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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – City and region leaders gathered Friday to chopped the ribbon astatine a caller affordable lodging analyzable on Fresno’s Parkway Drive, a corridor officials accidental has agelong been associated with crime, poorness and neglect.
The project, known arsenic Manzanilla Commons, is a 63-unit improvement present unfastened to low-income and formerly unhoused families. Officials accidental the tract was antecedently location to a motel that Fresno leaders accidental had go a hub for convulsive transgression and quality trafficking.
“This is astir transforming the property," Mayor Jerry Dyer said. "Transforming the lives of radical surviving here.”
Dyer recalled responding to calls astatine the aged motel during his years arsenic a constabulary officer.
“The shootings, the quality trafficking, the cause sales, different types of convulsive crimes that were occurring, children that were being victimized close present connected this property,” Dyer said.
Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias, who represents the area, said metropolis leaders tried for years to enactment with the erstwhile spot owners earlier yet taking matters into their ain hands.
“In 2019, we nicely requested and asked the motel owners to halt renting their spaces to quality cause trafficking, and they didn’t," Arias said. "We asked the constabulary section to commencement arresting and enforcing cause crimes and quality trafficking situation much aggressively, and they couldn't.”
“We tried asking the bully way, we tried pleading with them, but it didn't work.”
Arias says the City bought the spot and decided to renovate it themselves to lick the problem.
The renovation was made imaginable done authorities Homekey backing and partnerships with section developers and work providers. Officials described it arsenic a triumph for lodging equity and long-neglected neighborhoods.
“Manzanilla Commons is our ngo successful action,” said Tyrone Roderick Williams, CEO of Fresno Housing. “This task isn't conscionable astir units. It's astir equity - it's astir bringing resources to a long, disinvested neighborhood.”
But not everyone astatine the ribbon-cutting agreed the occupation was done.
Local advocator Dez Martinez, who works intimately with unhoused assemblage members, says the city’s solemnisation ignored lingering problems successful the area.
“How tin helium beryllium truthful blessed to enactment america backmost into the ungraded you took america retired of?” Martinez said. “Just due to the fact that you painted the walls doesn't mean the pimps, the drugs, and the afloat bare women walking up and down the thoroughfare has stopped.”
Martinez said that portion she supports the instauration of imperishable housing, she was frustrated by the lack of Native American onshore acknowledgment oregon a ceremonial honoring the site’s deeper history.
“Land acknowledgment is precise important to bash erstwhile you're breaking ground, erstwhile you're moving into a caller home, erstwhile you're gathering something,” she said. “People don't recognize the magnitude of symptom that was present connected this onshore for implicit 50 years.”
She besides raised concerns astir accessibility and infrastructure extracurricular the complex. From uncovered playgrounds to missing autobus shelters, Martinez called for the metropolis to impact unhoused and Native voices successful aboriginal improvement decisions.
“Do we request this housing? Yes. I'm excited that radical get to beryllium disconnected the street,” she said. “I conscionable privation them to commencement involving us.”
City officials accidental much units are planned for Parkway Drive and beyond. Martinez says she’ll support pushing for deeper assemblage involvement, not conscionable connected ribbon-cutting day.
