24-05-2025
Two injured in fire at Santa Fe Suites apartment complex
Two people were hospitalized Friday morning after they were rescued from a fire at a low-income apartment complex in southeastern Santa Fe.
City fire and emergency medical crews responded to reports of the fire at Santa Fe Suites on South St. Francis Drive just before 6 a.m. Friday, and firefighters rescued three people and two dogs trapped on the second floor of a burning structure, Assistant Chief Sten Johnson said.
Two of the people rescued — both adult men — were taken to a local hospital in serious but stable condition, Johnson said, adding the fire was extinguished shortly after the rescue.
"They were inside of a burning building for quite some time, so smoke inhalation is the chief concern," he said.
One of eight apartment buildings at the site was severely damaged by the fire, but the blaze did not spread to other structures, Johnson said. It was unclear how many residents of the complex, which offers housing to people transitioning out of homelessness, were displaced by the blaze.
Managers declined to provide information about the incident.
A few tenants could be seen carrying some belongings out of the building.
Santa Fe Suites was converted from a hotel after it was purchased with the help of federal funding in 2020, in part to provide transitional housing. It is owned by New York-based Community Solutions and managed by Apartment Management Consultants, with case management and other wraparound services coordinated by St. Elizabeth Shelters and Supportive Housing.
The cause of the fire was under investigation Friday by the Santa Fe Fire Department, Chief Brian Moya said.
The fire-damaged apartment building — which sits next to the complex's main office — was taped off with caution tape Friday afternoon. A second-story window in the front of the building appeared to be shattered, and the stucco around windows and vents was darkened with char.
Staff at the complex's office directed questions to Mike Hijar, a manager with Apartment Management Consultants. He declined to elaborate on the incident.
"We're doing everything we can to resolve and mitigate this situation for our tenants, and we don't have any other comment at this time," Hijar said. "We're working through all of the logistics of this unfortunate incident currently."
Santa Fe Suites has been cast by many as a model for providing a mix of low-income housing and units for people experiencing homelessness. It offers case management for people in need of behavioral health treatment.
A second hotel conversion project in Santa Fe — to be called La Luz — has been in the works for several years.
