photo tour Archives - Stop and Move

Categories : Fresno TransitTags : ADA bench bus stop construction update crosswalk FAX fresno area express photo tour shelters upgradeLeave a comment

A look at Fresno’s improved bus stops

On April 28, 2020April 28, 2020 By jamesinclair

Last November, I reported that Fresno Area Express (FAX) received funds to update various bus stops. The upgrades include making them ADA accessible, so they can be used by those in wheelchairs, and adding new amenities like seating and shelters. Unlike the three-plus year odyssey that has been the reconstruction of the Manchester Transit Center, FAX has moved very quickly with these updates, and they’re almost all done.

For reference, here was the render they shared:

And here is what they look like in real life. Remember, they were previously just a sign planted on dirt.

You can see the new crosswalk and accessible ramps from the sidewalk to the island. Click to read more!

Categories : Fresno High Speed Rail Housing RetailTags : brewery district broadway community hospital construction update downtown fresno fulton street h street high speed rail photo tour update van ness Warehouse Row6 Comments

Belated Downtown Fresno Photo Update

On April 18, 2020April 18, 2020 By jamesinclair

I went downtown a couple of months ago (January) to take photos, as I usually do. I hesitated on posting them because frankly, not much has changed over the last year. This is in contrast to five years ago, when there was always a new building popping up.

Then corona hit, and the photos seemed even less relevant, but now I’ve changed my mind on that. With the virus, everything is essentially frozen in time. Nothing is under construction, nothing will be open any time soon, and nobody is lining up to lay down piles of cash on new development. That is, even if the virus suddenly disappeared tomorrow, there are too many questions about the economy for investors. Will people get their jobs back? Will there be a change in demand for office space? Click to read more!

Categories : Fresno RetailTags : construction update dead malls food hall manchester center manchester mall photo tour14 Comments

Your Annual Manchester Center Photo Update

On February 23, 2020February 23, 2020 By jamesinclair

Is it really a construction update if not much construction is going on? Perhaps that’s a bit of a spoiler as I do my annual tour of what’s going on with Manchester Center. As a reminder, here are some previous posts on the topic:

The photos I’m posting today are a few weeks old, but with these timelines, who cares?

We start outside where the only real changes could be found. Ironically, all the construction has taken place at Sears – which is owned independently. That is, while the Sears building is connected to the mall, it’s not part of it. If you weren’t aware, last year Sears decided to empty out half their store and lease the space to two (or three?) other companies. This year, they decided to vacate the remaining space as well (hence the store closing signs). Click to read more!

Categories : Clovis RetailTags : Clovis construction update old town photo tour5 Comments

January 2018 Old Town Clovis Construction Update

On March 6, 2018October 27, 2019 By jamesinclair

All the changes at FAX took my attention last month, but now I finally have time to post my latest update on the changes going on in Old Town Clovis!

Previous updates:

September 2017
February 2017
May 2016
July 2015
February 2015

We start in the center, which is the area surrounding the new Centennial Plaza. Construction here is all done, and the new new buildings and plaza are looking good.

For reference, this is what the area looked like in 2011, according to Google Streetview:

And after the plaza was built, but before the buildings went up:

Here’s what we have now:

I like the sign.

Everything looks good except this little service alley – way too exposed.

Sidewalk is tight, but it wasn’t a big lot.

I really like this indoor/outdoor dining area.

Moving to the side of the building. The entrance to the dining area is via the plaza.

And the back. They did a really good job here, as this side is just as attractive as the front.

This is what the other new building looks like from the back. Not as nice.

Reminds me of a motel.

By comparison…

Ok, moving to the second building, there is also retail on the first floor. Here is the entrance.

Plaza to the right, Pollasky to the front

It is part of the Me n Eds chain. This is the view from the street.

Plaza in the center looks nice.

On Pollasky, this is the front.

This entrance is a disappointment. The stairs lead to an entrance to Blast and Brew…but a sign points you to the side. There is also a retailer up these steps.

And from a little bit down the street.

