Fulton Mall Festival Recap   

First of all a big THANK YOU has to be given to all of our sponsors, committee members and volunteers for putting on these two spectacular inaugural events. We have had a busy couple of weeks. To kick off the Fulton Rev Fest, May 29th we had over 70 motorcycles and scooters parade down the Fulton Mall with Miss Fresno County! The next day we amped it up by having some of the best local bands, great food and, oh yeah, motorcycles! We had 11 categories, 10 for motorcycles and one for scooters.

The following week we had another great event, called the Hye Fest, which was inaugurated by the Consul General from Armenia to L.A., on June 5th. The fun continued on Saturday with children’s entertainers, Armenian dance lessons and, of course Armenian food!

Businesses and vendors were booming while thousands of visitors reminisced about when they used to visit the mall as children, and rediscovered it with their kids. It was just an overall fun time for everyone. It hasn’t been a week and people are anxiously awaiting the next festival. If you didn’t get a chance to come downtown, there will be lots of other opportunities to enjoy our city’s urban core. We will be sure to keep you informed of our new events as they unfold.

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Downtown Specific Plan Moving Forward   

The Downtown and Community Revitalization Department is currently reviewing statements of qualification from planning firms interested in consulting with the City on the new Fulton Corridor Specific Plan. From the statements submitted, a handful of firms will be selected to submit full proposals for work on the Plan. The Specific Plan will:

• Put the force of law behind the Downtown community's vision for its own future.
• Encourage development by creating predictability and removing layers of confusing, sometimes contradictory, City land use policies in Downtown Fresno, and replacing them with one controlling document.
• Tackle a handful of "big problems" facing Downtown, including revitalizing the Fulton Mall and planning for the new High Speed Rail depot.
• Solve the many "little problems" that have hampered business and development in Downtown for years. For instance, the Plan is an opportunity to do all of the following, all at once, to minimize the delay and cost:

1. Update the zoning ordinance
2. Allow mixed use by-right
3. Allow live-work
4. Encourage outdoor dining
5. Prohibit setbacks and preserve the street wall
6. Encourage entertainment and night life by-right (dancing, music, etc.)
7. Determine appropriate traffic capacities for streets
8. Fix the storefront sign ordinance
9. Strengthen design and development standards (windows, pedestrian access, facades, etc.)
10. Define Downtown districts
11. Plan for open space
12. Adopt acceptable Downtown streetscape plans
13. Identify resources as historic or not
14. Clarify and minimize parking requirements for development
15. Streamline permit processing
16. Restore and maintain the street grid

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Fulton Mall Block Meetings   

Fulton Mall business owners are invited to a series of meetings starting on June 24. Each area of the Mall will have a block captain who helps the Downtown Association organize the meetings. The meetings will focus on parking issues, featuring the Parking Validation program.
This schedule of meetings gathers neighbors within a one or two block area to meet together. Businesses located on the blocks listed will be invited for the following dates:

June 24 Inyo to Kern
July 1 Kern to Mariposa
July 8 Mariposa to Fresno
July 15 Fresno to Tuolumne

The series of meetings will be followed by a Business Services Trade Show scheduled for August 12. Future block meetings will be arranged based on the interests and needs of the business owners.Details are available at www.downtownfresno.org/block-meetings.

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Certified Farmers Market on Fulton Mall immediately successful   

Market on the Mall launched in May to much hoopla, but it’s living up to its billing. The Downtown workforce has embraced the idea of fresh produce in their neighborhood. The market is certified which means that the State of California has verified that these farmers grow the produce they are selling.
Vendors will be added as the market grows. If any businesses are interested, they can contact the Downtown Association which is working with the Market manager to offer these opportunities.

More information is available at www.downtownfresno.org/market.

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Planning Downtown Restaurant Promotions   

Invitations will go out in early June for a gathering of Downtown restaurants on June 17 at 9:00 a.m. and 3 p.m. The two times are scheduled so that as many restaurant owners or managers as possible can attend.
The meetings are being organized to launch music-based Downtown Sound and plan restaurant promotions through the rest of the year.

