Quote of the Week

“I take it [rent] down every month. They bring it right frickin back – the same money order. Last time, he taped it to my fence. He taped my money order with a little bitty piece of tape to my fence.”

— Patricia Shawn, one of many La Hacienda Mobile Home park (formerly Trails End) residents who was recently served an eviction notice, in part because of supposed nonpayment of rent. Payments were returned, allegedly because Harmony Community simply refused to accept rent.

This Week in Fresnoland

Residents of La Hacienda Mobile Home Park were served evictions. Advocates say the violations are just an excuse to put people on the streets.

This miserable story is brought to us by Fresnoland senior editor Dympna Ugwu-Oju. Back in October, Harmony Community sent out 60 day notices that said to follow the new rules or face eviction. Residents moved quickly, clearing debris, repairing pavement, and removing sheds and decks.These were not cheap repairs. People went into debt to abide by these new rules. And yet, in January, some residents were served notices of eviction proceedings and compelled to respond within five days or risk a court decision against them. 

Mariah Thompson, an attorney with California Rural Legal Assistance, said, “These evictions are not based on non-payment of rent or anything like that. What they (Harmony) are saying is that they should be able to kick people out of their homes.” She went on to say that Harmony Community is clearly and definitely lying about their motives. 

On a barely related note, the Business Journal reported that Harmony Community seems to have invented a fake spokesperson. The fake name is a known pun and while Harmony reps claim he’s a real man who really exists, no person by that name turns up in any searches. His LinkedIn claims he’s an alumnus of UCLA, but they have no record of him. Bizarrely, it also lists him as a regional board member for the American Cancer Society. They’ve never heard of him either.    

Matthew Davies, the son of Harmony Communities CEO Bruce Davies left a supportive comment on a LinkedIn post by the fake spokesperson. “He is our hardest working employee and best communicator!!!!!” You know what? Sure. 

The EPA is taking a second look at that highway expansion we mentioned last week.

Fresnoland reported that Caltrans environmental review of the planned South Central Fresno interchange projects lacked public health analysis, the EPA decided to take a second look, Gregory Weaver writes.

Recall: Caltrans conducted an environmental review of their $140 million interchange improvements, concluding that the environmental impacts would be miniscule. Fresnoland reported that the review failed to analyze Nitrogen Oxides, which are very relevant to a project like this one. Moreover, they failed to provide analysis of public health impacts, ignoring the five schools and one juvenile detention center in close proximity to the project. 

The EPA will request that Caltrans “re-open interagency consultation” about potential air quality impacts if “new or additional information” is available for the interchange projects. 

Parents need Clovis Unified to provide transportation for students with disabilities, but the school district says it will come at a cost.

The proposal to contract with an independent transportation service could cost some families as much as $775 per week, according to this story from Lasherica Thornton in the Fresno Bee. FirstAlt, a transportation company, would provide non-emergency medical transport for students with “special transportation needs.” While they have contracted with school districts in the past, they’ve never provided services for medically fragile students in need of one-on-one nursing care. There is no confirmation that FirstAlt drivers would have the training to respond to things like epileptic seizures.  

So, the question becomes whether CUSD will provide aides to accompany the students on their trips. If they don’t, FirstAlt will provide, for a $50 fee, a monitor who would not be clinically or medically trained. Other logistical hurdles include – FirstAlt uses a fleet of personal vehicles including sedans, SUVs and minivans while the students needing this transportation service require wheelchairs or strollers, meaning that only one student could ride at a time. The company charges $80 for a one way trip, with additional fees for wheelchair-accessible vehicles ($25) as well as a $5 fee for safety equipment. 

And the kicker? CUSD won’t contract with FirstAlt directly, meaning that parents will have to pay the third-party company out of pocket, and it’s unclear if their insurance would cover even a portion of the costs.  

Are land trusts the answer to our affordable housing crisis?

