Fire at Maple Grove's historic Village Hall believed to be arson
MAPLE GROVE, Minn. – Maple Grove officials are investigating the fire at Maple Grove's historic Village Hall as an act of arson.
The city's fire department says crews rushed to Maple Grove Village Hall at about 9:15 p.m. Tuesday. They arrived to find "fire showing from the rear of [the] building with significant smoke."
The fire was under control about an hour later, but the building was damaged.
"There's heavy, heavy damage. We'll have to evaluate it in the light of day to see if it's salvageable or not," Maple Grove Fire Department Chief Tim Bush said Tuesday. "Significant amount of fire, we'll just have to wait and see."
On Wednesday, fire investigators confirmed they believe the fire was intentionally set, and are asking for the public's assistance in identifying the driver of a vehicle spotted nearby just before the fire.
Police released a picture of the vehicle from a nearby surveillance camera, and say the vehicle appears to be a 2018-2022 white Chevrolet Equinox with dark-colored rims and a black antenna on the roof.
Investigators are asking residents in the area to check their video doorbells and cameras between 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. for the vehicle. Anyone with information can contact Crime Stoppers of Minnesota at 1-800-222-8477 or online.
The fire department says the Village Hall building was "used as the primary offices of Maple Grove from 1939 until 1975. Most recently the building is used for park and recreation programming by the City of Maple Grove."
