Los Banos’ Santa Fe market open again after January fire
When an electrical fire damaged Santa Fe Mercado y Carniceria on Jan. 8, the owners hoped to be closed for only a few months.
It took almost a year to bring the operation back on line, with the store reopening Dec. 3. Now that it’s back, store manager Enrique Mendoza said the response has been encouraging.
“I think if anything, I’m very grateful to our loyal customers that came back and gave such a great response from the city of Los Banos,” Mendoza said. “We feel like we’re a part of the community, and we’re glad to be back.”
A number of factors conspired to keep the doors closed for so long – newer building codes, inspections and the like.
“Drawings needed to be done. The building needed to be updated to the codes that are now in effect. The bathroom was upgraded to be (compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act), a beam needed to be replaced for the ceiling,” store manager Enrique Mendoza said. “All this takes time with the city improvements and inspections, and also the insurance is working out who’s responsible for what.”
Mendoza said the brunt of the cost – likely in excess of $1 million – was shouldered by the property owner.
City manager Steve Carrigan said the city staff made it a priority to help get the store back in operation.
“I’m thrilled. They have great ownership, they take care of their employees and provide a great service to the midtown area,” Carrigan said. “They were missed. The fire was real tough on them and the people in the area.”
The fire, believed to have been caused by an electrical short in a storage room, brought 20 firefighters and four engines to the building on a Wednesday night. Then-Chief Chet Guintini said holes needed to be cut in the roof to access the flames.
At the time, the small chain had five stores – San Jose, Newark, Watsonville, Salinas and Los Banos. Since then, a sixth has opened in Castroville.
Mendoza said the store’s roughly 40 employees were kept on payroll for about six weeks as the company tried to figure out how long it would take to reopen.
When it became apparent it would not be a quick process, all but a small core of managers working to reopen the store were laid off, with many going on unemployment or finding other jobs. He also said a significant percentage of them returned when the store reopened.
Just as importantly, customers returned – including Carrigan, who can be seen occasionally having lunch in the store’s carniceria two blocks away from City Hall.
“I believe we have a very loyal clientele,” Mendoza said, “that was anxious for us to come back into town and bring back that unique flavor that we have, as far as the food that we prepare in our carniceria, the salsas and the meats that we have.”
This story was originally published December 25, 2014 at 5:00 PM with the headline "Los Banos’ Santa Fe market open again after January fire."