Residents displaced by a New Year’s Eve fire at one of Santa Rosa’s largest affordable housing towers have returned home after minor repairs to their units, property management officials said.
The 12th floor unit at Bethlehem Tower where the fire originated remains uninhabitable but the resident has been permanently relocated to a vacant unit in the building, said Jennifer Wood, the John Stewart Company’s executive vice president of property management for the Bay Area.
The cause of the fire has not yet been determined but Wood said property management officials believe it was an accident that started in the kitchen. No one was injured.
The 159-unit building, owned by Reiner Communities, was built in the early 1970s and provides affordable housing for seniors and people with disabilities. The Santa Rosa Housing Authority helps pay rent for 37 households at Bethlehem through federal subsidies but it was not immediately clear if any of those residents were impacted by the fire, city officials said.
With the fire extinguished on the 12th floor of Bethlehem Tower, Santa Rosa firefighters take the elevator to begin overhaul of an apartment which caught fire, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. Several floors sustained water damage after the sprinklers activated in the building (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
Santa Rosa firefighters gather at the Bethlehem Tower after an apartment caught fire, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. Several floors sustained water damage after prinklers activated in the building (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
Santa Rosa firefighters gather at the Bethlehem Tower after an apartment caught fire, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. Several floors sustained water damage after sprinklers activated in the building (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
Residents of Bethlehem Tower’s south side watch as firefighters pull up along Tupper Street, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, after an apartment caught fire on the 12th floor. Several floors sustaining damage after the sprinklers activated in the building (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
A fire hose is extended from the 12th floor of Bethlehem Tower, to help drain cascading water from an apartment fire, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. Several floors sustained damage after the sprinklers activated in the building (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
A resident of Bethlehem Tower evacuates after an apartment caught fire, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, on the 12th floor. Several floors sustained damage when the sprinklers activated in the building. (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
Natalia, a resident of Bethlehem Tower thanks fellow resident Tom Barbat for help evacuating the tower after an apartment caught fire, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. Several floors sustained water damage after sprinklers activated in the building (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
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With the fire extinguished on the 12th floor of Bethlehem Tower, Santa Rosa firefighters take the elevator to begin overhaul of an apartment which caught fire, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. Several floors sustained water damage after the sprinklers activated in the building (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
The two-alarm fire broke out at the Tupper Street property around 3 p.m. Dec. 31 prompting an escalated fire response that brought 12 Santa Rosa Fire Department engines, several ladder trucks and dozens of fire personnel.
Wood said a heat sensor in the unit detected the fire, which set off the sprinkler system and helped contain the flames to the single unit.
But the sprinklers led to water damage across the 11th and 12th floors. Some water seeped into units on lower floors.
Seven other units were initially evacuated after firefighters arrived and the American Red Cross helped assist displaced residents with finding temporary shelter. Another 11 units had minimal water intrusion.
Wood said a contractor was called to the property within two hours of the incident to help with water extraction and to dry out impacted units.
Residents were allowed to return to their homes by Monday, she said.
Property managers offered to relocate the resident who lived in the unit where the fire started so that they didn’t have to wait for the unit to be repaired to move back in, she said.
“We are very grateful that no one was injured and that the building’s fire systems worked as intended,” Wood said. “We are also very appreciative of the local Red Cross and Santa Rosa Fire Department for their professionalism and timely response.”
Wood said there is no timeline for when work in the damaged apartment will be completed but officials expect repairs could take just a few weeks. The unit mostly had smoke and water damage and was not gutted by the fire, she said.
She didn’t have an estimated cost for the damage and repairs.
You can reach Staff Writer Paulina Pineda at 707-521-5268 or paulina.pineda@pressdemocrat.com. On X (Twitter) @paulinapineda22.