Month: March 2017

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BEAUTIFICATION PROJECT ALONG FANCHER CREEK PARKWAY IS MORE THAN A BENEFIT FOR THE COMMUNITY

We found this great story written by Vanessa Vasconcelos on the ABC 30 Website! You can read the story the ABC 30 website by clicking the link or by scrolling down below. http://abc30.com/1815667/

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FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) —

A 1.3 mile stretch of Fancher Creek is getting a spring spruce up, but it is benefiting more than just those who frequent the trail.

Fifteen members of a Multi-Craft Construction and Trades Pre-Apprenticeship Training Program are gearing up for graduation with a final project.

“What they’re getting is that there are not just jobs out there, there are careers that help them support their family in a manner in which they want to,” said Pat Barr, Work Development Board.

The job training is sponsored by the Fresno Regional Workforce Development Board. The program connects unemployed or dislocated workers with resources to help them rejoin the workforce.

“Most of our men have only done seasonal jobs or have been laid off,” said Barr.

The six week program has a 96-percent graduation rate in a region where skilled workers are in high demand thanks to waves of development projects.

“They’re just trying to get you to be the best you can be to get that job you’re looking for,” said Zachariah Ream, pre-apprentice.

Ream got involved with the pre-apprenticeship program because of unemployment. He moved his family from Florida to the Central Valley to look for work.

Ream said the hands on experience have made it so he is prepared to take on any job.

“We’ve been able to go with sheet metal iron workers, with cement masons, and a couple other disciplines as well, but we’ve been able to see what they have to offer what their benefits are like and what works like.”

The Fancher Creek Parkway project is their final job before graduation. They are helping clear the parkway for future planting with the guidance of Tree Fresno.

There may not be a timeline of when the project will be complete but were already seeing progress along the pathway.

“Hopefully you will see some clearing and the construction of a new trail along the edge of the service road, along with trees that were selected appropriately to this region,” said Lee Ayres, Tree Fresno CEO.

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Haig and Virginia Chooljian Tribute Tree

On March 18th, 2017 at 10am, a Deodor Cedar Tree was planted at the Riverview Tribute Grove at Woodward Park to honor Haig and Virginia Chooljian. The tree was planted in a beautiful location near a bend in the road on Yosemite Rd, south of the playground. Dr. Steven Chooljian, MD gave a heartfelt dedication to his father who had passed some time ago and to his mother, Virginia who was in attendance. Steven told everyone that his parents influence made him the person that he is today. The family all helped plant the tree and put on the “Tree Tag”.  Also present were Karen Chooljian and Suzann Yengoyan as well as other family members. Lee Ayres performed the dedication and explained how this tree will continue to work for the valley by cleaning the air. The exact coordinated were noted as N36* 52.173Latitude and W119* 46.953 Longitude

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Tree Fresno reboots efforts to improve our quality of life

 

By Bill McEwen – The Fresno Bee

Originally published in the Fresno Bee onWednesday, Sep. 26, 2012

 

It’s not like Tree Fresno has been in witness protection. The nonprofit has lived up to its name by planting 39,000 trees over 27 years, including 4,100 on school campuses.

But the organization is beginning to rebrand itself, anyway, and preach to local leaders about how raising Fresno’s quality of life would invigorate an underperforming economy.

Their strategy — creating more trails and greenbelts while continuing to add to the urban forest — will be unveiled this afternoon with a reception and tour of Tree Fresno’s new office across from the Gibson Farm Market at Fresno State.

“We’re proud of our accomplishments,” says John Valentino, president of Tree Fresno’s board of directors. At the same time, he says Tree Fresno is frustrated about high crime, unemployment and dropout rates.

Says Tree Fresno board member Mark Keppler: “The status quo is unacceptable. If we improve our quality of life, we will see economic development.”

These aren’t radical ideas. They echo what economists cite when analyzing why some cities prosper and others stumble along or deteriorate.

“Trees, trails and greenbelts make our region investment-worthy,” says Lee Ayres, Tree Fresno’s chief executive officer.

To its credit, Tree Fresno is thinking big.

Its leaders want to vault Fresno from last in parks among the nation’s 40 largest cities to the top 10 over the next decade. They want to build partnerships with every high school in the region. They’re talking about developing a Valley Arboretum that would be a signature amenity for the region. And they’re planning to plant groves of trees honoring military veterans on the San Joaquin River and Fancher Creek parkways.

All of these efforts require money, as well as elbow grease from scores of volunteers.

Getting people out to plant trees has never been a problem for Tree Fresno. For example, 2,800 volunteers turned out for the Great Rail Tree Planting in 2000.

Money? Well, that’s always a problem — but the cupboard isn’t as bare as you might think. Before voters overwhelmingly passed Fresno County’s 20-year transportation sales tax extension in 2006, proponents touted that $53.3 million would go to trails in urban and rural locations.

The recession has knocked down that total. Tony Boren, executive director of the Fresno Council of Governments, says the half-cent tax is on track to generate about $42 million for trails — a total that would rise as the economy picks up.

But Fresno’s financial plunge and slow recovery have delivered a double whammy. Not only have local governments cut back on park and trail maintenance to balance budgets, the county and its cities lack money to service new trails that could be built today with Measure C funds.

In addition, the Measure C spending plan strictly regulates trail funds: “They must be spent on new trails,” Boren says. “Meanwhile, Fresno and Clovis are saying, ‘We can’t afford to maintain what we have now.’ ”

A solution: How about the people who lobbied for Measure C trails go to COG and ask for a tweak that would allow some funds to be used on trail maintenance? In return, the Fresno and Clovis city councils could agree to make new trails and greenbelts a higher priority when the economy picks up.

Our county is greener than it was in 1985 when Tree Fresno’s first volunteers raised $27,000 with a telethon and planted trees in downtown and the Tower District.

We need to get greener still. Think of it as a down payment on prosperity.

 

Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2012/09/26/3008373/mcewen-tree-fresno-reboots-efforts.html#storylink=cpy