Mayor Announces Restore Fresno Plan

Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin unveiled a plan to revitalize some of Fresno’s blighted neighborhoods in a plan called Restore Fresno Wednesday.

"We’ve seen in the City of Fresno over the last 20, 25 years the blight line which once was McKinley Avenue back in the 1980’s is now Herndon Avenue," Swearengin said.

The plan is clean up neighborhoods like Yokomi, El Dorado Park, Lowell and Jefferson. The Mayor wants to create a Blight Team to enforce code.

"We have additional officers planned to focus on the recycling centers areas which have been an area of distress for residents, we are focusing on illegal dumping and city wide code enforcement effort," Swearengin said.

Code enforcement is important to residents like Luis Sagrago. He lives in an apartment in the Yokomi neighborhood. He says his property manager hasn’t fixed bad plumbing in his rental unit. Sagrago says his apartment has flooded several times ruining the carpet and giving his children asthma.

Swearengin says Restore Fresno will bring buildings up to health and safety codes not only on the outside but inside as well.

Fresno has $ 1.4 million in federal funding for home rehab projects.

Similar community efforts are working in neighborhoods like Lowell and El Dorado Park.

"We are going to continue to march and march through the city until we completely restore every neighborhood. It will take time and energy," Fresno City Councilman Paul Caprioglio said.

Swearengin says for the plan to work the city council will need to pass the vacant housing ordinance.