For reference, this is what was proposed, specifically the building on the right side of the plaza. The clock feature wasn’t built, the retail isn’t at street level, and windows were removed.

Final photos of this project:

Overall a success, although I would declare the building on the left the winner.

It’s good added infill in “downtown” Clovis, and improves the street. Instead of a parking lot, there are two new buildings with retail on the ground, and a decent product above them.

Moving away, we see progress on the hotel being built on Clovis Avenue. This one is “special” because the parking will be underneath the building, something uncommon in the area where surface parking dominates. Construction has been really slow.

It’s ok.

And finally, our last bit of Clovis infill. These new homes are unique because they front the Fresno-Clovis rail trail, instead of a street. I was excited to see what they’d do, but the end product is pretty disappointing.

Part of the project included building the same crap you see everywhere else, except the driveways front Sierra, which is rare for new development.

Here is the alley where vehicles can access the new trail homes, on the right.

The back of these homes looks like the front of most other places, except the fence is there to hide the backyard. It looks odd.

I feel like they should have just fenced the entire back yard in.

No idea if this parking is legal.

And there we see the bike trail and an existing hotel.

The trail is pretty popular.

Looking back at the new homes, the front is a whole bunch of fencing too.

It’s like a house with no front or back, just sides.

Ok, fine, this is the front. But it sure is ugly. Windows too expensive these days?

The other new one has nicer shielding.

I understand they would want a fence to make it clear this is a private property and not part of the trail, but why does it look like a chicken coop?

And then the fence for the homes that front Sierra.

Boring boring boring

Lots of bikes out though.

So that’s it for Clovis infill!

Once that hotel is finished, I’m not aware of any “real” infill construction in the city coming up. And no, I don’t count a CVS being built on a strip mall parking lot as infill. That’s a little disappointing. The first project here is a big win, and the other two are better than the status quo. Shame nothing is in the pipeline. I guess my attention will shift back to Downtown Fresno, which had a couple of years of construction inactivity (aside from Fulton Mall), but is supposed to be picking up again.

Categories : Fresno RetailTags : blackstone FAX food court fresno manchester center manchester mall marketplace photo tour renovation retail4 Comments

Is the Manchester Center Food Hall Really Coming?

On January 21, 2018October 27, 2019 By jamesinclair

I love food halls, or em, an “artisan food community”. I’ve enjoyed them in Los Angeles, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, and Washington DC. So naturally, I was excited when one was announced for Fresno back in September 2016. Especially because the location was to be inside the Manchester Center Mall.

The plans include a new mall entrance, a redesigned facade with signage, a marketplace or “artisan food community” for chefs, food trucks and restaurants, an exterior shopping area and an outdoor events plaza.
Fresno Bee

At the time, it was supposed to be ready “a long way off, probably opening in late spring of 2017, Bagunu says, though construction has started.”

In January 2017, this was the update:

Inside the mall, renovations are going hot and heavy in the former Gottschalks store, though you wouldn’t know it because windows covered in black plastic hide the mess. It’s the beginning stages of what the mall calls a marketplace – essentially a fancy food court. Click to read more!

Categories : Fresno TransitTags : blackstone brt bus rapid transit construction courthouse FAX fresno fresno area express fulton manchester center photo tour q update12 Comments

A Final Look at Construction on Fresno’s New Fake BRT Line “Q”

On January 16, 2018October 27, 2019 By jamesinclair

Fresno’s new fake “BRT” (bus rapid transit) line, branded as “Q” is set to open Fall of 2017. Well, that’s what the website says.

Key Dates
Construction Kickoff: June 2016
Construction: 2016-2017
Testing: 2017
Launch: Fall 2017

In reality, the bus line was delayed yet again to February or March of this year (originally, it was expected way back in 2012).

