UPDATE: 2:30 p.m. – Main Street has reopened to through traffic in Windsor after being closed all morning.
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UPDATE: 12:45 P.M. – Ken Brunner, whose dad Henry Brunner owned the Windsor Mill in the 1960s to late 1970s, said he felt sadness upon hearing the news and then seeing the fire this morning.
“It’s a landmark of Windsor,” Brunner said.
Like many others in Windsor, he said he was excited about the renovation project. Brunner came to see the building before heading to the gym.
“I thought I’d go see it one more time before they completely demolished it,” he said. “It’s a sad day for Windsor.”
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UPDATE, 10:15 A.M. – Residents held each other close as much of Windsor turned out to see the damage wrought by last night’s fire.
Windsor Mayor Kristie Melendez said her head is spinning.
“What horrible news we all woke up to this morning,” she said.
The Windsor Mill, built in 1899, reminded residents of their agricultural history, Melendez said.
“I think the mill testified to all of us where our history and where our roots come from,” she said.
While the news had many residents in tears this morning, Melendez said she is grateful no injuries were reported.
But everyone was excited for the transformation underway at the mill, Melendez said. Fort Collins-based developer Blue Ocean was working toward a fall opening of a brewery, restaurant and office space in the building.
The town had also supported a $3.7 million economic incentive package for the building’s renovation.
“We had so many folks excited about the direction we had taken for that,” she said.
This isn’t the first time the mill has faced a setback: it was hit by a tornado in 2008.
Like then, Melendez said she is hopeful Blue Ocean will work to rebuild after the fire.
“They hope that enough remains there that they can come back in and rebuild,” she said.
An area brewery owner, who did not give his name, said an announcement of the businesses slated to fill the historic building was coming up soon.
“We were pretty excited,” he said.
But now developers and the town will just have to wait and hope, Melendez said.
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UPDATE, 9:15 A.M. – Dozens of Windsor residents stood talking in hushed voices around the Mill as smoke continue to rise out of the site on Sunday morning.
The Mill was severely damaged in a tornado in Windsor in 2008. It was purchased earlier this year by Blue Ocean and renovation was hoped to be completed by the end of the year. The multimillion dollar renovation project was expected to create room for a brew pub, a restaurant, offices and potential other uses when it was completed. The building dates back to 1899 and city officials have seen it as a key element of Windsor’s downtown development.
Kathleen Claus has lived in Windsor her entire life, and like many residents said she was excited to see the renovations occurring.
“Oh yes, (we were excited),” said Claus, whose former husband, Robert Claus, and his brother Harry Claus used to work at the Windsor Mill in the 1970s. “It was like, ‘Finally, something’s getting done with the old mill.’ “
Claus and her current husband, Ray Heisel, live across the lake north of the mill. Clay remembers the Windsor Mercantile fire of 50 to 60 years ago, but can’t recall a larger, more impactful fire than this one.
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UPDATE, 9 A.M. – Crews are working now to cut the gas line to the building.
Rick Klimek, Windsor police chief, said Main Street in Windsor will be closed until at least late this afternoon.
Main Street, also known as Colo. 392, is closed at 7th Street on the west and 1st Street on the east. The streets are also closed one block each side of the Mill.
No one was injured in the blaze.
In addition to Windsor Severance Fire Rescue personnel, individuals from the following organizations assisted with the incident: Front Range Fire Rescue, Loveland Fire Rescue, Poudre Fire Authority, Eaton Fire Rescue, Berthoud Fire, UCHealth EMS, Weld County Sheriff’s Office, Weld County Communications, Windsor Police Department, Windsor Public Works, and Xcel Energy.
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UPDATE, 8:30 A.M. – Steve Schroyer, director of real estate for Blue Ocean Inc., which purchased the Mill and was renovating it, said, “We’re just in assessment mode right now. All we know is it’s burned pretty much to the ground.”
Schroyer said the company did have insurance on the building.
Debris from the fire is visible on roads several blocks away from the Mill. Todd Vess, spokesman with the Windsor-Severance Fire Department, said most of the debris is lightweight foam insulation that probably drifted from wind patterns.
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UPDATE, 8:16 A.M. – Windsor-Severance Fire Chief Herb Brady described the Windsor Mill fire as probably the largest in the town’s history in terms of damage and destruction.
The fire was reported at 1:49 a.m., and Brady said there are a number of reports of an explosion or multiple explosions during the fire. He said that’s not unusual for a building that is under construction and the kind of material that was still inside the building.
About 40 Windsor firefighters responded to the scene. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation plus agents with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms are on the scene to help investigate the cause.
Brady estimated it will take a couple more days before firefighters can walk on the site because they are still extinguishing hot spots from above the fire.
Brady estimated it will take at least a week to determine the cause of the fire.
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UPDATE, 8 A.M. – All of downtown still smells like smoke this morning, according to witnesses. A nearby resident, Chuck McMonagle, said there was an explosion at some point during the fire.
“It’s a shame because they had invested a lot of money” to renovate the Mill, he said.
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The Windsor Mill has burned to the ground, according to witnesses in Windsor.
The Mill was currently undergoing a major multimillion dollar renovation. The fire started sometime during the middle of the night, and fire crews remain on scene this morning dousing the blaze.
Main Street is closed throughout downtown Windsor.
More details will be provided as they become available.
Tribune reporters Tyler Silvy and Emily Wagner are contributing to this story.
