From mid-November to the first Friday in December, the Magalia Community Center hosts a farmers market, a county library stop, exercise classes, a kids' paint night, two public meetings and a Christmas tree lighting. All of it happens in one building at 13917 S Park Dr, the former clubhouse of the old Paradise Pines Golf Course. Very few of these programs started in Magalia. A food network from the valley picked this building as a stop, and so did the county library. Local councils use it as their meeting hall. The tree lighting on December 4 is the one item on the list that the park organized for itself.
A Clubhouse Kept on Purpose
In early 2019, a small group of Magalia residents set out to keep the old Paradise Pines Golf Course as permanent green space. Much of the course had survived the Camp Fire. The group is now Magalia Community Park, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that runs the community center out of the former clubhouse. It also looks after the roughly 40 acres around it, which hold South Pines Disc Golf and a paved loop of about two miles for walking, dog-walking, bikes and scooters.
The park describes its own crew as almost entirely volunteer, and its homepage puts the stakes plainly:
"South Pines Disc Golf and Magalia Community Center and all it's programs have inspired hope in a community that continues to rebuild post-Camp Fire."
During local emergencies the building has served as a resiliency hub. It was also the Upper Ridge's official election precinct for the 2026 primary and general elections, which put it in use from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on November 1 and 2 and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day. Anything that needs a public room on the Upper Ridge tends to end up in this one, and that holds for the winter schedule too.
Sundays: The Valley's Market Drives Up
The Farmers MarketMobile is run by the Butte County Local Food Network. It sets up at Magalia Community Park every Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. In severe weather it moves inside the community center. The network started the mobile market with a grant at the end of 2020, mainly as a response to what the Camp Fire did to foothill communities. Its stated purpose now is to bring organic, locally grown food to parts of Butte County without easy access to it.
The truck has only two current stops. One is this one. The other is the American Veterans Store at 15474 Forest Ranch Way in Forest Ranch, open Saturdays from 2 to 3:30 p.m.
How it takes payment matters most to some shoppers:
- Cash, debit, credit, EBT and mobile pay are all accepted.
- Food bought with EBT CalFresh gets a 100% Market Match, and the match has no $15 cap. The network notes that farmers markets elsewhere in the Chico area cap their match at $15.
- The network says this works out to 50% off all food, including bread, eggs, honey and rice when they're available, provided the purchase includes at least one fruit or vegetable.
The network says it may cancel some stops on snowy or stormy days, depending on location. Before a winter Sunday you can sign up for its MarketMobile texts or check the Butte County Local Food Network Facebook page. The Magalia stops left before the tree lighting are November 15, 22 and 29.
Weekdays: A Gym, a Studio and a Craft Table
On weekdays the room runs on a steady schedule. Senior Fitness meets Mondays and Wednesdays from 9:30 to 10:15 a.m. Gentle Yoga with Gina meets Tuesdays from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. A September listing for the yoga class set the drop-in price at $7 per class. The center's program page also says Paradise Stronger teaches exercise classes there four days a week.
Kids Paint Parties by Dawn runs from 5 to 7 p.m. on the first Wednesday of November and December. The next session is December 2.
There has been demand for more. According to the minutes of the park board's February 2026 meeting, the board noted that Paradise Recreation & Park District leadership had heard in public meetings that the Upper Ridge wanted PRPD classes held in Magalia. The park invited PRPD staff to bring classes to the center. The same minutes record that a January youth night drew about 30 kids along with parent volunteers, and that the building was averaging about three private rentals a month. Those rentals show up on the winter calendar too, on Saturday, November 14, and the weekend of November 21 and 22.
Wednesday, December 2: The County Adds a Stop
The newest service on the calendar comes from the county. Butte County announced on October 29, 2026, that the first phase of its Mobile Library route would begin Tuesday, November 3. Its purpose is to bring library materials, resources and services straight to residents, with phase one focused on rural communities.
The Magalia Community Center calendar lists the Butte County Mobile Library on November 4 and December 2, from noon to 4 p.m. both days. The December visit lands on the same day as Senior Fitness in the morning and the kids' paint party in the evening, so the building has something going from 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. that day.
The county says it will track usage, participation and other measures, and will use that data to plan future routes and decide where to expand. The county's Mobile Library page has the route and the list of available resources.
Evenings: Where the Upper Ridge Holds Its Meetings
The same room also serves as the Upper Ridge's meeting hall. On November 11, the Magalia Beautification Association met there from noon to 3 p.m., and the Paradise Ridge Fire Safe Council met from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. The park's own board meets on Thursday, November 12, from 6 to 7 p.m. The URCC holds a public meeting on Thursday, December 3, from 6 to 8 p.m.
Thanksgiving week is the one quiet stretch. Senior Fitness and yoga still run Monday through Wednesday, then the calendar is empty Thursday, November 26, through Saturday, November 28. The MarketMobile is back that Sunday.
The Calendar From Publish Day to the Lighting
| Date | Time | At the Magalia Community Center |
|---|---|---|
| Thu, Nov 12 | 6 to 7 p.m. | Magalia Community Park board meeting |
| Sundays Nov 15, 22, 29 | 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. | Farmers MarketMobile |
| Mondays and Wednesdays | 9:30 to 10:15 a.m. | Senior Fitness |
| Tuesdays Nov 17, 24, Dec 1 | 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. | Gentle Yoga with Gina |
| Thu to Sat, Nov 26 to 28 | None | No events listed |
| Wed, Dec 2 | Noon to 4 p.m. | Butte County Mobile Library |
| Wed, Dec 2 | 5 to 7 p.m. | Kids Paint Parties by Dawn |
| Thu, Dec 3 | 6 to 8 p.m. | URCC public meeting |
| Fri, Dec 4 | 6 to 7 p.m. | Christmas Tree Lighting & Children's Craft Party |
Friday, December 4: The Park's Own Night
The tree lighting is the one event on this list that Magalia Community Park put on its own calendar. In February the park's events and volunteer committee drafted its major events for 2026. Those included an Easter Egg Hunt and Pancake Breakfast in March, a fall gala, Halloween on October 31 and a Christmas tree lighting on the first Friday in December. That Friday is December 4. The park's calendar lists a Christmas Tree Lighting & Children's Craft Party from 6 to 7 p.m. that evening.
The next day, the lower Ridge holds its own celebration. On Saturday, December 5, PRPD's Holiday Festivities at Terry Ashe Recreation Center in Paradise will have a craft faire, Santa's arrival, singing by Tiny Voices and another tree lighting. The Butte365 listing gives the hours as 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 6626 Skyway and says admission is free. PRPD charges craft faire vendors $50 for a food booth and $65 for a non-food booth.
That gives the Ridge two tree lightings on back-to-back nights. Magalia's comes first, on Friday evening, in the clubhouse that a group of neighbors decided in 2019 was worth keeping.
The Speicher Real Estate team works on the Upper Ridge, and the clubhouse calendar is one of the things we tell people about when they ask what winter is like up here. If you're near South Park Drive and wondering what your home is worth this season, ask us for a free home valuation and we'll go over it with you.
