FRESNO, CA (KMJ) – Fresno Mayor Lee Brand delivered his 2017 “State of the City” address on Wednesday in downtown Fresno. He spoke about public safety, new community services, and an improving economy. Mayor Brand announced a “10 Years to Prosperity” plan that he says will ultimately bring 10,000 new jobs to Fresno by the year 2027.
“The strategy focuses on approximately 1,000 acres of industrial property in the reverse triangle between Highway 99 and Highway 4, including building out the infrastructure to make the land shovel-ready,” said Mayor Brand. “The goal is to make Fresno the e-commerce capital of the West Coast.
Mayor Brand says that with the added need for retail, service and other positions – he thinks the number of new jobs will actually double to 20,000 over the next decade. Fresno has already created thousands of jobs after striking fulfillment center deals with Amazon and Ulta.
Here’s other accomplishments the Mayor of Fresno discussed in the address:
- Passing the Rental Housing Improvement Act, which will improve the living conditions for thousands of families in our community with a sensible and reasonable plan of action.
- Established the Citizens Public Safety Advisory Board, a landmark group representing the full diversity of Fresno that will promote higher standards of service in our Police Department.
- Hiring a new full-time and local Office of Independent Review.
- Brought our credit rating with Standard and Poor to an A+ rating that will save Fresno’s ratepayers and taxpayers over $40 million dollars over 22 years.
- Announced that Ulta Beauty and Amazon will build new e-commerce fulfillment centers and bring up to 3,500 jobs to Fresno.
- Opened local high school pools in Fresno Unified and Central Unified for recreational use, offering more safe and supervised swimming options for our residents by utilizing existing facilities that usually sit idle during the hottest months of the year.
- Raised over $35,000 to provide 700 free swim lessons with the goal that every child in Fresno who wants lessons can learn how to swim.
- Launched our new FAX-15 service on Shaw and Cedar that improved transit opportunities for Fresno State students and staff, and upgraded our evening and weekend bus service to extend hours and shorten stop times.
- Added 21 additional sworn police personnel, increasing staffing levels to 825, the highest since 2010.
- Expanding the City’s ShotSpotter coverage from 6 to 9 square miles
Mayor Brand also presented awards, giving out the “Community Partnership Award” to Fresno State and President Joseph Castro and the “Key to the City” to former Mayor Ashley Swearengin, now President/CEO of the Central Valley Community Foundation.
Photo credit: City of Fresno
