008, fire at 165 S. Post St. is still undetermined, Spokane Fire Department Assistant Chief Brian Schaeffer said. Investigators have listed three possible causes of the fire: It started outside somewhere; equipment in the basement malfunctioned; or it was caused by old wiring in the building.
The suit alleges that employees engaged in activities that caused the fire. It doesn’t say what those activities were, because the plaintiff “has not had an opportunity to gain information from defendants as to what was occurring in the defendant’s portion of the structure.”
Investigative reports say the fire erupted in or near the basement of the brick building, burning through three floors and destroying the studio. A restaurant on the first floor, Churchill’s Steakhouse, and the lofts – a 16-unit condo project on the second and third floors – suffered smoke and water damage. The building was divided by four brick walls.
The restaurant and condo areas of the building were declared structurally sound. The photo studio was demolished this year.
In December 2008 the damages were listed between $4.6 million and $5 million.
Wells, who was not available for comment Tuesday, said last month he hoped to announce plans for resumption of the work on the building’s top two floors. The owners of the restaurant said last month they have started rebuilding. Dorian is operating in a different location.
Studio owners Joe and Yvonne Mark have been involved before in litigation with the developers of the Joel lofts, records show. In February 2008, Mark sued the Lofts at Joel over carbon monoxide problems. That suit alleged toxic gas generated by construction equipment was seeping into Dorian’s premises. Joe Mark was unavailable for comment Tuesday.