Quote of the Week
“Becoming a sanctuary church means that we are willing to commit a civil act of disobedience and to break the law in order to honor our church’s commitment to love, justice and equity.”
— Rev. Tim Kutzmark on why Fresno’s Unitarian Universalist Church is becoming a sanctuary for undocumented immigrants facing deportation
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This Week in Fresnoland
As Trump cracks down on immigration, a Fresno church plans to offer sanctuary
Fresno’s Unitarian Universalist Church plans to become a “sanctuary church” during the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, Fresnoland’s Gisselle Medina reported.
A sanctuary church provides shelter, meals and legal guidance for people facing deportation. But they’re also in somewhat of an uncertain legal position, especially following federal policy changes on allowing immigration agents to make arrests inside so-called sensitive locations.
Rev. Tim Kutzmark characterized his church’s move as an act of civil disobedience to honor the church’s “commitment to love, justice and equity.”
They plan to be ready to offer sanctuary to an individual, couple or family facing deportation by the end of May, once they’ve considered all the legal and logistical realities.
But legal experts also told Gisselle they worry whether sanctuary churches could become targets of the Trump administration down the road.
This comes after a coalition of Sikhs, Quakers, and Baptists won a successful court ruling Monday, where a judge temporarily halted immigration raids in about 1,700 places of worship for violations of freedom of religion, according to the New York Times.
Fresno broke ground on a new park in southeast, after years of behind-the-scenes community efforts
Northeast Fresno has Woodward. Central Fresno has Roeding. At the edge of southwest Fresno, Kearney Park. And now, after a nearly 15-year long effort, southeast Fresno has broken ground on its own regional park, Fresnoland’s Danielle Bergstrom reported.
It all started after a group of parents from the Roosevelt Soccer Club approached the Southeast Fresno Community and Economic Development Association, or SEFCEDA about the lack of dedicated soccer fields in southeast Fresno.
That sent the organization’s director, Jose Leon Barraza (who’s also running to represent southeast Fresno on the city council in March’s special election), on a journey advocating for the city to build soccer fields where an old USDA agricultural station once stood.
After years and varying levels of support from bureaucrats and dogged community advocacy, construction on the park is underway.
Will downtown leaders resurrect the street fair on ArtHop nights?
Why Not Wednesday had its best month in February, and vendors are here for it, Fresnoland’s Julianna Morano and Diego Vargas reported.
But downtown businesses say it’s a far cry from the success they used to see during the street fair on ArtHop nights that drew tens of thousands of people (but got shut down by the city last July).
That’s part of what’s driving the Downtown Fresno Partnership, which runs Why Not Wednesday, to try to reintroduce a street fair downtown on ArtHop nights.
Some businesses, like Tioga-Sequoia in the Brewery District, are on board. The Fresno Arts Council, on the other hand, called the talks premature and worried it would bolster false claims that ArtHop is “dead.”
Eviction protection safe, for now, city councilmember says
Two weeks after a debate over the future of the city’s Eviction Protection Program, one city councilmember says officials have plugged the program’s half-a-million-dollar funding need with “carryover funds,” Fresnoland’s Omar S. Rashad reported.
That means the program should last through the end of the fiscal year in June. Although the City Attorney’s Office paused the program intaking new cases in late January, it resumed mid-February, Councilmember Miguel Arias told Fresnoland.
City Manager Georgeanne White confirmed she has a meeting next week about the program’s funding needs. The subject wasn’t discussed publicly at Thursday’s Fresno City Council meeting.
Read about other decisions from the council meeting – including City Attorney Andrew Janz’s $30,000 raise – in Omar’s council round-up.
Fresno County Board of Supervisors looks at new locations for HQ
Fresno County explored five options of what could become their new headquarters at their meeting Tuesday, Fresnoland’s Diego Vargas reported.
Among the options were replacing the 104-year-old Woodward Fountain site at Courthouse Park or adding a new building adjacent to the Juvenile Justice Campus south of the city.