And this time they really mean it, so they’re hosting public meetings to educate people on what the bus line is. The first one is this week:

Shaw & Blackstone Corridor
January 17, 2018 | 5:30 pm–7:00 pm
Tornino’s
5080 N Blackstone Ave
Fresno, CA 93710

Quick aside: This is a complete failure of public outreach and engagement. Asking people to come to YOU, on a certain date, at a certain time is public outreach in name only. FAX knows where the customers are (on the bus and at the stations). FAX should come to the people. Nobody is going to take time and money out of their day to go to a random location to hear some official talk about a kiosk. Worse: The three meetings are in the same time period (5:30pm-7pm) so anyone who works during those hours is out of luck.

Depressing. I recently read about a city which launched a new bus service and advertised it by mailing info to every house within 1/4 mile of the route. That’s outreach.

Also, at some point they should maybe tell the public how this will affect the two existing bus lines that currently run on Blackstone and Kings Canyon. I’ve yet to see any information about that.

Anyway, let’s take a look at the construction shortly before the new line opens. This post looks at a regular stop in Blackstone, the Manchester Transfer Center, and the Van Ness stop by the Courthouse Transfer Station.

Previous updates:
September 2017
January 2017

We start at a random bus stop on Blackstone and Clinton. This location previously had a regular bus stop, shelter, and bench.

Like all the Q bus stops, the sidewalk was pushed out into the roadway. This is because the stations require extra space, and because it means the bus doesn’t have to pull out of traffic. Pulling out slows the bus because drivers don’t let the bus merge back in.

Oddly enough, this stop already had a shelter and bench, so the sidewalk was already wider. They actually REMOVED sidewalk in this process….why?

You can see the sidewalk to the left is all even, rather than extending back a bit towards the store. This actually causes the “newly widened” sidewalk to have a narrow pinch point. Couldn’t those electrical boxes be kept in the back?

On the other end, the sidewalk extension doesn’t go all the way to the corner. Why?

Here’s looking north.

And with a bus that didn’t stop.

Some people have worried that extending the stop out has made the lane too narrow. Nope. Look at the blue car in relation to the width of the lane. The sidewalk could have been extended another 5 feet or more.

The stops have bicycle racks.

Garbage cans.

A semi-transparent roof. I don’t know what’s up there.

This stop was not fortunate enough to get seating with back support.The stop previously had two benches, so this is actually a downgrade.

There are now ticket machines.

They take credit cards

Everything is in English and Spanish.

….except the “language” button. Really. Oddly, “Cards” is in white text in English, while all the other English is in black text.

The map is still locked away

The (unnecessarily large) electrical box is to support the kiosk and also a time estimate, although I didn’t notice a screen.

And one last look.

Now we move to the Manchester Center Transfer Center. This place closed a year ago. When I visited in August, I was shocked at how little progress had been made at what is the busiest bus stop in Fresno.

Four months later, it’s not looking much better.

A year of construction and they couldn’t even level the place.

For reference, this is what the old shelters looked like

A lot of FAX buses will stop here. The stop at the end is for Q.

Very similar to the previous stop we looked at.

The ticket kiosk and map.

But two benches, one with back support, one without.

This trash can is open for business.

There are bike racks, but they were installed incorrectly. They should be rotated 90 degrees, or else you can only lock 4 bikes rather than 6.

Note the location of the push button. This is a good installation. The location we’ll look at downtown was installed badly.

The Blackstone crosswalk. This was built brand new in 2016…and then never opened. They ripped it all up and built it again. Your Fresno money at work. (Although the newer design is much better). However, the push button is not well located.

(The pedestrian crossing is functional, I pushed the button and it quickly changed)

From the parking lot.

And now we go downtown to the Courthouse Transfer Center on Van Ness.

Q will stop at island platform, the other routes along the courthouse park like always.

Same design here as the other stops.

Except this one has a longer roof than the random stop on Blackstone. Only one bench though.

Other direction

New crosswalks built to the islands at a new signal. Remember earlier how I called out the push button? These are badly installed because they are relatively out of the way.

One thing they did do well is install the vehicle detection. See the circle and lines in the pavement? That’s how the traffic signal knows a bus is waiting. A bus can stop behind the white line, load, and then when ready to cross, move forward to trigger the traffic signal. (As long as the drivers are told to do this).

The angle of the red/green arrows is a novelty in Fresno. But the signal on the far left is a waste of money.

