Major fire at hotel site in Spenard

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Fire at America's Best Hotel in Spenard on Feb. 21, 2025. Photo credit: Anchorage Road Conditions Facebook page.

America’s Best Hotel in Spenard is the scene of another structure fire. The Anchorage Fire Department had several units on location this morning. The photo above, posted on the Anchorage Road Conditions Facebook page, shows the fire raging.

In 2022, the hotel caught fire and a major portion of it was made unusable, with dozens of tenants displaced.

The hotel has been used to house homeless people in the past and the area around has become a vagrant hangout.

In 2020, former Mayor Ethan Berkowitz proposed buying the hotel to use as a homeless shelter, using CARES Act money that came available from the federal government during the Covid pandemic.

The Anchorage Fire Department reported it had had received multiple 9-1-1 reporting a fire in the abandoned building in the 4300 block of Spenard Road.

“Firefighters arrived on scene within minutes. They could see the flames engulfing part of the building and four individuals huddled on a balcony trapped by the fire. Firefighters quickly rescued all four of the individuals by using an aerial ladder truck and began efforts to extinguish the blaze. None of the rescued individuals reported any injuries to AFD personnel.

“Initially more than 30 firefighters responded. Shift change occurred while crews were on scene requiring them to swap out with the next shift. This is a large event that will require AFD personnel to be on scene much of the day. The cause and origin of the fire is under investigation,” the Fire Department said on Facebook. “Thank you to the Anchorage Police Department for showing up to secure the scene and having our back!”

5 COMMENTS

  1. Another example, trading success for failure. Using what was once a successful enterprise to imprison homeless people into a cycle of dependency where only the public sector unions benefit. There is nothing the Anchorage Assembly is involved in that doesn’t equate to human sacrifice. How’s you casino working out for you Mayor?

  2. Another addition to the homeless trail of destruction in Anchorage. Look at what happened to our formerly beautiful town square- our idiotic Assembly decided it was better to destroy the beautiful trees and landscaping rather than dealing with the homeless and/or druggies harassing and committing crimes against visitors and residents alike. Totally shameful!!!

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