Quote of the Week
“There’s a lot of taco trucks out here, right? We never thought we would win, but it’s our third year. They do say, ‘The third one’s the lucky one.’”
-Jose Rojas, chef of Tacos Don Chicho, on winning his first Judge’s Choice Award at Fresno’s Taco Truck Throwdown
This Week in Fresnoland
Vote of confidence?
Fresno County voters roughed up more than a few incumbents in the now 13-day-old election — except in Fresno Unified school board races.
Hoover High incumbent Claudia Cázares could be headed for defeat but the other two incumbents on the ballot — Roosevelt High’s Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas and Fresno High’s Andy Levine — probably went to bed early on Election Night.
And even if Cázares goes on to lose her race, it won’t be by much.
The same can’t be said in two Fresno County supervisor races where two challengers — both currently serving on the Fresno City Council — haven’t sweated since the polls closed.
Garry Bredefeld is on the verge of a solid win over incumbent Steve Brandau, collecting almost 54% to Brandau’s 46%. And Luis Chavez already declared victory over Sal Quintero, with Chavez capturing more than 56% to the incumbent’s 43%.
Fresno voters’ enthusiasm for change was evident in regional and national races as well, with local voters going for Donald Trump and GOP Senate candidate Steve Garvey, in one of the lowest turnout presidential elections the county has seen in decades.
But many of those same voters apparently wanted to stay the course in Fresno Unified classrooms, despite calls for sweeping changes from the (typically) influential Fresno Teachers Association.
The teachers union refused to support any incumbents on the ballot and targeted two of the three for defeat — Levine and Cázares. They might also have included Jonasson Rosas, but she was still running unopposed when the union made its endorsement decisions.
The strength of Fresno Unified incumbents comes despite years of underperforming student test scores, frustrated teachers and a testy ongoing debate over the process to hire the district’s next superintendent. Oh, and a lot of opposition from Bullard-high leaders over the latest school bond, which is headed to victory, with nearly 64% of voters saying yes, so far.
Richardson grows lead — again
The tight race for the northeastern seat on the Fresno City Council persisted Friday, but the candidate once considered the race’s underdog saw his small lead grow once again.
Since emerging from election with a surprise lead, Nick Richardson has seen his lead over Roger Bonakdar grow consistently, if incrementally, with each subsequent update from the Fresno County Clerk’s Office.
The two political newcomers are competing to replace terme-out Councilmember Garry Bredefeld.
As of Friday, Richardson held 51.35% of the vote to Bonakdar’s 48.56%, a margin of 849 votes. Around 13,000 ballots remain uncounted on Friday but another update is expected Monday.
Bonakdar was widely regarded as the frontrunner, bolstered by significant establishment funding and high-profile endorsements from both labor unions, developers, and business organizations.
A new Taco Truck Throwdown champion
Tacos Don Chicho, a truck that sets up shop near Belmont and DeWitt Avenues, took home its first ever Judge’s Choice Award at Fresno’s 13th Taco Truck Throwdown, Fresnoland’s Gisselle Medina reported this week.
Jose Rojas, chef of Tacos Don Chicho, prepared a shrimp quesabirria taco for the contest last week. In an interview with Fresnoland shortly after winning, Rojas said it was his third time entering the contest and said he was excited to celebrate the victory.
And central Fresno favorite Tacos Pinto, which typically sets up at the Kwik Serve at West and Shaw, took home the coveted People’s Choice Award.
In the michelada competition, Miche Firme returned to the throwdown and won both the People’s Choice and Judge’s Choice trophy. This is Miche Firme’s fourth year in a row winning either one or both of the competitions.
Meanwhile, Chef Greg, who previously registered as Javier’s Mexican Restaurant for the competition, took home the People’s Choice Award for best salsa, while Papi’s Mex Grill received the top salsa Judge’s Choice Award.
Community Health System pushes back on misspending claims
A major hospital operator in Fresno is trying to get a lawsuit thrown out that accuses it of misspending over a billion in public dollars, Fresnoland’s Julianna Morano reported this week.
Community Health System, operator of Community Regional Medical Center and Clovis Community Medical Center, filed a motion Tuesday to dismiss “with prejudice” a complaint brought forward in August by local nonprofits Cultiva La Salud and Fresno Building Healthy Communities.
The move marks the latest development on the lawsuit filed over three months ago, which alleges Community Health System illegally funneled $1 billion in public dollars meant to offset the cost of care for low-income patients at the downtown Fresno hospital instead toward lavish upgrades to the suburban medical campus in Clovis.
The public dollars in question came from two government programs that reimburse hospitals serving a large share of Medi-Cal patients: the Hospital Quality Assurance Fee Program and the Disproportionate Share Hospital Program.
In the motion for dismissal filed Tuesday, attorneys for Community Health System called the claims in the lawsuit “deficient” and disputed that the hospital system broke the law.
City to co-own public park
In a first for Fresno, a public park will be under the ownership of the city and a private owner at the same time, a move meant to unlock more public resources, Fresnoland’s Diego Vargas reported.
El Dorado Park, located on the Wesley United Methodist Church grounds on Barstow Avenue near Fresno State, was the site of a news conference on Nov. 7, where Fresno City Councilmember Tyler Maxwell announced the joint ownership.
The current park – including a playground, basketball court, community gardens, and a small patch of green space – was instigated and maintained by community groups to this point.
Maxwell explained that the church faced financial struggles following the COVID-19 pandemic and even considered selling the property at one point, but settled on allowing the city to buy into joint ownership of the 1.65 acre park for $530,000.
But, Jackie Holmes, president of El Dorado Park Community Development Corporation, said some in the neighborhood remain skeptical about the city’s ability to deliver the park as promised. Holmes said city leaders haven’t had a great track record with public spaces in the neighborhood.
Outside the Lines
The Fresno Police Department is using artificial intelligence to write police reports, one of the first departments in California to do so. KVPR
“Legal aid centers report receiving hundreds of inquiries from immigrants wondering what they should do ahead of Trump’s promised mass deportations.” The Los Angeles Times
Check out the latest Fresnolandia podcast, where we recap the election results with Fresno County Supervisor-elect Luis Chavez. Fresnoland
The Fresno Monopoly game was officially unveiled this week, in a gathering at the Chaffee Zoo. The Business Journal
Block Beat
Fresno State: The public is invited to Small Business Saturday from noon to 6 p.m. on Nov. 30 at Campus Pointe. More info
Fashion Fair: Barnes & Noble hosted a grand opening of its new bookstore this week at Fresno Fashion Fair, 639 E. Shaw Ave. The new mall bookstore sets up shop in the space formerly occupied by GUESS, near Macy’s.
Downtown: A new baseball training facility is planning to open south of Freeway 41 in January. The Fresno Business Journal
Northwest: “Fresno’s electric car market may receive a charge in the near future with Tesla making plans for a pair of luxury showrooms in north Fresno.” The Fresno Business Journal
Downtown: “On a Roll Sushi Mexican Japanese Bar located in Downtown Fresno celebrated its soft opening Thursday following an ownership change to Itati Lopez, who has more than 12 million followers on TikTok and over two million followers on Instagram.” The Fresno Business Journal
