Fire delays opening of veterans home 4 to 6 months

MARSHFIELD – A speedy response by Marshfield firefighters saved most of a historical structure on Ocean Street that went up in flames near the end of its conversion into eight units of veterans housing.

“If it wasn’t for the very quick response from the Marshfield Fire Department, we would have totally lost the building,” said Robert Corley, CEO of Neighbor Works Housing Solutions, the organization overseeing the development. “The fire department and the firefighters saved it.”

More: Fire burns soon-to-open veteran housing project in Marshfield

Renovations to the 163-old structure were nearly complete and tenants have been selected, but damage from the fire has delayed the opening four to six months.

“We’re still moving forward, we’re doing everything we can,” Selectmen Chair Michael Bradley said. “It’s just going to take more time.”

Officials said the cause of the fire was likely electrical. The most significant damage was caused by smoke and heat rather than flames, in part due to the building’s new insulation, which trapped the heat, they said.

“The smoke and heat damage throughout the building is extensive,” Corley said. “The actual flame damage is isolated to the rear, newer-construction area.”

Corley said the heat got so intense that fire warning lights in a room at the front of the building, the opposite side from the flames, melted off the walls.

After assessors and insurance companies finish their work, wallboards, insulation and finishes will be replaced.

More: Groundbreaking Tuesday for Marshfield veterans housing

The structure was built in 1857 as the South Grammar School. It was converted into a town library in the early 1900s. After 43 years as a library, the town sold the building to the Hancock Paint Co., which operated a store there until 2005.

At the October 2017 special town meeting, voters authorized the selectmen to sell or lease the property, which had been acquired by the town in 2008. Voters at the 2018 town meeting approved the project.

“We are pivoting and mobilizing to get back to work as soon as possible,” Corley said. ”We will open this building. There will be veterans living there."

Follow James Kukstis on Twitter at @MarinerJamesK.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Fire delays opening of veterans home 4 to 6 months

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