Cableland, the city’s official mayoral residence that has never been used for anything other than parties, was partially destroyed this morning by fire.
Denver Fire Department spokesman Lt. Phil Champagne described the damage as “moderate” but said it could have been much worse because the fire alarms didn’t go off.
The fire was reported at 3:30 a.m. by an ambulance crew driving by. An engine company was dispatched to the large structure at Leetsdale Drive and Cedar Avenue, just off Colorado Boulevard. They found a fire burning in the boiler room for the swimming pool and called for help.
A total of 38 firefighters responded and found a substantial fire burning in a void underneath floor joists between the boiler room and an adjacent mechanical room on the west side of the building.
It wasn’t until firefighters arrived that the fire alarms activated. Two caretakers who lived at the far end of the building said they didn’t hear the alarm but managed to escape without injury.
Champagne said the floor joists were thoroughly charred. The fire was put out 35 minutes after the first engine company arrived, Champagne said.
“It took a while to tear apart the floor to get at the joists,” Champagne said. “They really got on top of it quickly and minimized the damage. It could have been a lot worse.”
He said no injuries were reported.
The 19,500-square foot Cableland was built by cable-TV entrepreneur Bill Daniels in 1968 and donated to the city in 1997 to be the mayors’ official residence. Neither former mayor Wellington Webb nor current Mayor John Hickenlooper lived in it.
But the $7 million house, with an enormous swimming pool, 13 bedrooms and four kitchens, has been the site of magnificent parties.
Daniels lived in a four-bedroom wing of the home whenever he traveled to Denver from his home in Rancho Mirage, CA. Ironically, he installed a 12-foot brass firehouse pole in the living area.
In another incident, a fire broke out at 4:50 this morning at a single-family residence at 1215 S. Forest. Three adults and a child were able to escape without injuries.
Champagne said the fire apparently started in the garage, then spread to the second floor and into the attic. No injuries were reported.
