Fresno Mayor Lee Brand, in collaboration with Council President Miguel Arias and Councilmembers Luis Chavez and Michael Karbassi, today announced the formation of the Mayor’s Fresno Recovery Committee (FRC), an advisory panel to discuss best practices to kick-start Fresno’s economy and get the people of Fresno back to work within the parameters of community health and safety in conformance with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s six critical indicators.

The FRC plan will involve three phases: Phase One will look at the State’s criteria to allow the phased re-opening of non-essential businesses and discuss relaxing local restrictions; Phase Two will review available local, state and federal resources to assist Fresno businesses in recovery from the impacts of closures and advocate for additional assistance for businesses and job training; and Phase Three will create plans to bring new business to Fresno to expand our recovery and provide additional good-paying jobs for our community.

“We need to start planning now so our residents and businesses can be fully prepared for the gradual process of economic recovery and a return to normal routine,” said Mayor Brand. “I am engaging community leaders from every facet of our economy to provide essential input so we can be ready to move forward in a deliberate and reasonable way without jeopardizing the health of our residents.”    

The Mayor’s Fresno Recovery Committee will meet using Zoom technology to follow social distancing protocols.  The advisory committee includes:

Lee Brand                   Mayor of Fresno (FRC Chair)

Jerry Dyer                   Mayor-elect of Fresno (FRC Vice-Chair)

Miguel Arias                Fresno City Council President – District 3

Mike Karbassi             Fresno City Councilmember – District 2

Luis Chavez                Fresno City Councilmember – District 5

Buddy Mendes            Chairman, Fresno County Board of Supervisors

Nathan Magsig            Fresno County Supervisor – District 5

Dave Pomaville           Director, Fresno County Dept. of Public Health

Michelle Von Tersh     Senior Vice-President, Community Medical Centers

Carole Goldsmith        President, Fresno City College

Nathan Ahle                President/CEO, Greater Fresno Chamber of Commerce

Lee Ann Eager            President/CEO, Fresno Economic Development Corp.

Henry Perea                CHRSA Board Member

Tony Canales              Vice-President, Central Labor Council

Mike Shirinian             State Board Member, California Restaurant Association

Sal Gonzales               Co-President/COO, Lance-Kashian & Company

Emilia Reyes               CEO, Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission

Tim Rios                      Senior VP, Community Relations Sr. Manager, Wells Fargo
Cary Catalano             Commissioner, Fresno Housing Authority

TJ Miller                      City of Fresno PARCs Director, Emergency Operations Coordinator

Lupe Perez                  Economic Development Director, City of Fresno

Tim Orman                  Chief of Staff, City of Fresno

The Mayor added, “I have assembled a very bright group of people with proven track records as problem solvers to help shape our efforts going forward. This is a marathon, so we need to think long-term and create a dynamic plan for recovery for the next 12 months and beyond. I would like to also stress that ‘when’ we can start getting people back to work will depend on meeting specific health criteria that we will monitor and communicate to give businesses plenty of time to prepare.”

Fresno Mayor Lee Brand today announced that Emergency Orders 2020-02 and 2020-08 calling for all individuals living in the City of Fresno to shelter at their place of residence, except to provide or receive essential services or engage in essential activities, has been extended through midnight Wednesday, May 6, 2020.  The new emergency order, 2020-13, was signed by City Manager Wilma Quan this morning and becomes effective at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, April 11, 2020.

In addition to the extension, Emergency Order 2020-13 changes the shelter in place order to a directive, and it prohibits all gatherings of any number of people occurring outside a single household or living unit, directs all essential businesses to use specific social distancing protocols and require employees to wear protective facial coverings, allows the City Manager to close any park that cannot operate within safe social distancing practices, and provides for the potential for penalties for egregious or persistent violations.

“By all indications, the people of Fresno are doing an excellent job of sheltering in place and social distancing, but we must continue these practices if we are to protect every man, woman and child in our city,” said Mayor Brand. “The next two weeks are critical to slowing and eventually stopping the spread of COVID-19. I know we asking our residents and businesses to make tremendous sacrifices, but I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t willing to make the same sacrifices and if I didn’t think it was the best way to protect everyone in our community.”