Advocates and some city leaders say they very well could be in this story for Fresnoland by Megan Tagami, a freelance journalist. A community land trust is a nonprofit organization that, if well funded, uses its large resources to purchase land and build affordable housing on it. Then people can either purchase or rent the houses from the land trust at a much more affordable rate than market rate housing. Kiel Lopez Schmidt, executive director of the South Tower Community Land Trust, said he hopes to one day acquire land in the Tower District for community gardens and affordable housing. 

Back in November, the Fresno City Council gave the Central California Land Trust $222,500 to conduct a feasibility study. The stakes: prove you can add to Fresno’s affordable housing stock and we’ll give you the $1 million you actually asked for. Councilmember Arias argued that land trusts are just one arrow in the city’s quiver of affordable housing strategies. “It’s not a silver bullet for the housing crisis we have.” 

Woodlake, Lindsay, and Visalia in Tulare County have all declared states of emergency.

Snowmelt from the Sierra flooded the streets throughout Lindsay and Woodlake, Esther Quintanilla reports for KVPR Morning Edition. Lindsay city manager Joe Tanner said that the water coming through the creek overwhelmed their water system, while Ramon Lara, Woodlake city administrator, said that more than 20 homes were severely damaged. 

In Porterville, an evacuation order was issued for all homes and businesses on both sides of the Tule River between the Richard L. Schafer Dam at Lake Success to the east side of Road 284. While in Mineral King, a Tulare community, 100 people were stranded after the storms washed out their bridges and roads. Local reservoirs Success Lake and Kaweah Lake are nearing capacity due to continued rainfall and snowmelt.  

Tulare County’s going through it. You can check out this guide for how you can help impact communities impacted by storms. 

Block Beat

FIREBAUGH: Fresno County firefighters and CALFIRE worked quickly to reinforce a 2,500 ft section of the San Joaquin river with a sandbag wall in preparation for expected river flows. KMPH  

EAST FRESNO: The Fresno County Planning Commission decided to kick the can down the road – the can being a proposed support infrastructure site for Clovis Unified’s Terry Bradley Education Center. Fresnoland Documenters

SOUTHWEST FRESNO: The City of Fresno will rename three streets – Kings Canyon, Ventura and California – to “Cesar Chavez Boulevard.” Opponents say honoring the farmworker rights icon comes at the expense of the histories of Black communities in southwest Fresno. KVPR

BULLARD: Starbucks wants to put the Foster’s Freeze on North Palm out to pasture to make room for a new cafe, but the aging fast food joint has no intention of leaving. Fresno Bee

SELMA: Local law enforcement spent time and tax dollars busting about $200,000 worth of magic mushrooms. KMPH

Department of New Construction

WOODWARD PARK: A conditional use permit was filed on behalf of Trader Joe’s on North Friant Ave requesting to renew its existing Type 21 ABC license. 

SOUTHWEST: A conditional use permit was filed related to the construction of two retail buildings with drive-throughs on East Church Ave, west of South M.L.K. Jr. Blvd. 

SUNNYSIDE: Blossom Creeks Assisted Living has filed a plan amendment – rezone to expand from a six bed residential facility to a twelve bed facility at its location on South Apricot Ave. 

SUNNYSIDE: A conditional use permit was filed related to the construction of a one story retail food service building with a drive-through on East Grant Ave, south of Belmont and east of Fowler. 

Around Town

Positive Hennergy St. Patrick’s Day at Kocky’s Bar and Grill promises a potent combination of “Hennesy themed art” and St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. I don’t pretend to know what it means but it sounds like a perfectly excellent avenue to intoxication. Downtown Fresno

Holland Park West is hosting Holi, the hindu Festival of Colors, Love, and Spring on Sunday, March 19 from 1 – 5 p.m. All Events 

The second annual 🤭 Excuse me. The second annual 😂😂😂 oh my gosh, the second annual Miss Winkles Donut Dog W– 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Just click the link, it starts at 10 on Saturday, March 18. Miss Winkle’s Donut Dog Walk, make sure you donut miss it 💀 Facebook

Next Week in Public Meetings

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Tommy is the author of Toplines, the Fresnoland newsletter curating the top stories in the Central Valley. He thinks he's very funny.