Ridgecrest OKs 3D-printed motel rooms made from recycled plastic

Lodging made mostly from recycled plastics is coming to Kern County.

An extended-stay hotel in Ridgecrest won approval last week for 14 residential units that will be 3D-printed in Southern California before being hauled in a flatbed truck, hoisted on a crane and bolted onto new foundations.

Thirteen will be one-bedroom units measuring 540 square feet, and one measuring 900 with two bedrooms. The larger building is priced at $199,000.

Azure Printed Homes, the Culver City startup manufacturing them, says the building material will be composed 60 percent of recycled plastic sourced from an industrial user chosen for its consistency, with the rest consisting of fiberglass for rigidity and a stabilizer to protect against ultraviolet light exposure.

Azure co-founder Gene Eidelman said there’s nothing like this project anywhere.

“This is the first subdivision anywhere in the world that are homes that are 3D printed from recycled materials,” he said.

Heather Spurlock, a Ridgecrest planning analyst, said there’s been a constant need in Ridgecrest for extended-stay accommodations in the city because of vendors coming and going at China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station.

But the city has seen nothing like this, Spurlock said.

“We’re excited to see something different,” she added. “It might change people’s perception for what people could build for their backyards.”

The housing project is technically a commercial project because it’s an expansion of the Oasis Motel off China Lake Boulevard.

Surrounding property owners expressed concerns about potential noise, light and traffic, Spurlock said, and so the city made sure to require block walls be placed around the area where the new units will be built. The Planning Commission voted unanimously Wednesday to approve the project.

Eidelman said Azure has orders totaling more than $5.5 million for recycled-plastic homes, which he noted take a full day to 3D-print.

He said they’re a popular concept for rental units because of the state’s housing shortage and rising interest rates. The buildings are about 30 percent less expensive than conventional homes and faster to build while also being positive for the environment, in part because there’s no waste created, he said.

The units can be outfitted with a solar panel and home battery, Eidelman said. They provide good insulation and they’re soundproof, he added, with drywall inside ready for hanging a picture or a television.

The material lends itself to a curved design and a unique look, but the interior feels like a normal residence, Eidelman said.

“On the inside you wouldn’t know it’s 3D printed,” he said.

Azure is looking to supply, for the rental market, accessory dwelling units such as state policymakers have encouraged to help address the housing shortage.

The company hasn’t got any ADUs for sale yet but has a 180-square-foot in mind that would have a living room, kitchenette and shower with a dropdown bed, all for $39,900.

The Ridgecrest project is now in the phase of planning for roadwork and utilities. That should take several months, allowing site work to begin by the end of this year, Eidelman said. He said the project is expected to be fully installed by early next year.