The original emergency order was set to expire on March 31, 2020 and was previously extended to expire on April 12, 2020. Emergency Order 2020-13 is attached and can be found on the City’s COVID-19 page at www.fresno.gov/coronavirus/.

For the latest information on all City-issued emergency orders and other coronavirus-related decisions, call 3-1-1 or visit the City of Fresno website at www.fresno.gov.

We encourage you to visit www.cdc.gov to learn more about COVID-19 and follow the Fresno County Department of Public Health website for regular updates.

Emergency Order 2020-13 Shelter in Place- Extended and Expanded with Appendix A

Fresno Mayor Lee Brand joined Councilmembers Mike Karbassi and Esmeralda Soria, and Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission (EOC) CEO Emilia Reyes to announce joint economic relief action to help small businesses in Fresno affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The partnership between the City of Fresno, Fresno EOC and Access Plus Capital, a local small business loan fund, aims to help local economic recovery with funding for those small business owners who need it most.

On March 25, 2020, Fresno City Council passed the “Save Our Small Businesses Act” that established a $750,000 small business relief loan-to-grant program, which will be administered by Access Plus Capital.  Businesses impacted by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) can apply for a zero-interest loan with no application, packaging, origination or service fees. The loans will be forgiven after one year if the business is still operating.

“Small businesses are the heart of our economy, and they’re experiencing unprecedented disruption due to COVID-19,” said Mayor Brand.  “I am proud of how our residents and businesses are looking out for each other during these challenging times and the willingness of our private partners to join the City in our effort to bring immediate relief to business owners who are struggling during this pandemic is not only encouraging, it’s inspiring.”

Under the terms of the ordinance, businesses impacted by COVID-19 with 1 to 5 employees can apply for a $5,000 loan-to-grant, while businesses impacted by COVID-19 with 6 to 25 employees are eligible for a $10,000 loan-to-grant.   The business must have a valid City of Fresno Business License Tax Certificate, have been in business no later than February 15, 2020, and not have any outstanding tax liens, judgments or conditional use permit (CUP) violations. 

The application portal for the Save Our Small Business Program will be available on Access Plus Capital’s website at www.accesspluscapital.com and will be open until 11:59 p.m., Sunday, April 12, 2020.  If there are more applications than available funding, there will be a random drawing to determine which businesses get the loan-to-grants.  Potential applicants can call (559) 263-1360 or email [email protected] for more information.

The City of Fresno today announced additional measures to protect the health of the community by reducing opportunities for close contact between people at City of Fresno parks.

The City of Fresno Parks, After School, Recreation and Community Services (PARCS) Department staff will lock basketball and tennis courts where possible in an effort to discourage park-goers who are not following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines for social distancing.  PARCS staff will remove basketball rims and/or backboards as well as tennis nets at City-owned parks, effective immediately.  PARCS will also close dog parks until further notice.

City parks remain open and residents can still visit parks for physical activity such as walking, jogging, and cycling as long as they practice social distancing; however, the City is taking these steps to prevent the possible spread of this virus in the community.

[REMINDER: All City-owned parks will be closed on Saturday, April 11, and Sunday, April 12, 2020.  The closure includes the City’s two regional parks, Roeding and Woodward.  Parks will reopen on Monday, April 13, 2020.]

City Manager Wilma Quan announced today that, effective immediately, the City of Fresno will be providing protective face masks to as many police officers and firefighters as possible and requiring them to wear them while they are at work.  These will primarily be surgical and cloth masks. 

“Our community needs every police officer and firefighter healthy and ready to work,” City Manager Quan said.  “The nature of their jobs limits their ability to practice social distancing and protect themselves properly, so requiring that they wear masks is a necessary measure to keep them healthy.  All of these positions require very specialized training and it would take 3 to 12 months to find replacements for these brave men and women.  We need to keep our first responders safe and healthy so they can continue to protect and serve our community.”

The City has a limited supply of various kinds of protectives masks and has many more on order.  As the City receives additional masks, more employees will be required to wear masks while working.  The decisions as to which employees will be required to wear masks will be based on the how their job duties limit their ability to practice social distancing.  If enough masks become available, all City employees may be required to wear masks while at work.  Employees who have their own masks are encouraged to wear them to work.

Due to the nationwide shortage of protective masks, if any resident with access to sewing equipment is interested in making and donating cloth masks to help keep our City employees healthy, please deliver them to the security staff at the front door of Fresno City Hall, 2600 Fresno Street, during normal business hours, 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. 

