Fire breaks out in former Gault Middle School building in Tacoma
A fire broke out Monday afternoon in the former building of Gault Middle School, according to Tacoma Fire Department. Parts of the school campus have been undergoing demolition while the school district works to redevelop the property.
No one was injured in the fire, which started on the first floor of the vacant building. What caused the fire is being investigated.
Firefighters were dispatched about 12:20 p.m. to 1115 E. Division Lane. Fire department spokesperson Joe Meinecke said crews found smoke coming from the first floor. Crews entered the building and located a first-floor room where the blaze started.
The fire was contained to that room, and crews had the flames under control about 20 minutes after they were dispatched, Meinecke said. The contents of the room were burned, but no structural damage was reported.
“I don’t think it will impact the development proposals,” Meinecke said. “It didn’t burn through the floor or into the second floor.”
The school building, vacant since 2009, has been a source of neighborhood complaints for more than a decade while Tacoma Public Schools worked out its future. Most complaints reported accumulating garbage, vandalism and tensions between neighbors and unhoused people staying on the grounds.
The 7.3-acre property includes six buildings, a swimming pool and an open field. Demolition started on the property in April, beginning with crews hired by the school district bringing down the science building. The pool and portable classrooms were planned to be removed in June.
The school district is now seeking feedback on three possible plans to hire developers to redevelop the property. TPS said proposals were required to include reusing the main school building, which was built in 1926.
