A fire Wednesday that destroyed 16 townhouses in Stony Plain “could be suspicious,” town officials said Friday.
“The preliminary investigation has indicated the cause of the Sommerville Springs fire could be suspicious,” the town said in a news release.
RCMP in Stony Plain have brought in a private fire investigator, the release said.
Stony Plain’s fire department will support the RCMP in the ongoing investigation, it added.
The fire was reported at 11:30 p.m. Wednesday.
About 28 firefighters from Stony Plain, Spruce Grove and Parkland County worked on the fire for two hours, bringing it under control around 1:30 a.m. Thursday.
In addition to the 16 townhouses destroyed, 14 others were heavily damaged.
Town manager Tom Goulden said in a news release Thursday the town has been frustrated with the development and the developers.
“This situation just adds to the list of grievances we have,” Goulden said.
“Our efforts to mitigate risk and work through the court system to resolve the problems with this area are still ongoing.”
Neighbours said they haven’t seen any substantial work at the site for at least two years, when the town erected a fence around the construction zone.
“I think they should just rip it all down. They’ve had so much trouble there, the buildings have been empty for so long.
“There’s no work on them and it’s been a few years now,” said Melanie Wilson, who lives near the site. “It’s just an eyesore.”