Fire won't cool redevelopment plans for Sacramento Street

The fire that consumed Rashid Imports on Tuesday won't affect the city's plans to redevelop parts of Sacramento Street as a retail and entertainment district.

Though property owners on the block directly north of the fire area have said they want to reinvigorate the area with restaurants, retail stores and other entertainment-oriented businesses, the businesses surrounding Rashid's are not part of those plans, said Community Development Director Konradt Bartlam.

"I don't see the fire affecting what's going on there," he said.

"The block (affected by the fire) is a little bit different. The businesses for the most part are consistent with the downtown. A lot of them have been there for some time."

Those businesses include Minerva's Furniture, which was temporarily closed Wednesday due to smoke damage and safety concerns, The Pak-India grocery store on the corner, Moore's Shou Shu Chinese martial arts and Reo's Appliance Center on Oak Street. They were all open on Wednesday.

Bartlam said he's not aware of what plans Fayeq Rashid, owner of Rashid Imports, has for the building, scheduled to be demolished as early as today.

If it is rebuilt it would have to meet downtown's design standards, but achieving the building's original look would likely accomplish that.

"If they choose to rebuild, there are some downtown standards they'll have to abide by," Bartlam said. "If they can make the building the way it was, it will be close to meeting them."