Massive fire destroys beloved small businesses in ‘heart of Old Town Newhall’

A massive fire ripped through the heart of Old Town Newhall in Santa Clarita before dawn Monday, reducing a small stretch of mostly women-owned shops and a beloved restaurant to smoldering ruins, according to locals and fire officials.

Pauline McGee, spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Fire Department, said the three-alarm fire broke out inside an auto-body shop and spread to an adjoining building that housed multiple businesses.

McGee did not know what types of businesses were in the building but said that at least seven were destroyed by the fire and that they were all along Main Street between 6th and Market streets in Santa Clarita.

According to Carrie Lujan, communications manager for Santa Clarita, the area is the town’s premier arts and entertainment district and is known as the “heart of Old Town Newhall.” She said among the businesses destroyed was the Newhall Refinery, a beloved longtime gastropub.

“Newhall Refinery has always been more than a restaurant to us,” the owners wrote on Facebook. “It is a gathering place filled with celebrations, friendships, live music, family dinners, first dates, birthdays, and countless memories.”

The restaurant’s owners said they plan to rebuild.

In addition to the body shop and restaurant, the fire destroyed the Main, an entertainment venue, and Care Tucker Style House, a women’s boutique store next to the restaurant.

The boutique owner confirmed the loss on Instagram.

“This is beyond devastating not because we lost everything in our store, but because we felt like this was our home, our little slice of [Santa Clarita Valley) where we had so many connections, laughs and good times,” the owner wrote. “And it’s all gone.”

Fire officials said the blaze was reported in the 24000 block of North Main Street in Santa Clarita just before 3 a.m. Monday, with flames and smoke visible in the structure. Firefighters were in “defensive mode” and were not entering the buildings due to the risk of it collapsing.

Crews broke down the structure to extinguish the fire in the attic and the walls, and the blaze was knocked down at 8:57 a.m., according to the Fire Department. McGee said more than 100 firefighters helped put out the blaze.

Firefighters were salvaging what they could from the structure, and the cause of the blaze was under investigation, according to the Fire Department. No injuries were reported.

Video from KTLA showed streams of water being blasted onto the roof from ladder trucks.

Around 5:45 a.m., part of the front of the structure collapsed, sending firefighters scrambling to get out of the way, video from the scene showed.

Firefighters took a defensive posture, battling the blaze from outside the building.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Several roads around the businesses were shut down. The blaze didn’t affect Metrolink service.

Laura Scott works across the street from the Newhall Refinery at Remax Gateway and has known the owners for at least five years.

“The majority of Main Street is women-owned businesses including Care Tucker Style House and Newhall Refinery,” she said.

“Waking up this morning to find out that it was engulfed in flames was absolutely heartbreaking and devastating. I know how hard these business owners work to keep these doors open, and these were their dreams to own this store or restaurant.”

Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger expressed sympathy in a statement to those affected by the fire.

“My heart goes out to the business owners in Old Town Newhall who woke up this morning to devastating losses,” she said. “These are small businesses that are part of the fabric of this community, and for some owners, years of hard work and livelihoods were destroyed in a matter of hours. Our focus now is on supporting these business owners as they begin the difficult process of recovering and rebuilding.”

“People go into the Main, they look at the art that’s there, they go to the Refinery for food, they’re shopping at Care Tucker, so it really is the central place of Main Street and of Old Town Newhall,” said Lujan, the city communications manager. “It’s just devastating to see what happened today.”

The fire damaged the most historic neighborhood in the city, right across from William S. Hart Park near the Walk of Western Stars.

“These are places that are unique to Santa Clarita and ... add to what makes our community to special,” Lujan said. “They’re not chain restaurants or stores, they’re places that people chose to build here and to lay down roots of their businesses, so it’s always sad when we lose those places. These are our friends, our families and our neighbors who worked at these places.”

Local businesses also reacted to the fire damage.

“Aside from having some of the best and innovative food in our valley, we partnered with Newhall Refinery on several farm-to-table dinners,” Old Town Newhall Farmers Market wrote on Facebook. “So for us, this especially hurts. Remember to get out and support local. Every single time.”

Good Times LA Photo Booth wrote on Facebook that it was “heartbreaking to see a place we’ve visited and loved, along with so many other local businesses, impacted in this way.”

“We are praying for every business owner, every employee, every family, and everyone whose lives have been affected. We pray for strength, healing, restoration, and hope in the days ahead. Newhall is strong. Our community stands together. We love our Main Street.”

Times staff writer Joseph Serna contributed to this report.