Fire forced about 30 people to evacuate the Simcoe Hotel in downtown Barrie on Canada Day morning.
City firefighters were called to 31 Bayfield St., at the Five Points, at 7:18 a.m. Monday.
Deputy Barrie Fire Chief Carrie Clark said the fire was in the space between 31 Bayfield and 18 Clapperton St.
McFinn’s Traditional Irish Pub is on the building’s main floor, the Simcoe Hotel above.
“The extent of the damage is into the kitchen and washroom extension of McFinn’s pub. There were no injuries, everyone evacuated the hotel and we’re just working on getting the displaced tenants accommodation,” Clark said just before 10 a.m., Monday.
Barrie Fire and Emergency Service said there is no cause at this point or a dollar damage estimate.
The fire investigation also involves Barrie police.
“We are assisting Barrie fire with an ongoing investigation that is in the early stages,” said Peter Leon, communications co-ordinator for the Barrie Police Service.
Just more than a year ago, in mid-June, a second-floor fire at the Simcoe Hotel was quickly extinguished by Barrie firefighters before it had the chance to spread to any of the upstairs apartments or the licensed establishment below.
The iconic Simcoe Hotel has been a mainstay since the 1870s. The original hotel on the site was built in 1853.
However, fire on a February night in 1876 destroyed it and the stable.
The current structure, with its distinct flat-iron design, was built on the old foundation and opened in 1877.