For questions or more information on mask donations, please email [email protected] or call the City’s non-emergency hot line at 3-1-1.

Residents are encouraged to visit our City’s website at www.fresno.gov/coronavirus/ for all COVID-19-related updates and information or call 3-1-1. Visit www.cdc.gov to learn more about COVID-19 and follow the Fresno County Department of Public Health for regular updates.

Effective immediately, all City public meetings, including but not limited to Planning Commission and Council meetings, shall be conducted electronically through web services and telephone.

“In an effort to reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19 and flatten the curve, City Council meetings will be held electronically while providing the public several options to participate,” said Fresno Council President Miguel Arias.  “This action allows us to ensure the health and safety of our essential employees and the public.”

As stated in an emergency order from the City Manager, council chambers are to be closed to the public until further notice.

Beginning April 9th, Councilmembers and the public will join council meetings via Zoom, a web conference tool. The public will be able to provide comments during the council meeting via Zoom’s web platform or phone number.  A designated phone line will offer Spanish and Hmong translation for a specific item on Thursday’s agenda.

Written comments will also be accepted and entered into the record throughout the meeting via the City Clerk’s existing E-Comments software and email.

Meetings will continue to be streamed on CMAC.tv via Channel 96 (Comcast) or 99 (AT&T) and from the City’s website at https://fresno.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx.

For additional information, please contact Council President Miguel Arias at 559-906-1443

Mayor Lee Brand today announced that the City of Fresno’s Parks, After School, Recreation and Community Services (PARCS) Department will be closing all City-owned parks on Easter Weekend, Saturday, April 11, and Sunday, April 12, 2020.  The closure includes the City’s two regional parks, Roeding and Woodward.

Traditionally, these are two of the busiest days for Fresno parks and they attract large crowds of people.  Mayor Brand made the difficult decision with an abundance of caution to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

“My deep concern is that we have not seen the worst of COVID-19 in Fresno and closing our parks on Easter Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, April 11th and 12th is a necessary measure to reduce the number of people that could be exposed to it,” said Mayor Brand. “I fully understand and appreciate the sacrifices all of us have to make in the coming days. I know there are trying times ahead with a foreboding health crisis moving rapidly in our direction.”

The City plans to re-open parks on Monday, April 13, with the goal of keeping them open through this pandemic as long as they remain safe environments.

The City of Fresno’s Parks, After School, Recreation and Community Services (PARCS) Department today announced the temporary closure of all playground equipment at City parks due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, effective immediately.  

The decision was made in accordance with the latest recommendations from the National Parks and Recreation Association to help stop the spread of COVID-19 and with an abundance of caution due to the inability to adequately disinfect and sanitize the equipment after every use.

Closed areas will be identified with signage and playground structures will be wrapped protectively where feasible.  City parks and trails will remain open and available for biking, walking and running.  When using these amenities, protect the health of yourself, your family and the community by practicing social distancing, making sure there is at least 6 feet between you and other patrons.

This is a rapidly changing situation and the City of Fresno is monitoring it closely and continuously communicating with other government and health agencies.  The City takes the health and safety of our community seriously and will continue to provide updates and take additional measures as needed for the safety of our residents and employees as the situation warrants.

Please visit our City’s website at www.fresno.gov/coronavirus/ for all COVID-19-related updates and information or call the City’s non-emergency hotline at 3-1-1.

Constituents are encouraged to visit www.cdc.gov to learn more about COVID-19 and follow the Fresno County Department of Public Health for regular updates.

The City of Fresno begins its three-day watering schedule on Wednesday, April 1, and will remain in effect through October.

The three-day watering schedule is in place to reflect residents’ need to provide more water for their lawns and gardens during the dry summer months.

Residents with addresses ending in odd numbers (1,3,5,7,9) are permitted to water on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.  Residents with addresses ending in even numbers (0,2,4,6,8) are permitted to water on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.  No watering is allowed on Mondays or on any day between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

On April 11, 2019, the Fresno City Council approved a new, simplified watering schedule.  The City will implement a three-day watering schedule during the months of April through October and a one-day watering schedule for the months of November through March.  The City of Fresno continues to urge its residents to conserve water as much as possible.