THE
Ridge
Business JouRnal
Your resource for what ’s happening on the Ridge!
Connecting the Ridge Business Community
www.paradisechamber.com
July 2020
Ridge businesses meet yet another challenge
By Rick Dean
Special to the Chamber
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ost Paradise businesses have had a rough 20 months since the Camp Fire devastated the Ridge on Nov. 8, 2018. In addition to losing a large portion of the robust customer base of about 40,000 Ridge residents, businesses have coped with water issues, a whole new clientele and business climate following the fire. Then COVID-19 hit, creating another huge challenge. Post-Camp Fire, Paradise has a few retail stores that have reopened in town, old standbys like Hudson’s Appliance Center, Thomas Ace Hardware, Birkenstocks, Jeannie’s, Woodworth’s Jewelers, Noble Orchards, Paradise Bikes, Fins, Fur & Feather Sports, Secrets of Paradise, Treasures from Paradise, Bobbi’s Boutique and Paradise Sports Cards & Memorabilia. While some businesses were directly affected by the virus and are yet to open, Paradise Sports Cards & Memorabilia is just now preparing for its grand opening; COVID-19 hasn’t hurt business. The Skyway Antique Mall reopened July 1. The 10,000 square foot mall houses 11 dealers with antiques, collectibles and vintage merchandise and is open seven days a week. Visit the Mall at their old location at 6118 Skyway. Thomas Ace Hardware experienced an increase in customers. Although people were confined to their homes due to the virus, as an essential business, Thomas Ace was able to serve those customers who ventured out for neces-
Above: Jen’s Place serves a wide selection of draft beer and cocktails, and now serves food. Owner Jennifer White invites you to Paradise’s friendly and spacious neighborhood tavern at 7126 Skyway. Right: Nic’s has been a community meeting place since the Camp Fire, L-R Jeri Luce, Charlotte Sweetland and Rhonda Kennedy enjoy the new, expanded, Town approved, outdoor seating. Visit Nic’s at 6256 Skyway. sities However, COVID-19 has impacted their supply chain —some of which came from overseas suppliers. There was one particular product that was very popular. “Potting soil went through the roof,” Petersen said. But now, things are getting closer to pre-COVID-19 status relating to inventory. Petersen said the store added employees, as they normally would during this time of year, but the virus
complicated that process. Currently the store has up to 30 employees. Other businesses that flourished post-fire were food trucks serving the needs of the cleanup crews. Meeho’s
CHALLENGE, continues on page 11
Chamber brings a collective effort to Ridge business recovery By Mark Thorp Business Advocate, Paradise Ridge Chamber of Commerce
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he Paradise Ridge Chamber of Commerce (PRCoC) engages in business advocacy for its membership and the advanceament of the region
as a whole. Advocacy informs the imperfect progress advanced in the monumental rebuilding effort to restore our community after the catastrophic events of November 8, 2018.
afar, the Paradise Ridge Chamber of Commerce has the key responsibility of focusing on business development and encouraging the return of vibrant and appropriate commerce.
Where does your business fall into this process? How are you represented? No matter the origin of your investment on the Ridge—pre fire, post fire, or prospective from
While the residential aspects of our rebuild efforts are clearly in full swing, the business community and efforts
COVID-19 has not slowed down the rebuild By Rick Dean Special to the Chamber
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The Town opened the Building Resiliency Center (BRC) in early 2020 to centralize the building process for residents. And it is churning out permits as quickly as it can. In addition to the hundreds of building permits issued, many permits are in the plan check process. It is those numbers that excite Mayor Greg Bolin about where the Town is in its rebuild. “I remember comments being made, following the fire, that it will be five years before we can start rebuilding again,” he said. “But we are so far ahead of where I thought we would be at this point.” Bolin is not just the mayor of the Town— he helps run Trilogy Construction. He said
Business Briefs
Business Briefs are free to members of the Paradise Ridge Chamber of Commerce, providing information to Ridge residents and visibility to Ridge businesses. All contact information for featured businesses is available in ParadiseChamber.com’s online business directory: www.paradisechamber. com/list/. This benefit is available to all members; for guidelines and information, email Monica@ParadiseChamber.com. _____________________________
espite the outbreak of COVID-19, the Town’s recovery from the Camp Fire appears to be staying on track. The numbers prove it. In the 15 months since issuance of the first application for a building permit, there have been more than a thousand permit applications submitted to the Town of Paradise. The Town has seen more than 200 homes rebuilt since that devastating fire. The rebuilding effort has brought 54 Chamber member construction companies to the Ridge—of which 18 are local companies. The Town lost about 14,000 buildings in the fire on Nov. 8, 2018 that killed 85 people. On June 16, Pacific Gas and Electric pled guilty to 85 counts of involuntary manslaughter.
RECOVERY, continues on page 11
Rebuilding in Paradise has continued despite the Covid-19 emergency. The biggest impact it has had on rebuilding has been on supply chains. Pictured is a house in lower Paradise being built for Morgan McBride and her fiancé, Lance Knifong. the coronavirus shut down hasn’t slowed the Town’s construction business. He said the subcontractors have been great in what they’ve done to lessen the potential for the virus spread. They don’t schedule subcontractors at the sites at the same time. The building experience during COVID-19 shows that the appointment process adopted by the Town at the Building Resiliency Center (BRC) works very well. And he thinks they’re going to keep it. Before the appointment process, Bolin said you could have been at the BRC for a couple of hours before even getting to start your process.
Now, with the appointment scheduling, builders walk in the door, start the processing and once it’s done they leave. This leads to increased productivity because they are not spending two hours waiting for help—now they can be out in the field with their customers and employees. Chris Kelly of Paradise Homes Inc. said COVID-19 has impacted the supply of materials and not so much the ability to build in town. That seems to be a common theme for businesses during the COVID-19 shut-
REBUILD, continues on page 10
A new partnership for building homes in Paradise Habitat for Humanity of Butte County is partnering with Paradise Rotary Foundation and Golden Valley Bank to build homes in Paradise! These generous gifts will help Habitat build homes with Camp Fire survivors on six lots purchased with the help of the Crown Foundation. Habitat is honored to work with the Paradise community and homeowners to achieve the strength, stability, and self-reliance they need to build a better life for themselves and their families. Habitat welcomes donations of new and used home goods and building supplies to the ReStore, a retail store that sells new and used home improvement materials. Proceeds from the ReStore help build homes! If you have questions about the ReStore or want to join Habitat in rebuilding, call 530-3437423 or email info@buttehabitat.org Visit the Restore at 220 Meyers Street, Chico.
BRIEFS, continue on page 7