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Good morning! It’s Tuesday, June 9. This is Rob.
Cooler: Highs in the upper 80s today. Triple-digit heat is expected later this week. NOAA
Measure C? Fresno’s coalitions of local government agencies could use county transportation dollars — which voters approved 16 years ago — to build a high-speed rail facility on the south side. The Fresno Bee
Fight? But also Fresno City Hall could sue the rail authority. GV Wire
Sad news: A nonprofit animal shelter in Madera may soon close its doors. KMPH
Changing times? You’re invited to a panel conversation at 7 p.m. June 11 during Arte América’s “Arte, Pero Later,” moderated by Fresnoland founder and editor-in-chief Danielle Bergstrom and featuring affordable housing developer Betsy McGovern-Garcia, Fresno County Public Health Director Joe Prado, and “Shaan Punjab Di” radio host and Fresno Planning Commissioner Gurdeep Shergill. Fresnoland
1. City Hall takes on childcare
With affordable childcare out of reach of many, a Fresno city council member wants city hall to collaborate on a potential solution, Fresnoland’s Pablo Orihuela reports.
As leaders hammer out the details of the city’s cash-strapped budget, Councilmember Tyler Maxwell is seeking about $3.5 million to help families afford childcare.
Maxwell said that the cost for local families to enroll their kids into local childcare centers can be close to $24,000 annually, depending on how old the child is, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. He said the current sticker price is “untenable” for most families in the city.
Linda Gleason, director of Fresno County’s Cradle to Career: “Affordable, reliable childcare is not a luxury. It is essential infrastructure that supports working families, strengthens economic stability, and helps ensure children have the strong start they deserve.”
2. Will Fresno keep Advance Peace?
And childcare is far from the only service the City of Fresno wants to address amid ongoing budget hearings this week.
Councilmember Miguel Arias says he plans to put additional funding behind Advance Peace Fresno, one of the city’s most effective anti-violence programs.
Arias will seek what he described as full funding — about $750,000 — to keep the lights into the new year.
Council President Nelson Esparza signaled support for the program in a message to Fresnoland, but it remains unclear whether there’s enough support at city hall to beef up the program’s funding.
Program leaders have noted a recent uptick in violence since their major funding was cut off by the Trump Administration last year.
3. How many people are homeless in Fresno?
The region’s long-awaited headcount of the unhoused population finally emerged this week, but it wasn’t immediately clear what — if anything — the new numbers mean.
The Fresno Madera Continuum of Care released not only its long-delayed 2025 — which, ABC30 reported, showed a 9.2% increase in regional homelessness — they also released the preliminary 2026 data, but couldn’t immediately say what it means.
City and county officials planned a joint news conference at noon today at City Hall, where they’ll go over the latest data and explain a new methodology for counting and surveying the local unhoused population.
Today’s newsletter was edited by Fresnoland’s Omar S. Rashad.
