Paradise, California

According to GNIS, the community has been known in the past by four different names or spellings: Leonards Mill, Poverty Ridge, Pair-O-Dice, and Paradice.[1]

A legend persists that the town was named because it was the home of the Pair o' Dice Saloon, an idea supported by a 1900 railroad map referring to the town as Paradice. However, no documentation has been found to prove the establishment existed, nor an explanation of the spelling of the town's name on the map.[8]

Gene Sylva, a former mayor of the nearby town of Oroville, has stated that the saloon story is false, and that the true etymology of the town's name can be traced to his great-great-grandfather, William Pierce Leonard, who named the town on a summer day in 1864, after a hot and dusty ride from the Sacramento Valley; arriving at his sawmill while the staff were on break, Leonard "took a deep breath of the cool, clean air, and exclaimed, 'boys, this is paradise.'"[8] According to Snopes, Sylva's explanation may be "pleasingly inventive historical fiction", and it is more likely that the town was named for it being a pleasant place to live.[8]

In June 2008, a wildfire, named the "Humboldt Fire" for its point of origin, swept over 22,800 acres (9,200 ha) of land between Chico and Paradise. As many as 9,300 people were forced to evacuate southwestern Paradise until the fire could be brought under control.[9]

In July 2008, a fire burned on the northern side of Paradise in the canyon where the Feather River is located. Again, thousands were evacuated from their homes, but the fire failed to cross the river.[10] It was part of a larger complex of fires called the Butte Lightning Complex or BTU Complex,[11] which also included the Belden and Pit fires.[12] (This was a different fire from the 2018 fire of the same name.)

Satellite image showing the fire at 10:45 a.m. on November 8, 2018

On November 8, 2018, a wildfire called the Camp Fire was reported at 6:33 a.m. PST, close to Camp Creek Road near Pulga.[13] Shortly after the fire erupted, the Butte County Sheriff's Office ordered the evacuation of the eastern quarter of Paradise, and the remaining portions one hour later.[14] However, many residents never received an evacuation warning, while others chose not to leave because the warnings did not convey the urgency of the situation.[15] Other locations were also issued evacuation orders or warnings, and emergency shelters were established.[16]

On the same day, much of the town of Paradise and the communities of Concow and Magalia were destroyed by this fire.[17] Scott McLean, a Cal Fire Deputy Chief, said, "We're talking devastated. . . . The town center is completely on the ground. The south side as well as the north side has been hit very hard, as well."[18][19]

Eighty-six people died in the Camp Fire, tens of thousands were displaced, and 18,804 buildings were destroyed. Only 5% of buildings in the town remained without serious damage after the fire.[20][21][22] It was the deadliest and most destructive fire in California history.[23]

A burnt down house in Paradise, eight months after the Camp Fire

The first two building permits were reissued for Paradise, after almost five months, on March 28, 2019. Local public policymakers aimed to promote rebuilding with higher standards for fire-resistant construction, upgraded infrastructure, and using the recommended 2009 redesigns for enhanced fire safety, which include expanded road capacity to increase evacuation capacity and to provide better access for emergency equipment.[24] Two weeks of rain in early March 2019 slowed removal of debris; it was prohibited to dump waterlogged waste in landfills. Some 1,000 truckloads of material are expected to be removed daily from properties in Paradise, Concow, and Magalia. Cleanup, anticipated to take a year, involves 11,000 properties.[25]

In 2010 the U.S. Census reported a population of 26,800. After the Camp Fire, the population declined by more than 90%.[26] In January 2019, the state of California reported 4,600 residents, and a door-to-door count in April 2019 found 2,034.[27]

One year after the fires, the town united behind the Paradise High School football team, which achieved an undefeated season. One team member commented, "You look at the stands, the whole town of Paradise is here, so it’s really our only event right now, so it means everything."[28]

