Picking up the pieces (of clothing) after fire at Allston dry cleaners

(Joanne Rathe/Globe Staff)

Middlesex County Constable Fred W. MacDonald (left) served an eviction notice to Paris Cleaners as Pedro Paulino of Eviction Mover.com carried out unclaimed clothes.

By Jonnelle Marte, Globe Correspondent

When patrons of Paris Cleaners in Allston heard the business had been damaged in a fire, many lost hope that they would ever see their clothes again.

But today, about 10 former customers were able to retrieve their belongings as the business was evicted.

“I had to search a little bit,” said Nick Gonzalez, who made a point of regularly stopping by the Harvard Avenue dry cleaners, which was shut down after the June 9 fire, to check the window for updates.

His frequent visits paid off Friday when he saw an eviction notice from Middlesex County Constable Fred W. MacDonald, announcing that people could pick up their clothes this morning.

Gonzalez, 25, of Brookline, helped the other patrons by climbing a ladder to lower clothing from the higher racks. He retrieved his $1,000 worth of clothing after a 15-minute search.

“Everything is covered in smoke,” he added later, showing his two black hands.

The rest of the unclaimed clothing was taken to a Lynn storage facility, where it will be held for six months.

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