Several small businesses displaced by suspicious East Hastings fire
Before it went up in flames Saturday, a commissary kitchen on East Hastings Street was home to several small businesses that generated livelihoods for dozens of families.
“It’s grown over the years. It had housed probably about 30 small businesses, several food trucks,” said Yasmin McKenzie, who managed the space. “A lot of businesses got their start there. It was sort of an incubator.”
In addition to leasing kitchen space to other businesses such as food trucks and other culinary ventures, McKenzie also used it to prep ingredients for her own food trucks, including Mom’s Grilled Cheese.
Since the fire, other commissary kitchens have stepped up to offer her time and space so she can keep her business going.
In the meantime, surveying the damage after the fire was devastating.
“I started this business at 24, so I’ve spent over a decade in the Downtown Eastside working,” she said. “For this to happen after all of these years, it’s hard to believe.”
McKenzie says the fire began on the sidewalk outside at the front of the building – and because of that, the insurance policy she has does not cover losses that she estimates to be about $60,000.
“Our insurance covered a fire from inside because we just assumed if we had a fire it would start from one of our cooking appliances, not from a person outside,” said McKenzie.
Vancouver police confirm the fire is considered suspicious and an investigation is underway but no arrests have been made.
Top Rope Birria Tacos is one of several other food trucks that relied on the commissary kitchen for food prep before hitting the streets.
Owner Kevin McKenzie says some of the sauces and braises necessary for his tacos take hours, even days, to prepare and without access to the kitchen space the truck will be parked for the foreseeable future.
“Right now I think the thing for us to do is step back and look at what we’ve lost and assess where the business is,” he said. “But as of right now, we are closed.”
A pair of fundraisers have already been established to help the impacted businesses get back on their feet.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.