New Firesafe Apartments At Paradise Lutheran Church

With the North State’s every-lengthening fire season, we live with the constant awareness that, at a moment’s notice, our favorite four walls and everything in them could become memories.

But what if those four walls couldn’t burn?

Paradise Lutheran Church in Paradise, CA has hired Design Horizons of Chico, CA to build four noncombustible rental units on church property in central downtown Paradise. The firesafe fourplex is slated to be available for rent within the year.

While Paradise Lutheran’s sanctuary and office survived the 2018 Camp Fire, the parsonage was destroyed. “We now had an empty lot and a blank slate,” says Gwen Nordgren, president of the Paradise Lutheran committee in charge of the project. “It became clear to us what the community desperately needs is housing.”

Paradise Lutheran already rents out several one-bedroom apartments, and the central location of the property makes it prime real estate. The congregation decided to move forward with long-held dreams to provide more housing to the community.

Apartments for families, couples or singles

Rod Platte, who recently retired from 17 years of pastoring Paradise Lutheran, explains he initially envisioned a senior citizen housing community. “But after the fire, our target demographic of older single folks who couldn’t live in their big houses anymore changed,” Rod says. “Since the fire, many of those people have moved away. So we determined the better demographic would be apartments that would accommodate families, couples, or singles.”

Enter Vern Sneed, owner and designer of Design Horizons, and his Q Cabins. “What we are building is a 100% non-combustible structure,” Vern explains. “That means we build everything out of steel and other products that cannot catch on fire. Now of course, steel melts, but these buildings have a very high chance of making it through a wildfire because there is nothing on them that can burn.”

Q Cabin owner Vern Sneed with his daughters; Piper, Chloe and Camryn

Steel construction means fire resistance and cost savings

Modeled after military structures developed during World Wars I and II, Q Cabins are made from steel arches that are built ahead of time, transported, and assembled onsite. Picture a series of arch-shaped puzzles pieces snapping together to make a tunnel-shaped structure. While the steel makes the structure fire resistant, the shape also prevents embers – or snow – from building up on top of the roof.
Once they hit the construction phase, Q Cabin structures typically come together quickly because all the pieces are manufactured in advance. Steel prices usually remain on par with wood prices, making materials for a Q Cabin roughly equivalent to a traditional wood-frame structure. However, manufacturing all the elements in advance means the final product tends to be “less costly because there are fewer surprises than a traditional stick-built structure,” Vern says.

Keeping residents comfortable and utility costs low

The four Q Cabins on the Paradise Lutheran property will be identical two-bedroom, two-bath apartments. The apartments are heavily insulated, so inside temperatures should remain fairly constant throughout the year, keeping residents comfortable and utility costs low. Residents will have easy access to the church and its associated benefits — including a free lunch available to anyone in the community every Friday from 12-1:30.

Renters will also enjoy the convenience of living right next to Terry Ashe Park and just around the corner from Holiday Grocery. “These apartments were carefully designed,” Rod says, “They will provide all the amenities a family would need, and the location is good, so we feel they will be an asset to the community.”

Potential renters may apply for the units via the Paradise Lutheran Church office, located at 780 Luther Drive. For more information, contact the Paradise Lutheran Church office at 530-877-3549. To learn more about Q Cabins, call (415)533-7094 or visit theqcabin.com