SALT LAKE CITY — Five frustrating and challenging months of waiting have come to an end for one Salt Lake City business heavily damaged in a massive downtown fire last year.
“This whole street was just filled with smoke. You couldn’t even breathe. All the way down to 400 South and 300 South, they had it all blocked off, but this is the aftermath of everything," said Matt Crandall, a partner at White Horse.
On August 11, a fire tore through several Main Street businesses. All of them have been closed since the fire, with White Horse the first to officially reopen its doors.
“It was go, go, go," said owner Jason LeCates. "We had a goal to be open by today. We shot for last week, but today was absolutely the day we needed to be open.”
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Along with customers, White Horse is excited to welcome back customers, as well.
“It was fantastic to see familiar faces behind the bar and serving and in the kitchen," shared Dee Brewer, Executive Director, Downtown Alliance. "They tell us that 60 percent of the employees working today were employees before the fire."
The Downtown Alliance helped employees who were without jobs by creating the Main Street Fire Employee Assistance Fund, and the city played a role in helping the restaurant itself rebuild.
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"We couldn’t have done it without them financially," LeCates said of city efforts. "We still have not been paid by the insurance company, so this has been done with private funds and emergency loans from the city. They kicked in some money to help us out."
While some may look at the situation and call it a minor setback, at White Horse, they'd rather call it spring cleaning.
“It’s reminiscent of the old White Horse; it’s all brand new," said Crandall. "It’s like we shut down for a little renovation and spring cleaning, and we’re back with all brand new stuff.”
