While firefighters continued to deal with the fire that destroyed Metal and Wood Products on Wednesday morning, Peter Spotzl met with his staff on the street. He hopes to have the business up and running as soon as possible. Photograph By DAN TOULGOET
Peter Spotzl has many challenges ahead of him as he rebuilds his business, which was destroyed by fire on Wednesday morning.
But as word spread that he’d lost the building that houses Metal and Wood Products near Olympic Village, he learned he wouldn’t be alone in forging a path forward.
“There’s been such an outpouring of support,” he said Thursday morning. “It’s been amazing, absolutely overwhelming.”
Five or six fabrication shops have offered to provide space for his custom metal-work business, which has been in existence since 1958. Several architectural firms have also offered him office space.
As much as he says he sounds surprised by the outpouring of support, deep down he knew this would be the reaction among companies he works with. There is a sense of community in Vancouver’s construction industry, he said.
“I would do the same thing.”
Now he’s busily strategizing on how to make that happen as soon as possible. “We’re getting the move on. We have a lot of people counting on us. We’re driving the ship on some pretty big projects.
“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right?”
Spotzl employs 18 people. The company specializes in customized staircases, gates and railings for residential and commercial construction projects.
Â鶹´«Ă˝Ół»Fire and Rescue Services determined that the building was structurally unsound as a result of the fire, says assistant chief Peter Bridge. The building was torn down and is "a pile of rubble" that will be removed. Firefighters were on hand Thursday to put out any spot fires.
Bridge said the cause of the fire has not yet been determined. It started behind the building in a shed which contained highly flammable materials.
