It isn’t difficult to imagine that a wildland forest fire could have a deep and lasting impact on a town or an area. Anytime natural disaster strikes an area, residents feel displaced. There is a sense of vulnerability, of being out of control. And there is no doubt that the Cerro Grande fire had a huge impact on Los Alamos.
Friday, May 5, 2000 – It started with a small, prescribed fire by crews at Bandelier National Monument. By Sunday, the fire had jumped multiple fire lines and Los Alamos was filled with smoke. The spring winds whipped the blaze into a firestorm. If you’ve ever experienced some of the windy spring days here in Los Alamos, you might be able to understand why a fire could go from a few acres to thousands upon thousands of acres in such a short period of time.
When the fire was only two miles away from the outskirts of Los Alamos, Western Area and what is now the Elk Ridge Mobile Home Park, were evacuated. The wind seemed to calm and firefighters became hopeful that they could stop the blaze at Camp May Road above Los Alamos Canyon.
At 1:15 PM on Wednesday, May 10, 75 mph wind gusts made that an impossibility. Los Alamos was evacuated in four hours. By the time the residents managed to get down the hill, Western Area was already in flames.
“The fire blew around the western perimeter of town, into Pueblo Canyon and finally into the streets and houses of North Community… In less than 12 hours, fire destroyed Western Originals, Modified Westerns, units from Groups 11, 12, 13, 14A, 14B, 15, and 18B, and modern structures. Entire neighborhoods were leveled.” Craig Martin
There were 400 families displaced by the fire. They lost their homes and everything they couldn’t pile into the car to take when them when they evacuated. It was a catastrophic number in a town where housing was already an issue and had BEEN an issue since the beginning.
After Cerro Grande, it wasn’t uncommon for locals to grumble that they wish the fire had gotten rid of ALL of the old government housing. You could really argue that from an aesthetics perspective, that MIGHT have been the best option. No more quads, duplexes, or fifties era flat roof dwellings. It was a chance to start over. Build modern structures with modern floorplans using the latest innovations in materials and methods. But there are distinct issues with trading old for new.
Affordability
Cerro Grande didn’t just decimate old housing. It took the most affordable housing. Dense residential sections of town that had been initially built to house multiple families in the least amount of space possible. The fact that these homes were some of the earliest available here in Los Alamos is a secondary point to affordability. Many families started out in the sort of homes that were lost in the fire. It was a way to get out of an apartment and into a house. Sure. You might be looking to get into something else later, but we all have to start somewhere. Right? So, what happens when a huge chunk of the starter homes are just GONE? Think the brand new replacements are going to be in the same affordable price range?
Sheer # of Units
400 families lost their homes. According to Craig Martin’s detailed list of residential structures lost in the Cerro Grande fire, we’re talking approximately 203 buildings. Yes. Wrap your mind around what that means. 203 structures that housed 400 families. The Group 12 homes were hit hardest. 33 Quads and 40 Duplexes were burned to the gound. All of a sudden, homeowners who had once held a deed to one unit in a quad or a duplex had to agree on a floor plan, a builder, and a style. Let’s just say that it wasn’t unusual for some of those families to cash out, sell their portion to their former neighbors, and move out of Los Alamos altogether.
That means 203 structures were burned to the ground and only a fraction of that were rebuilt. The new homes were and still are beautiful. But they sit on land that used to provide shelter for twice as many families as it does now. In other places, that might not matter. In Los Alamos, we feel the pinch even twenty plus years later.
Our Connection to the Past
Yes. The old government housing wasn’t going to win a beauty contest. But in some ways, these homes were actually historic. As strange as it might be to look at a Group 11 Quadraplex and think historic building, they kind of are. They’re part of our town’s identity. As time goes on, we’re losing that connection to our past. To the Atomic Energy Commission and the early days of Los Alamos and the housing board. We no longer remember that it’s ALWAYS been tricky to find housing in Los Alamos. We start expecting our unique town to be like everywhere else. Anytown, USA.
And let’s not forget that the continuity of the structures in town has become even more hodgepodge than it used to be. Perhaps that’s one of the things that Cerro Grande only made MORE true than ever before. It’s possible to take a walk down a residential street here in Los Alamos and see custom homes, former government built homes, a modern duplex, a 1950’s quadraplex, and even modular homes placed lovingly on a firm foundation of concrete. Since the fire, stucco has become the number one choice for exteriors, and there’s no end to the creativity of what you can cover in a Southwestern palette of stucco.
In the end, we persevere. We survive. We thrive. And of course, we hunt for the home of our dreams. When you’re ready to make a move, give me a call. I love to talk Los Alamos, past, present, and future.
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