photo by: Sara Shepherd

Crews work the scene of a fire at the Jayhawk Motel, 1004 N. Third St., on Monday, June 18, 2018.

Story updated: 4:57 p.m. June 19, 2018

A candle left unattended started the fire on Monday that destroyed the main building of the Jayhawk Motel, at 1004 N. Third St. in North Lawrence, fire investigators have determined.

The building that burned contained the motel office as well as a three-bedroom apartment where the motel owners lived, said Division Chief and Fire Marshal James King of Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical. He said the candle was in a dining area of the owners’ living quarters, on the east side of the building, and that’s where the fire started.

The building was a total loss, King said. Damages to the structure, its contents and a vehicle that was parked in a portico attached to the building and caught fire — a 2015 Mercedes ML350 SUV — were estimated to be $96,000, King said.

The motel’s three guest buildings — situated on either side of and behind the main building — were not damaged, he said.

However, all guests were moved out because no one can be in the office to monitor the property, King said.

He said some were relocated to another property owned by the same people, the Airport Motel, 1493 U.S. Highway 40. The American Red Cross also said Monday it was helping the displaced occupants with relocating and other needs.

photo by: Sara Shepherd

Crews work the scene of a fire at the Jayhawk Motel, 1004 N. Third St., on Monday, June 18, 2018.

The fire was reported at 8:21 a.m., and flames were coming from the building when firefighters arrived. Firefighters had it under control by 9 a.m.

One person was inside when the fire started, the woman who owns the motel with her husband. She was awakened by a smoke alarm and got out on her own.

The Jayhawk Motel property is owned by Pravin and Lata Albee, who also own the Airport Motel property, according to Douglas County property records.

Whether the owners have plans to rebuild and reopen the motel is not yet clear.

A couple at the scene, shortly after the fire was extinguished, said they were the owners but declined to share their names or be interviewed by the Journal-World. No one answered calls to the Airport Motel Tuesday afternoon.

Property records indicate the owners are behind on taxes at both motels.

The Albees owe $44,000 in back taxes on the Jayhawk Motel property, from 2014, 2015 and 2016, according to county property records. Records indicate they also owe $16,500 in back taxes on the Airport Motel property, for 2015 and 2016.

There were two Kansas Department of Revenue tax cased filed against the couple in 2013, but none since, according to a search of Douglas County District Court records.

Both roadside motels are longtime fixtures of North Lawrence.

Fire investigator King said he was unsure of the Jayhawk Motel’s construction date. Both were built before 1969; a reporter found references to them in an article published that year in what was then the Lawrence Daily Journal-World.