Contact the Downtown Association office for more information: 559-490-9966 or info@downtownfresno.org

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FILM, ENTERTAINMENT, & TOURISM     

Finding Hope Now         

The title of the new independent feature film, currently wrapping a month-long shoot in and around Fresno, is a good metaphor for local film production itself. Two years ago the Fresno Film & Entertainment Commission (FFEC) was creating City film policy and implementing marketing plans to generate local film and video production. About the same time a gentleman named Skin Mead approached the FFEC with a screenplay and a LOT of enthusiasm.

Skin is the writer/producer of Finding Hope Now, an independent feature film that tells the story of Pastor Roger Minassian who overcame all odds to transform the lives of over 1,600 disadvantaged youth gang members in 1990’s Fresno. During the next two years both Finding Hope Now and the FFEC successfully proceeded forward, creating opportunities, solving problems, and achieving goals while occasionally reconnecting to check on each other’s progress. Now, the film and the film commission are working very closely as the movie, to be released later this year, completes principal filming in Fresno.

Finding Hope Now stars Emmy ® Award winning actor Michael Badalucco (The Practice, Raging Bull, The Professional) and spotlights a great local story. The production brings Hollywood to Fresno, puts local filmmakers to work, and builds a cooperative partnership with the City of Fresno and the FFEC; while simultaneously contributing $500,000 to the Fresno economy through salaries, purchases of local goods and services and other expenditures.

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LOCAL BUSINESS INITATIVES   

Licensed Contractors-Check, CPA’s- Check…. What’s Next?   

The Affinity Group Initiative hit the ground running after the initial meeting with the Personnel and Staffing agencies in early May. On May 19th the Mayor and the Local Business Initiative staff met with a group of local, licensed contractors to talk about the issues they face and the cost of doing business as licensed contractors. As they started explaining the costs to be licensed, including workers compensation for their employees, proper insurance and bonding if needed and proper training techniques- it begged the question, what about contractors that are not licensed? How are licensed contractors going to compete? And more importantly, what can the City do to help level the playing field for the licensed contractors that pay to honor good business practices? This is just a glimpse of some of the issues the Local Business Initiatives aim to work on as a means to making our Fresno a business friendly city.

Next, we were able to meet with a group of local CPA’s- primarily to talk about how they can get their business clients signed up for the Incentive Zones that puts thousands of dollars back in their pockets- explaining that last year the Incentive Zone program brought over $200 million dollars back to our local businesses. The CPA group was also able to give us some input. For example, because CPA’s work with businesses throughout the year they hear first hand what issues local businesses deal with and can serve as a strong liaison letting the City know what we can do to assist and letting businesses know what they have do to be in compliance.

In the coming months we will be looking to meet with Community Banks, Web-based companies, local engineers and Southeast Asian business owners.

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Could Local Businesses in Fresno get ANY Cooler?   

In May we highlighted two locally owned companies for the PrimeTime for Business Initiative, and the 10 minute presentation they each gave in front of the City Council only provided a glimpse of their entrepreneur spirit.

Keiser, a local company that manufacturers exercise equipment, and is the only manufacturer specializing in air pressure stationary bikes in the U.S., really set the bar. They do everything in house- including the engineer design for their equipment, the manufacturing with robotic machines and all of the cosmetics on their sleek equipment- their operation is second to none.

Bouquet of Fruits, a family owned-business who also manufacturers all of their products in house including their specialty candy covered items and elaborate design of their gift baskets, has been around since 1988. Currently expanding to an on-line drop-shipping network (http://www.gourmetshoppingnetwork.com/), which will deliver fresh Valley produce all over the Nation, this business is on the up and up and could not be happier being in Fresno.

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Have you considered the “10% shift?”   

In May the Local Business Initiatives attended the BALLE conference (http://www.livingeconomies.org/) in Denver, Colorado to find out what other communities are doing to help their local economy. While much of the conference had a huge emphasis on promoting grassroots organizing to spread the word about the positive effects that independent, locally owned businesses have in a community it also offered insight on what we can do as individuals to help support our local economy.

