ST. CATHARINES – A fire has completely engulfed the former site of the newspaper, which was a well-known structure in the downtown area.
The blaze erupted on Friday night and was put out late Saturday afternoon, according to a spokesperson for the City of St. Catharines. The fire started on the upper level of the building located at 17 Queen St. and spread throughout, leading to part of the roof collapsing, as stated by officials.
Firefighters had to use an excavator to access certain sections of the building in order to extinguish lingering hot spots, as mentioned by city representatives.
Given the damage and dangerous conditions, it was decided in collaboration with the Office of the Fire Marshal not to pursue an investigation and label the cause of the fire as undetermined, they reported.
No injuries were reported, and there are currently no estimates available for damages, according to officials.
The , which also covered this incident, noted that the building has been unoccupied since the paper relocated in 2013.
Kat Dodge, executive director of the St. Catharines Downtown Association, shared that this building has been part of downtown since the late 1800s and remained “recognizable and meaningful” even after its closure.
“We’ve been hearing all weekend from people who have worked there or who grew up with parents working there and have memories of running through the halls,” Dodge said.
“Our longtime business owners remember when the Standard was the heartbeat of the city. There’s just so many memories and nostalgia centred around the Standard building, so it’s a big piece of history here in the downtown core.”
“It’s a huge loss to downtown,” she added, noting it’s too soon to determine if any architectural features will be preserved.
The emotional impact from this fire has outweighed operational concerns thus far since firefighters managed to keep flames contained within that one building while confirming that smoke did not pose a safety risk for residents.
Two side streets were closed off; however, most businesses in downtown managed to stay open during this time, according to Dodge.
This report by The Canadian Press was first Dec. 8, 2025.
The Canadian Press
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