Happy Friday! Isabel Santos-Gonzalez, Fresnoland’s Development and Communications Manager, here.
A few weeks have passed since the June 7th primaries and we wanted to thank our community for reading and sharing our first Fresnoland election guide. Our team spent weeks assembling this guide to serve as a comprehensive information source and answer questions about the individuals running for office.
We sent questionnaires to the candidates running for the Fresno City Council, Fresno County Board of Supervisors, and Madera County Board of Supervisors. We asked the candidates about their positions on affordable housing, sprawl, public transportation, homelessness, infrastructure, employer subsidies and more. This enabled us to gather, on the record, candidates’ thoughts about essential policy issues facing our region.
To allow community members see donation totals, we sorted through all available campaign contribution data and compiled interactive charts that further examined each individual donation by categories: Developer/Contractor, PAC, Business, Labor Union, and Retired/Individual. It’s essential that the community recognizes how special interest money can impact the decisions taking place at the city and county levels.
The Fresnoland team is already looking ahead to the November election and exploring how to add even more features to the guide we plan to release ahead of that election.
Will you consider chipping in $5, $10, $15, or more to support our work? As an independent nonprofit newsroom, we rely on the generosity of our community to keep our stories and guides free for all!
Fresno renters in unsafe conditions may receive relocation assistance from city.
The Fresno City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that would help renters who have been displaced by uninhabitable living conditions.
Fresno homebuyers can qualify for $17,000 in assistance. The city’s looking to help even more
Fresno residents looking to buy a home may qualify for grants through Bank of America’s Community Homeownership Commitment.
A turkey testicle festival and water projects; how Fresno County plans to spend COVID money
The Fresno County Board of Supervisors awarded $14 million in federal stimulus funds to projects that ranged from a turkey testicle festival to water infrastructure.
Documenters program expands participatory civic media opportunities for all residents
We’re teaming up with City Bureau to expand our Documenters program and will launch a third cohort this fall. Applications are open now!
This week’s top news around Fresno
- What South Fresno residents need to know about air quality. [Fresno Bee ]
- In an initial hearing, the Fresno City Council voted 5-2 on an ordinance that will give councilmembers and the mayor significant raises. [Fresno Bee]
- The Fifth District Court of Appeal has denied Adventure Church’s attempt to block the sale of Tower Theatre to the City of Fresno. The city’s purchase will move forward. [Fresno Bee]
- Mayor Jerry Dyer has proposed a new system for the Advance Peace program, in which the funding will be dispersed through grants with added parameters. [ABC 30]
- After a lengthy debate, Clovis City Council voted 3-2 to approve development-impact fees. [Fresnoland Documenters]
- Kerman has a General Fund deficit of $3.7 million in FY ’22/’23 budget. [Fresnoland Documenters]