Paradise Recreation and Parks District (PRPD) and the Nature Conservancy teamed up to develop the idea of a Greenbelt defensible buffer zone which would make the town into a better fire-adapted community by preventing future wildfires from reaching the town center.[29] The idea is that the greenbelt would be made up of managed parks and vegetation to allow firefighters to do controlled burns and create a barrier of land without fuel around the town (a firebreak) so future wildfires have no path inwards. This borderland would serve as a source of recreation and greenspace for the community for most of the year, but when it comes to wildfire season the buffer would protect the town from any blazes which come near. If this becomes a successful model, the Nature Conservancy hopes to scale up lessons learned from Paradise and inspire other fire-threatened communities to implement their own buffers before having to suffer the consequences themselves.[29]

After the 2018 Camp Fire caused near decimation of Paradise, the town and residents agreed on a Long-Term Community Recovery Plan with five main goals to make the town Safer, Welcoming, Stronger, Better, and Greener.[30] The Greenbelt hopes to accomplish a number of projects outlined in the plan, including improvements to parks and walking paths, a stronger fuel management plan, and better transportation access for residents and firefighters. To fortify their proposal further, the Nature Conservancy hired an independent nonprofit, the Conservation Biology Institute, to conduct a scientific report on the efficacy of such a barrier. According to their models, such greening of the eastern border of Paradise could reduce combustion risks in the town by as much as 64%.[29][31]

The most pressing challenges moving forward are obtaining rights to the mostly private land the Conservation Biology Institute identified as the most ideal location for a greenbelt, and funding the purchase of these properties.[29] With local fires worsening every year, PRDP is hoping residents will listen to their fire risk reduction models and sell their outskirt properties to the district in exchange for a promise of greater resistance when the next inferno comes along. With the successful purchase of several properties so far Dan Efseaff, district manager for PRDP, “hopes at least to create pockets or sections of that full vision[29].”

The North Complex Fire, also known as the "Bear Fire," to the east of Concow, and Pulga endangered Paradise and surrounding communities once again that had been affected by the 2018 Camp Fire, and evacuations were ordered. Remaining burn scars that had reduced combustible materials fire contained the westward progress of the 2020 fire though almost 320,000 acres were consumed before it was contained.[32]

The area encompassing Paradise has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Csa) according to the Köppen climate classification system.

The 2010 United States Census[36] reported that Paradise had a population of 26,218. The population density was 1,430.9 people per square mile (552.5/km²). The racial makeup of Paradise was 24,129 (92.0%) white, 112 (0.4%) African American, 301 (1.1%) Native American, 330 (1.3%) Asian, 24 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 416 (1.6%) from other races, and 906 (3.5%) from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 1,836 persons (7.0%).

The Census reported that 25,810 people (98.4% of the population) lived in households, 139 (0.5%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 269 (1.0%) were institutionalized.

There were 11,893 households, out of which 2,574 (21.6%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 5,227 (44.0%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 1,308 (11.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 511 (4.3%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 742 (6.2%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 94 (0.8%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 4,038 households (34.0%) were made up of individuals, and 2,126 (17.9%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17. There were 7,046 families (59.2% of all households); the average family size was 2.73.

The age distribution was 4,501 people (17.2%) under the age of 18, 1,858 people (7.1%) aged 18 to 24, 4,822 people (18.4%) aged 25 to 44, 8,466 people (32.3%) aged 45 to 64, and 6,571 people (25.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 50.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.5 males.

There were 12,981 housing units at an average density of 708.5 per square mile (273.5/km²), of which 11,893 were occupied, of which 7,975 (67.1%) were owner-occupied, and 3,918 (32.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.9%. 17,381 people (66.3% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 8,429 people (32.1%) lived in rental housing units.

As of the census[37] of 2000, there were 26,408 people, 11,591 households, and 7,244 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,447.1 people per square mile (558.7/km²). There were 12,374 housing units at an average density of 678.1 per square mile (261.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 93.73% White, 0.19% Black or African American, 1.07% Native American, 1.04% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 1.21% from other races, and 2.64% from two or more races. 4.27% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 11,591 households, out of which 23.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.7% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.5% were non-families. 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.77.

In the town the population was spread out, with 20.4% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 21.2% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 27.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $31,863, and the median income for a family was $41,228. Males had a median income of $35,419 versus $25,231 for females. The per capita income for the town was $19,267. About 9.7% of families and 12.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.6% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.