The other shelters in the transfer center were updated. I think the design is pretty cool, but I love Art Deco.

For reference this is what the old ones looked like. They were horrendously ugly, but they provided a lot more cover.

Is it too much to ask for the shelters to be both attractive and large?

That’s it for the Fresno FAX Q update!

Service is supposed to start soon, and hopefully it improved the lives of those using the bus system to get around. Faster boarding will speed up trips, and buses every 10 minutes (during peak hours) will be well used.

Shame it took a decade to built what many other cities call “standard bus service.”

My next post will be a look at construction inside the Manchester Center Mall. The new food hall was supposed to open this winter, will it? (Hint: No).

Categories : Fresno TransitTags : brt bus rapid transit construction update downtown FAX fresno manchester center photo tour7 Comments

A Look at BRT Construction in Fresno

On October 2, 2017October 27, 2019 By jamesinclair

Construction should not take this long.

We last looked at BRT (“bus rapid transit”) construction in Fresno back in January. Eight months later, the thing still isn’t done. We’re not talking about a new tunnel, a new corridor, or anything of significance; just sidewalk extensions and shelters. And apparently that’s just too much for Fresno to manage in a timely manner. It is embarrassing how little is being built and how long that is taking.

This is a project that has been in the works since around 2008. The city council finally signed off on it in 2014. It was supposed to be done, this time for real, in 2016. Now it is supposed to be done in 2018. Maybe.

High Speed Rail is also plagued by delays. The Central Valley segment was supposed to be finished up by the end of this month. In that case though, the delays are a little bit more understandable. It is a brand new corridor, full of tunnels and viaducts. Republican lawmakers have thrown every bit of obstruction that they could muster at it. Property owners took up lawsuit after lawsuit. Out-of-state interests poured in money to kill it.

So more understandable, but certainly still disappointing.

Anyway, this post will look at BRT construction, next one will be HSR.

We start with a typical “station” on Blackstone Avenue. All along the route, sidewalks have been bumped out to provide space for these stops. This one is located adjacent to a delicious Ethiopian Restaurant.

There is nothing about this that screams “two year construction project.”

Some of the branding is in place with the ticket machines.

The placement of this station, as is the case with many of them, is pure garbage.

Look at where the nearest marked crosswalk is.

This stop further up Blackstone is even worse.

This is how you encourage illegal crossings.

And then get sued when someone dies.

Now we move to Manchester Center. This is a transfer center that closed in January for construction. One of the busiest stops in the bus system. Surely a priority right?

The main building (where passes were sold) is still there.

All the other shelters are gone. Does this look like 9 months of hard work?

On my last post, I mentioned a brand new crosswalk and curb ramp at a new traffic signal.

So brand new that in January it wasn’t officially “open” yet.

January.

Now.

What a ridiculous waste of money.

January

Now

And now onto the downtown transfer center, which does look close to being done.

Coming from Fulton Street, you see a new traffic signal.

BRT buses will actually stop in the center of the roadway, rather than entering the station loops.

The new median platforms. Really the one and only true BRT feature.

The BRT stop has a unique design where the two directions face each other.

Meanwhile, the rest of the station got new shelters as well. While the new ones are certainly more modern and more attractive, the old ones appear to be larger and provide more shelter.

Old

New

There is a variety of seating, but not enough shade.

Another loop area

And the opposing BRT platform

I’ve seen 200-house developments go up faster than this. They need to hurry up and get it done.

Categories : Fresno Housing RetailTags : construction construction update deconstruction downtown fresno fulton mall fulton street peeve's public house photo tour tioga33 Comments

Fresno Fulton Mall / Street September 2017 Construction Photo Tour

On September 21, 2017November 18, 2019 By jamesinclair

This is a comprehensive look at the Fulton Mall (future Fulton Street) in Fresno, 2 months before construction is scheduled to end. Fresno is spending around $20 million to eliminate a pedestrian mall and re-open it to vehicles and vehicular parking. The intention behind it is to bring economic vitality to the corridor.=&0=&

Categories : Clovis RetailTags : Centennial plaza construction update farmers market hotel no surrender laser tag old town clovis photo tour sierra vista4 Comments

Old Town Clovis Construction Update

On September 8, 2017October 27, 2019 By jamesinclair

I must admit, losing all those photos in the old blog posts was discouraging. While I still have all those photos saved on multiple hard drives, there are just too many to find, upload, and relink. It essentially made years of posts useless.