The 10 percent shift (http://www.10percentshift.org/) started with a group of local entrepreneurs and citizens from every state in New England as a means of supporting their local economy by making a 10 percent shirt in where we spend our money.

As the City continues to focus on strengthening our locally owned businesses we will continue to look at best practices from other communities and find ways for them to fit our uniqueness. We also welcome input from our local community on why we should support independent, locally owned companies and ideas that would help foster their growth.

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Local Businesses Eager to Learn “How to do Business with the City”   

In partnership with the Purchasing Department the City hosted the first “How to do Business with the City” workshop on June 12th. The workshop was put together after the City passed the 5% local small business preference in early April, which gives local small businesses a 5% preference when bidding on projects or sales through our Purchasing Department. The workshop is meant to provide local companies with the tools they need to be successful and take advantage of this preference.

With a room full of 80 local companies eager to learn how to do business with the City, and an additional 30 on a waiting list for the next workshop, it’s clear that local businesses in Fresno are not standing on the sidelines waiting for these economic times to slow, but rather they are preparing themselves for when things are looking up.

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Third Annual Small Business Matchmaking Event   

The Downtown and Community Revitalization Department hosted a free Government Procurement Workshop on June 10th, 2009 at the Clovis Memorial Building in Clovis, CA. The workshop helped local small businesses prepare for the upcoming 3rd Annual Business Matchmaking and Networking Event, which will give local businesses the opportunity to meet one-on-one with federal, state, and municipal government agencies, as well as large corporations, in order to gain access to procurement opportunities and contracts. Speakers at the workshop included: Caltrans, U.S. Small Business Administration, U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the Federal Technology Center. Click HERE for more information or to register for the Business Matchmaking Event.

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NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION   

Lowell Revisited    

On Tuesday, June 9th, 2009, the Mayor met with the Lowell Community at the Lowell Elementary School for their second meeting.

As was the case at the February meeting, City department heads from departments that can affect the neighborhood were also in attendance. Each department head got up and explained to the community the measures they had taken to resolve issues raised by community members at the February meeting.

A speech by Mayor Swearengin followed. They Mayor told the crowd of about 150 people that the City of Fresno is as strongly committed as ever to revitalize the Lowell community and vowed to continue to return every few months to make sure that the revitalization process stays on course.

A brainstorming exercise followed and stakeholders were asked two questions:

1. If you were describing your community to someone that has never been here, what things would you say you like about your community?

Responses were:

• Parent involvement
• Historic architecture/homes
• Character of residents
• Resident support
• It’s getting better
• Great location
• Diversity of restaurants
• Everyone cares
• Access to Downtown Fresno
• Lowell Resource Center
• Mature trees
• Children
• Diversity of neighbors
• Sense of community
• Foot traffic
• Beautiful homes
• Best people in Fresno
• Leading Young Professionals
• Street Sweeping
• Improved response from Code Enforcement

The second question was:

2. What two things would you change about your neighborhood? Attendees then rated the responses in order of importance to them.

They are as follows:

• Drugs -20 votes
• Slumlords -17 votes
• Too many high density apartments -17 votes
• Trash in alleys -15 votes
• Alcohol & Drugs-access to teens -13 votes
• Crime -12 votes
• Too many group homes -10 votes
• No grocery store - 8 votes
• Theft - 8 votes
• Prostitution (especially at Shell Station) - 5 votes
• No crosswalks (Mostly on Divisadero) – 5 votes
• Stray Cats - 5 votes
• Household dumping - 3 votes
• Graffiti - 2 votes
• No use of school grounds for recreation - 1 vote
• Speeding ambulances on Divisadero -1 vote

The meeting had a very positive feel and many residents stayed to talk to City departments, agency partners, or just visiting with friends.

The next step is to take the above feedback and engage affected City departments and other partnering agencies in the coordination of addressing the above.

This is not to say that we will absolutely, positively “fix” every one of the concerns and there will never be problems again, but the community and City of Fresno are working together in a positive fashion and are off to a great start.

Please read next month’s Envision to get a glimpse of what’s new in Lowell.

Elaine Robles
Neighborhood Revitalization Manager

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