Where to put the tiny homes for four elderly women?

The tiny home project that would house four elderly women on a church parking lot faces new challenges, including the loss of the church that, it was hoped, would provide space.

City Light Church had expressed interest in supporting the project by allowing the placement of four tiny homes on its parking lot, said Charles Withuhn, president of the North State Shelter Team (NSST) that has lobbied for the program.

But the church’s Rev. Steve Cox has indicated to NSST there are “risks we can’t move past.”

The Chico City Council voted to support NSST’s tiny home project for church parking lots on a split vote at its Oct. 7 meeting.

ChicoSol was unable to obtain a comment from a church representative before publication explaining why it reconsidered its involvement. But a parishioner who attended City Light’s Dec. 7 service said that although many congregants have concerns, she would like to see the project proceed because “Christians need to help and influence people.”

City Light Church operates a food program for unhoused people and distributes gloves and clothing to help them get through the harsh winter.

The remaining hope for the project now, Withuhn said, is the Community Church of God, which is considering providing space.

There are an estimated 40 churches in Chico, and Withuhn said he’s presented the project to about 24 of them. He said NSST is offering a “whole insurance package.”

“Our tiny homes have running water to a sink, security screen doors, and a water-flush Sanipottie,” a flyer for NSST’s tiny home project states. “ They come with a bicycle and a bicycle cart. The homes are insulated and wired, and we provide evaporative coolers and solar panels for them.”

Withuhn, though, said that after the Community Church of God indicated an openness to the project, and after it was reported in the news, some of the church’s neighbors responded, and “expressed their extreme displeasure in the plan.”

Concerns are whether the tiny homes would lower property values in the neighborhood and whether people who are not in the program would attempt to access church property. NSST will set up another meeting with board members of the Community Church of God soon to discuss the project, Withuhn said.

Rev. Richard Hoyt of the Community Church of God told ChicoSol in an email that the church is still in the information-gathering phase.

“The main concern is what will happen if people who are not part of the program try to access our church property,” Hoyt said. “This is a valid concern shared by many in our congregation. However, we are very passionate about helping these elderly women, so we are being very thorough in our investigation of the program.”

Nick Henderson, a pastor who has launched food distribution programs in Chico and Oroville, believes churches should step up and take a helpful role in the homelessness crisis, such as providing weekly or monthly meals and connecting unhoused people with resources that can help them exit homelessness.

“The big reason is that the Christian Bible teaches us that we are responsible for our own burden, but we’re also responsible for helping others if we have the ability to do so,” Henderson said.

“Even if somebody doesn’t believe in God, if you look at the core tenets of what the Bible teaches — the morals and the structure for living — almost every society in the world agrees those are good values,” Henderson said. “A lot of people who are suffering right now are missing those fundamentals, and nobody is teaching them. But the church has the ability to teach it to them.”

The tiny home project is a “wonderful concept” with challenges — Nick Henderson

Henderson said the tiny home project is a “wonderful concept,” but he also pointed out challenges it must address, such as fully considering neighborhood concerns, keeping the site clean and organized, and helping residents transition into long-term housing.

He also believes the team operating the project should “make it as simple and easy as possible for whoever’s going to volunteer their property, because they take the majority of the risk.” 

According to Withuhn, 12 cities in California have successfully operated similar programs for years, including Walnut Creek, which has six micro-homes for seniors on Grace Presbyterian Church’s parking lot.

Withuhn mentioned the tragedy of Gina Marmol, a 61-year-old homeless woman who died Nov. 2 on a Chico street.

“I would like a safe place for every mature woman to be safe at night — a little tiny home,” Withuhn said. “The problem with the current shelter situation in Chico is that it’s mostly just three big shelters, over 100 people each. That’s intimidating to a lot of the people we deal with. They’ve been there, they had a bad experience, and they’re not going back.”

Withuhn said the City has established 64 criteria that must be met before the program can move forward anywhere, from requirements for specialized outlets to fire sprinklers to ADA ramps.

Brendan Vieg, community development director of Chico, told ChicoSol in an email that City staff from multiple departments met with the NSST/Church Team on three separate occasions to walk through code requirements to ensure the standards could be met or to discuss alternative means to meet a standard.  

“The City’s Building Official and Fire Marshal researched the California Building Code and pulled together the minimal Building and Fire Code standards allowed for ‘sleeping cabins’ under State law,” Vieg wrote. “The most important standards, of course, are life/safety standards.

“City staff have been highly responsive and proactive in helping the NSST/Church Team proceed with its Safe Spot program,” he wrote, adding that staff already shared with NSST that it will be happy to meet again to discuss and troubleshoot if an issue arises regarding any specific standard.

But now, what the project needs most is a church willing to provide space.

This story was clarified on Dec. 11 to state that the Chico City Council voted in October to support in concept NSST’s tiny home project.

Yucheng Tang is a California Local News fellow who covers city government for ChicoSol.