Good morning! It’s Friday, April 17. This is Rob.
“Good day, sunshine”: Most sunny skies today and throughout the weekend with highs in the 70s and low 80s. Rain clouds could return early next week. NOAA
It’s free! Vintage Days returns to Fresno State. ABC30
Socks for kittens! Donate fuzzy socks to help to keep Fresno kittens warm. YourCentralValley
Flea marketing! Equis Botanica and Yoshi NOW announce the Chinatown Vintage Flea market, spring edition from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, April 19 at 14010 Kern St. in Chinatown. The event includes vintage vendors, arts and crafts, food and music. For more information
‘Building a fire’ U.S. soccer legend Mia Hamm will be the keynote speaker at the 26th annual Central California Women’s Conference. The Business Journal
1. High-speed rail, slow-moving business
If things (ever) go as planned, Fresno could see the area of Highway 99 and Shaw reopen by the end of the year, The Fresno Bee reports.
But the famously behind-schedule train is also disrupting business and causing a lot of headaches for the owners of one of the city’s most popular downtown restaurants.
KMPH reports that Libelula has been struggling to get customers in the doors, as the project guts already-limited downtown parking options.
Now, with the looming closure of Fresno Street for at least one full year, the owners are asking for the public’s patience and continued support to help keep the doors open.
Kim and Ian Cookson tell KMPH they hope to remain in their current location, but can’t rule out the possibility of relocating as a last resort.
2. Clovis OKs storage facility over objections
With councilmember Lynne Ashbeck calling it a “betrayal”, a divided Clovis City Council went ahead with plans to convert a long vacant lot into a storage facility, The Fresno Bee reports.
The council voted 3-2 to greenlight the two-story, 800-unit max self-storage facility on almost two and a half acres of land on Shaw Avenue.
The property has been vacant for nearly 50 years.
Project organizers have pushed back against public criticism that the facility would generate more noise and traffic in the neighborhood arguing that the new business would generate up to 85% less traffic than a similarly-size office building.
Ashbeck stood with angry residents and said the city was “chasing the bottom of land use.”
3. Crew clear brush ahead of another busy fire season
The offramp at westbound Highway 180 and Fowler Avenue closed Thursday afternoon for Caltrans landscaping operations, ABC30 reports.
With summer arriving earlier and earlier in the spring and overstaying its welcome into the fall and winter, Caltrans crews cleared away dry brush and tall grass, improving visibility for drivers and helping to minimize wildfire risk in the coming months.
Cal Fire says they expect fire danger to creep up beginning in May and remain high throughout the summer and into the traditionally cooler months.
Business is already picking up for firefighters across the state.
CalFire spokesperson Gary Couch: “We’re starting to run grass fires or vegetation fires earlier than last year.”
Today’s newsletter was edited by Fresnoland’s Omar S. Rashad.