And that discouragement made July suddenly turn to September.

But I am back now, with fresh photos that will be hosted on Flickr. Are there any guarantees that Flickr won’t do the same thing? Nope, but I guess that’s a risk we must take.

I’m starting with a nice and easy post: a look at the newest construction in Old Town Clovis.

Last updates:
February 2017
May 2016

The most obvious change is that the two new buildings next to Centennial Plaza are almost done. Not only are they new (a novelty in old town), but they’re the biggest yet. 3 stories isn’t exactly a skyscraper, but they do make an impression, and frankly, a nice one. I’m not in love with the architecture, but it will do.

I am impressed that both buildings went up.

And here they are seen on a day where the air quality wasn’t quite the best

The only other development in Old Town Clovis right now is the new hotel which will be placed over parking. Not the most exciting development, but I believe this makes for more non-road construction happening in Downtown Clovis than Downtown Fresno.

And finally, Sierra Vista Mall, just outside Old Town, has a great new laser tag arena + kids play area. The laser tag was a blast!

High tech too. You can watch other people play, and they have someone monitoring to make sure no one is cheating. Other high tech features include multiple weapon types + a health system (you can be a medic).

Bonus:

Don’t forget to check out the Farmer’s Market before the season ends!

They have a museum I had never noticed.

Next post will be a complete look at construction on the Fulton Mall.

Categories : Fresno High Speed RailTags : aerial construction update downtown fresno fresno high speed rail HSR madera photo tour4 Comments

Aerial Shots of California High Speed Rail Construction Released!

On May 11, 2017October 27, 2019 By jamesinclair

The California High Speed Rail Authority have recently posted aerial shots of the various construction sites that are well underway in the California Central Valley, primarily around Fresno. They tend to post updates on their official Flickr account once or twice a month, but most are taken at ground level. Since the Google Earth satellite images are unfortunately over 2-year old at this point, these new photos, taken last week, provide a unique vantage point. Seeing the action from above, you can really understand the scale of the various bridges, and make sense of how they fit in.

The Cedar Viaduct is probably the most important construction area right now because of the impact it will have. The bridge will take trains over CA-99, which sees around 95,000 vehicles passing by every day. Many people are still unaware that HSR is actually happening, so seeing the bridge take shape will have a large impact.

All photos courtesy of the CA HSR Authority

In downtown Fresno, they’re finally finishing the new Toulumne Street bridge. This bridge will carry cars, bicycles and pedestrians over the right of way. The Stanislaus Street bridge, seen above it, will be demolished because it is not tall enough.

A bit north, they’re tunneling under CA-180 to let the trains go through. The trains will go under the highway, under the freight line, and under the canal.

They’ve also rebuilt CA-99 to create a new right-of-way for the rail line.

Another hugely impact project, in terms of visibility, will be where the rail line crosses over the Union Pacific tracks and then over the San Joaquin River – all right next to busy CA-99. This will be extremely visible to passing motorists.

The wet winter means the bridge over the river has been stalled since December.

Rural drivers will go over the rail line in a new overpass, in Madera.

A bridge almost done over a creek.

And the very first active construction site, a bridge over the Fresno River, is wrapping up.

Wrapping up? Yes, the first construction package was for the heavy stuff in the Fresno area – bridges, tunnels, and viaducts. The train stuff – tracks and wires – are part of another construction package that hasn’t been handed out. The idea is to have the full right of way cleared, prepped, and ready to go, and then the last crew comes in and places the rail quickly and uniformly.

Once again, check out the photos in the official Flickr account and keep them bookmarked because new photos get uploaded at least every month, and usually more frequently.