The board has set aside $41.7 million for a new location alongside an additional $10.5 million for a new parking structure.
It’s the latest in county facility moves following the West Annex Jail opening last December, and a new courthouse planned to replace the controversial “honeycomb” in Courthouse Park by 2032.
Outside the Lines
Fresno’s first female police chief, Mindy Casto, was sworn into the role permanently at the Saroyan Theatre in downtown Fresno on Friday morning. Fresnoland
The former head of Fresno EOC’s Head Start, Rosa Pineda, alleges she was retaliated against after speaking out about financial issues at the nonprofit. Fresno Bee
Fresnolandia hosts discussed the possibility of a public safety tax and the D5 special election on this week’s episode. Fresnoland
Horse racing is officially cancelled for the Big Fresno Fair. The move comes after three horses had to be euthanized during last year’s season in Fresno. ABC30
The ACLU filed a lawsuit against the Border Patrol after a series of raids in Kern County in January. The suit alleges that agents slashed tires and called farmworkers “Mexican bitches.” CalMatters
Fresno Police arrested two Fresno men for posing as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in a social media scheme where they’d harass local businesses for clout. The impersonators were cited with a misdemeanor and released. Los Angeles Times
Andrew Adler, a 31-year-old from Connecticut, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in a $20 million loan scheme involving Bitwise Industries. The Business Journal
Two Fresno State men’s basketball team members won’t play in a game this weekend that sources told The Fresno Bee “could be tied to an internal investigation into alleged betting activity.” The Fresno Bee
The Fresno Area Hispanic Foundation launches their virtual, Spanish-language Latinapreneur program March 4 for aspiring entrepreneurs, and it’s not too late to sign up. Fresno Area Hispanic Foundation
Block Beat
TOWER DISTRICT: Rogue is back. Fresno’s widely acclaimed fringe festival kicked off six days of theater, comedy, music and performance art last night at Gazebo Gardens. Take a peek at the schedule and get your tickets to roam the Tower District over the next week at fresnoroguefestival.org.
SOUTHWEST FRESNO: Wellness to the West and Outdoor Afro are co-hosting a free fitness-centered event with outdoor walking, yoga and more at Kearney Triangle Park (847 Fresno St.) Saturday, March 1, starting at 9 a.m. Read more about it in their joint Instagram post.
CLOVIS: After months of community input and the threat of litigation, Clovis has finalized draft maps for how they plan to divvy up residents in the growing city of 127,000 into five districts for future elections. They’re asking residents to show up at the final public hearing this Tuesday, Mar. 4 at 6:00 p.m. where a final decision will be made on the map. To check out the maps and make comments, visit their website here.
DOWNTOWN: The Foundation for Fresno Unified Students presents the second annual “Spill the Tea” event in recognition of Women’s History Month with a panel discussion at 11 a.m. March 6 at the Palomino Event Center. For more information and ticket prices, visit the foundation’s website here.
CHINATOWN: The Chinatown Fresno Foundation is helping put on a “Small Scale Development Strategies Meet-up” Thursday, March 6, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at 846 F St. The event is aimed at those interested in small-scale real estate development and securing better buildings for your neighborhood. Register at the link.
FANCHER CREEK: Fresno officials hosted a ribbon-cutting for Sarah’s Court, a 120-unit affordable housing complex in southeast Fresno. The Business Journal
WOODWARD PARK: A new 63-unit luxury apartment complex in north Fresno on Audubon Drive and Nees Avenue, set for completion in 2026, will be named “The Hubert,” the investment firm funding the project announced. The Business Journal
ROOSEVELT/HUNTINGTON: Beverly Hills-based developer Sevak Khatchadourian wants to use the old University Medical Center campus in southeast Fresno for hundreds of housing units, following his purchase of the campus from Fresno County for $5.3 million. The Fresno Bee
