Month: January 2015

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A look at the newest bicycle trailhead in Clovis (picture tour)

On By jamesinclair

Let’s take a little break from Downtown Fresno and jump all the way up to the far reaches of Clovis, or more specifically, Shepherd and Sunnyside. Clovis has built a new park and trailhead for the “Dry Creek Trail” that runs south and eventually connects with the Old Town Trail. In the future, the trail will continue north, and presumably link to the partially built trail to the west (Enterprise).

The trailhead includes some nifty new features, such as a bike repair station, a water fountain with a water bottle feature, some interesting art, maps, and more.

For some history, way back in July 2013, this project was announced, and I last looked at this project in August, when work had barely begun. Click to read more!

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CityView at Van Ness (Droge) now open

On By jamesinclair

Remember the photo tour from last Thursday? Well as of today, the building is open for people to move in.

The Fresno Bee posted some additional images, including some of the interior. The public spaces are looking great.

That Fresno Blog has an image of the retail space that is available. She also has news that the manager of Joe’s Steakhouse, across the street, is one of the new residential tenants. Apparently, they will extend their hours due to an expected increase in business.

Kiel Schmidt has linked to an album showing the process for the art that lines the outside of the building, which is looking great! Click to read more!

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Droge Building construction almost done (photo tour)

On By jamesinclair

The last time this blog visited the site of the Droge Building, on the corner of Van Ness and Inyo, it was June 2014 and the wooden frame was up. A couple of weeks ago, I stopped by to see what is almost the final product. Exterior anyway, the interior won’t be done until this summer.

Unlike every other residential project downtown, this one stands at 4 stories, and you can really feel the difference from the 2-3 that GV Urban builds. The extra height really makes the corner feel more urban. Also, as this project was done by the Fresno Housing Authority, we get a unique facade, and not the recycled one used by GV. Click to read more!

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A look at the construction of the Chaffee Zoo expansion (picture tour)

On By jamesinclair

It’s been just over a year since I posted a picture tour of the construction ongoing at Roeding Park. The construction is removing a significant amount of public park space to create an expanded zoo, with more parking.

Let’s take a look at how that’s going.

What I considered the main entrance, on Belmont, is closed off to vehicles. In red, is the fenced off area, where construction is onoging. The yellow line is the walking tour I took, along the fence. You can still park on Belmont and walk in via small entrances. The Ps are future parking, in what is parkland today.  Note the massive dirt lot across the street on the bottom, with the blue x. That could have made a perfect parking lot, while saving park space. But no. Click to read more!

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Will NIMBYs derail new Fresno infill plan?

On By jamesinclair

I was pleasantly surprised to see last month that the City Council approved the general plan update on a vote of 5-2. Honestly, I expected them to punt it to 2015 on some sorry excuse about a need for more input. If you haven’t been following the new plans puts a focus on infill growth, rather than sprawl.


Mayor Ashley Swearengin, who championed the plan, said the real work is just beginning as the city now must take steps to implement the document’s vision.

“Excellent vision and excellent execution may not be enough,” she told the council. “We will all challenge each other to execute as best as we can.” Click to read more!

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Beautiful countryside to make way for massive 5,000 home sprawl project

On By jamesinclair

There’s something almost sinister about the way a developer gushes about the natural landscapes, beautiful views, and rolling hills he is about to bulldoze to build cookie-cutter tract homes.

The Madera County Planning Commission approved the tentative map for the first phase of the project two and a half weeks ago. Now, the builder is working on detailed plans which will bring more than 850 homes to what Bob McCaffrey, the company’s chief executive officer, calls “the most romantic piece of land” he’s ever seen.

Tesoro Viejo — which will eventually have 5,190 homes on 1,600 acres — will follow the natural ebbs and flows of the land which includes rock formations, high and low elevations and a river that flows along the northern edge of the property.
Fresno Bee Click to read more!

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Surprise! Oil industry lied about massive gasoline price hike in California

On By jamesinclair

On New Year’s Eve, gas stations around California were crowded as motorists rushed to fill up their tanks. They had heard the fear mongering from the oil industry that proclaimed a price hike of up to 76 cents was to be expected on New Years Day.

People all over the California are rushing to the gas station to make sure they start the New Year on a full tank.

“I read about it in the paper,” said Randy Salbaugh. Salbaugh made a special trip to the gas station. “I’m gonna run around, get all three vehicles, get’em all filled up and go into the New Year with a full gas tank,” he said.
CBS Sacramento Click to read more!