The Plantation Landowners Association:
New Life in the Neighborhood

The Landowners Association maintains all roads, lighting, landscaping, amenities, security, perimeter fencing, and gates. Nearly everything post-fire had to be repaired.  The Plantation has spent roughly $500,000 out of pocket to repair and re-energize the neighborhood.  One of the primary issues faced in the rebuilding process was the damaged water infrastructure.  The Plantation’s water delivery system was mostly intact, however, there was damage to the water meters near the fire-affected lots.  Taking action, the Plantation Landowners Association leadership consisting of the Directors, Tom Keith, Kay Bockus, Sharron Holinsworth, Wayne Potter and Ray Giese and Property Manager Christine Hanawalt, applied for a grant through the Paradise Rotary Foundation to completely rework the damaged water infrastructure. 

Seeing the need, the Paradise Rotary Foundation approved a grant worth $87,650 to replace the destroyed water meters and water lines.  This included the materials and labor, months of work, repiping and connecting lines, and recalibrating all the meters.  This project has breathed new life into the rebuilding process and speed up the time that homeowners can come back into their homes.

The Plantation Landowners Association has stated that new lines have been installed and pressurized, providing water to every lot now as result of the grant. Currently there are 12 residents in the neighborhood. The timeframe to reach full capacity in the neighborhood is estimated at three to four years.  The lots in the neighborhood are independently owned and the rebuilding process is well underway.

Not only will some of the rebuilt houses be newer and nicer, some will be larger as well.  Before the Camp Fire, houses were selling $235,000 – $245,000 and consisted of 1,300-1,500 sq/ft.  Now, some of the houses are selling between $275,000 – $360,000 and increased to 1,600-1,800 sq/ft.  The rise in both price and space continue to rally momentum for the neighborhood’s rebuilding process.  

During an interview on the future of the neighborhood, the panel excitedly shared, “Most original owners still own their lot, and are in the process of returning and starting to rebuild.  Not only that, investors have been buying 1-5 lots at a time. They are eagerly waiting for more opportunities to be able to buy in the neighborhood.  We are very hopeful for the rebuild to be able to return to our nice, gated community.”  

The Plantation Landowners Association wants you to know,”We are back up and running. We have homes available and are looking forward to COVID being over to meet in our beautiful clubhouse! Don’t miss an opportunity to buy a home while they are still here!”

Above: See the contrast between standing homes and lots affected by the Camp Fire.

Do you have stories to share about Grants In Action? If so, please email contact@paradiserotaryfoundation.org.