It’s been five years since smoke filled the air and flames scorched a former Victoria hotel on Pandora Avenue.
Thirty-four firefighters from the Victoria Fire Department arrived at the former Century Plaza Hotel shortly after 4:30 a.m. on May 6, 2019, when alarms went off at the neighbouring building.
Laura Carr, who was from the Seattle area, was evacuated from a short term rental in the building adjacent to the one burning. She initially thought it was a false alarm and had a concern over grabbing the room key.
“We did grab our passports we did throw some shoes on, but not everyone did,” she told a Black Press reporter during the fire. “By the time we got out front, we were watching smoke coming out the top level. I’ve heard since it might have been fully engulfed by the time we were evacuating.”
By 11:30 a.m., the fire was under control and contained to the one property.
VFD deemed the fire to be suspicious, however, as of April 2020, the Victoria Police Department said they exhausted all investigative avenues into the fire.
“The building was known to be unoccupied, except for the lone occupant, caretaker, Mr. Michael Draeger. Despite an exhaustive search, Mr. Draeger has never been found, leading investigators to the possibility that he may have perished in the fire. The file will remain classified as an arson. The missing person file associated to Mr. Draeger will remain an open and active investigation,” noted a 2020 news release from VicPD.
Currently, a development variance permit and a rezoning permit for a new development at the property is making it through the approval process.
In early 2024, Ocean Gate Developments proposed to build a 12-storey, 198 room hotel on the property, which would offer mid-priced rooms, ground floor commercial space and a public plaza.
- with files from Kendra Crighton, Matteus O’Connor, Nicole Crescenzi
Read More: UPDATE: Fire ravages empty downtown Victoria building