ESCONDIDO -- It's as if The Paramount inferno had never happened. All evidence of the worst structure fire in Escondido's history has been cleared at the site next to the Signature Pavilion shopping plaza between Centre City Parkway and Escondido Boulevard.

Not a piece of debris remains where three months ago the twisted metal skeletons and charred ruins of four buildings had been. Demolition was begun in early March at The Paramount, and workers at a neighboring construction site said Monday that Friday was the last day they had seen any activity there.

Now, a field of brown, evenly graded dirt next to The Paramount's one surviving condominium building awaits the return of developer D.R. Horton to begin the project anew.

An Escondido city official said progress is being made in that arena as well.

"We've met with them (D.R. Horton officials), and they are going to proceed," Director of Community Development Jon Brindle said Monday. "They have an idea of the design. We saw the site plan, and they expressed the desire."

Officials from D.R. Horton didn't return phone calls Monday seeking comment. However, the company's Web site, www.drhorton.com, doesn't list The Paramount among its existing or upcoming residential developments in San Diego County.

The sales office in the remaining building was closed Monday and no cars were parked there. Calls to the office went unanswered.

Brindle said D.R. Horton and Escondido city officials have met to discuss the developer's new concept for the project, which will be the same basic design, though less dense, with fewer buildings and perhaps only three stories instead of four, Brindle said.

The original project was to have 12, four-story buildings containing 122 town homes. Four of those buildings were under construction when they burned in the Jan. 18 conflagration that did $6.6 million in damage, produced 300-foot high flames and required the aid of about 100 firefighters from departments throughout the county.

Fire investigators have said the fire was human-caused, but no one has been charged with starting the blaze.

Lt. Craig Carter of the Escondido Police Department said last week the district attorney's office hadn't indicated to him whether the cause of the fire will be considered criminal or accidental.

Police had submitted their case to the district attorney's office, but the office wanted clarification on some facts, he said.

"We're just in the process of making sure we have everything we need," Carter said.

Police are interviewing witnesses again, he said, but it has been difficult because most of the workers who were at the site have moved on to other construction projects elsewhere.

Carter said finishing the investigation is a priority for the police department and he expects to get all of the necessary information to the district attorney's office by the end of the month.

The company hasn't given the city any formal project plans. Once they do, city officials will have to tweak them with the developer before sending them to the city's Design Review Board and Planning Commission for approval, Brindle said. However, he said the developer is "fairly close" to completing its proposal and that plans could be submitted "any time."

Brindle said he didn't think the changes making the project less dense and less tall were related to fear of another fire, but instead to what homebuyers want. Brindle is confident city fire codes will ensure the new buildings are sufficiently protected, he said.

"I think it's really more that they're looking at what is a marketable product," Brindle said.

D.R. Horton, one of the nation's largest home builders, reported last week that its profits had plummeted 85 percent in the January to March quarter. Sales especially were down in California, the company reported.

The city will speed up the developer's plan submittal process as much as possible to get the project rolling again, Brindle said.

"We're anxious to see a quality product come out of the ground," he said.

So too, are neighbors of the long-awaited development.

Many surrounding businesses have hoped to gain new customers with The Paramount's completion. At the very least, the pile of rubble left after the fire has been an eyesore, neighbors said Monday.

"This is definitely an improvement," said Kathie Cortelyou, a sales associate at Crown Books in the Signature Pavilion south of the fire site.

The building ruins had been clearly visible from the windows of the children's room at the discount book store, which is one of the businesses closest to The Paramount. Several windows on the store's north side had cracked the day of the blaze because of the heat.

Cortelyou said she wants to see construction on the project resume and the buildings finished.

"If people move in there, we might increase our business," Cortelyou said. "But that's not the important thing. The important thing is that it's built safely and this doesn't happen again. That was a scary fire."

Staff writer Jo Moreland contributed to this report.

Contact staff writer Paul Eakins at (760) 740-5420 or peakins@nctimes.com.