The third floor received the most damage from the fire; the second and third-floor sustained smoke and water damage. Avenue X, located right under where the fire started, was heavily damaged by water.Built in 1911 on North Mill Street, over the decades the Glen Tavern Inn hosted a wide range of celebrities and several somewhat more notorious characters. The Inn is also the scene of numerous ghost sightings over the years, and is featured in books on the paranormal.By the mid-1990s, the Inn had fallen on hard times, but it was purchased in 2004 by Tom and Rosanna Jennett, who launched an ambitious two-year renovation of the building.Asst. Chief Fildes said that certain areas of the Inn are off limits. “We’re limiting access to certain areas... we’re just afraid the roof might be compromised” in the vicinity of one of the Inn’s brick chimneys. “We want to make sure that the chimney doesn’t come down; we’re worried about partial collapse” until a structural engineer can check the building.
Cause of Glen Tavern Inn fire determined to be accidental
April 26, 2006
Santa Paula News
The cause of the fire that destroyed a southern portion of the historic Glen Tavern Inn’s attic and several rooms has been determined to be accidental, according to a Santa Paula Fire Department spokesman.
By Peggy KellySanta Paula TimesThe cause of the fire that destroyed a southern portion of the historic Glen Tavern Inn’s attic and several rooms has been determined to be accidental, according to a Santa Paula Fire Department spokesman. “The cause is accidental,” but what exactly caused Wednesday’s fire is “undetermined,” said Asst. Fire Chief Kevin Fildes. “We know the fire started in rag bin that was next to the structure, but the actual cause is undetermined at this time.”Arson has been ruled out as the cause of the blaze that caused an estimated $800,000 damage to the 41-room landmark Inn’s structure and its contents.The quick-moving fire broke out April 19 at about 1 p.m., when an employee of Avenue X - the popular restaurant that had opened at the end of February - noticed smoke coming from outside the wood shingle building. A fire was discovered outside the rear southern portion of the Craftsman-Tudor style Inn, and although another Avenue X employee and a guest used garden hoses in an attempt to stop the flames, the blaze climbed up to the eaves of the three-story building and into the attic.Patrons dining at Avenue X as well as Inn guests were evacuated without incident. About 60 firefighters and dozens of support personnel from throughout Ventura County were called to the scene, and the fire was extinguished at about 2:30 p.m.
