Fountainhead banquet facility totally destroyed by fire
Brides and grooms scrambling to make alternative plans
By Cynthia Williamson
The Packet Group
Wednesday, June 16, 1999

   The banner that hangs under a sign at the entrance to the Fountainhead reads: "Weddings We-Do, We-Do."
   But for Linda Chenava and Jeff Loncosky, as well as seven other couples who had planned to hold their wedding receptions this month at the popular banquet facility off Routes 179 and 202 in Solebury Township, Pa., they won't.
   A blaze that started sometime early Monday morning completely destroyed the landmark banquet facility. The alarm was called in at 3:15 a.m. by Matthew Walker, a tenant who lives in an apartment on the grounds. He said he heard something that sounded like several small explosions and called 911, according to fire officials.
   By the time firefighters arrived on the scene minutes later, New Hope Eagle Fire Chief Thomas Markey said it "already looked like a forest fire."
   Ms. Chenava said a woman she works with heard about the fire on television and telephoned her early Monday morning with the devastating news.
   "We were just really shocked," she said. "We can't believe it."
   The Levittown, Pa., couple said they chose the Fountainhead after seeing photographs belonging to a couple who had married there. They also attended a wedding at the facility last summer, which Ms. Chenava said was "just like a dress rehearsal" for their own nuptials.
   "We thought it would be an absolutely beautiful setting," she said. "It just seemed like such a nice open-air area."
   The only memories the couple has now of the idyllic setting is a sign for the "Garden Ballroom," where Ms. Chenava said they had planned to hold their reception. The white sign with black lettering hung over a trellised entrance and was one of the few objects unscathed in the blaze.
   The couple said they plan to meet with Pamela Minford, the owner, to determine what their options are.
   "We're just kind of having to see what cards we're dealt," Mr. Loncosky said. "It's horrible."
   Whatever is decided, Ms. Chenava said, "We're going to have a lot of calls to make." The couple was expecting 170 guests, she said.
   "I guess we'll have a story to tell our grandkids down the line," she said.
   On Tuesday, Bucks County Fire Marshal Nicholas Rafferty said it has been determined the blaze originated in a trash bin located outside the kitchen but may never be able to determine what ignited the fire.
   "We have an origin point at the dumpster area, but we cannot confirm a causation of the fire," Mr. Rafferty said. "That's only because it's so open. Things can accidentally cause a Dumpster to catch fire, and things can intentionally cause a Dumpster to catch fire, although we do not suspect anything suspicious at this time."
   There were two parties at the Fountainhead on Sunday evening, but both ended about 10 p.m. Christopher Overholt, the head maitre d', was the last employee to leave the premises at around midnight, the fire marshal said.
   New Hope Mayor Laurence Keller, a longtime acquaintance of Ms. Minford, said she was devastated by the fire. He was one of several people who accompanied Ms. Minford to the Fountainhead early Monday morning to get a first-hand look at the scene.
   "Pam is a pillar of our community and one of the most philanthropic members of our community," said Mr. Keller as he watched firefighters hose down the smoldering embers. "She's a very generous person."
   Mr. Keller also was concerned what impact the blaze would have on the local economy.
   "People come to the Fountainhead from California and all over the place," he said. "They stay here, they shop, and they eat in the restaurants. The loss here is going to be felt on both sides of the river."
   Ms. Minford could not be reached for comment but an answering machine recording at a Fountainhead number told callers that top priority would be given to those with June weddings. Those who had activities planned at the Fountainhead after June were given the address of where to send a copy of their contract and a receipt for deposits made and were told to expect a full refund.
   Several area banquet facilities, such as the New Hope-Eagle Fire Company and the Lambertville-New Hope Ambulance and Rescue Squad, have offered their space to Fountainhead customers.
   The Fountainhead was built in 1955 by the late author James Michener and developer Herman Silverman. Ms. Minford purchased the property in 1968 when the former owners held an auction to satisfy their debts.
   Ms. Minford formerly owned the Hacienda, a restaurant and inn located in New Hope's business district, but sold the business about three years ago.
   Chief Markey said adequate water to extinguish fires is always a problem in the rural township, but firefighters formed an "tanker task force" of between eight and 10 tanker trucks from various fire departments. It also drew water from a hydrant at the Logan Square shopping center and got it to the fire by laying about 2,000 feet of hose, he said.
   The fire chief said the blaze was under control at about 5 a.m., but firefighters continued to pour water on the smouldering structure until 3 or 4 Monday afternoon.
   In addition to New Hope Eagle, there were more than 100 volunteer firefighters from fire departments in Bucks County and Hunterdon and Mercer counties in New Jersey that included Lambertville, Stockton, Titusville, Midway, Upper Midway, Doylestown, Warwick, Warrington, Pt. Pleasant, Yardley and Plumsteadville.
   The Lambertville-New Hope Ambulance and Rescue Squad also was at the scene to check the vital signs of firefighters, who worked in rotating shifts of about a dozen at a time to fight the blaze. No injuries were reported, according to squad members Edward and Shirley Skillman.
   North Penn Goodwill Service provided refreshments for the firefighters.

Fountainhead fire originated in trash bin
Investigators believe discarded cigarettes may have kindled blaze
By Cynthia Williamson
The Packet Group
Wednesday, June 23, 1999

   SOLEBURY, Pa. — Bucks County Fire Marshal Nicholas Rafferty said a blaze that destroyed the Fountainhead banquet facility last week may have been caused by smoking materials discarded in a dumpster.
"It could be smoking materials, or somebody could have intentionally started it, but I'm unable to say which," Mr. Rafferty said. "I can't determine that unless we have additional information."
Mr. Rafferty said the only thing fire investigators have been able to determine for sure is that the June 14 blaze originated in a trash bin, which was situated next to the structure just outside the kitchen area.
"The exact cause of the fire will not be known unless we have additional information, such as if someone said, 'I saw someone throw a flare in there.' I mean, the dumpster is open. Anybody could have accessed it," he said.
Investigators with the Pennsylvania State Police Fire Marshal's Division also aided in the investigation, he said.
"We're not labeling the fire suspicious because we don't have any reason to believe it is," Mr. Rafferty said. "We have evidence that smoking materials were placed in the dumpster, including cigarette materials."
A man who rented an apartment on the grounds called 911 after he heard a series of what sounded like several small explosions and went to investigate, according to fire officials. By the time firefighters arrived on the scene minutes after the alarm was sounded, the structure already was fully engulfed in flames.
Mr. Rafferty said the noise was from compressed canisters of carbonated soda that began to explode under the intense heat of the fire.
Mr. Rafferty said there were two events at the banquet hall on June 13, the day before the fire, and investigators have determined after interviewing employees that smoking materials were discarded into the dumpster around 10 that evening. The last employee left the premises around midnight, he said.
"Sometimes things can't be solved, and that's just the way it goes," the fire marshal said.
Meanwhile, eight couples who had planned to hold their weddings at the landmark banquet facility last weekend scrambled to find new locations.
In a statement issued by the owner, Pamela Minford, the New Hope resident said the fire was an "extremely sad event, not only for me but for all of the brides and grooms and families" that had planned to hold their events at the Fountainhead.
"We are receiving two to three hundred calls a day from people who are offering help and from the people who had weddings planned for 1999 and 2000," she said. "Our entire office and all of our records were lost in the fire so the problem of sorting out exactly where we stand is a monumental task."