Udderly Ridiculous š®
What's going on with rent, Producers taking over H street and kids think school is cool? What to know in Fresno, Aug 31-Sept. 5
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āļøĀ Good morning, Fresno! It is Sunday, Sept. 6, 2020
It is September. Wake me up when September ends. Also, Happy Labor Day Weekend, be smart, donāt go to large gatherings. And remember WAP. Wear A mask Please. Thanks.
-RamĀ š§”
Fresno By Five
Community members protest along H Street at Palm Avenue late afternoon to commuters going back home. Another protest happened early morning at the same spot. Photo by Ram Reyes
š® Neighbors Protest Producers Move into H Street
Community members and neighbors protested twice along H Street on Friday morning and afternoon opposing Producers Dairyās proposal to close H Street for truck parking.
South Tower District neighbors and businesses claim that the proposed truck parking will negatively affect the community. It will cause more pollution and impact Fresno roads having to reroute traffic if H street were to close.
The environmental impact report for the project, Producers claim, says that it will result in the trucks being on Fresno roads nine hours fewer a week. But the same study claims it will add 2,000 miles traveled daily.
Many businesses around the area claim it will be negatively impacted as the ease of access for many of the businesses to the freeway will be now cut off.
Kiel Lopez-Schmidt, organizer of the protest and leading the effort against Producers alongside neighbors and business, has laid out a 10-point plan to be proposed as an alternative to Producersā plan and to mitigate the negative effects on the neighborhood.
You can read the City of Fresnoās documents about the projects here and submit your own public comment by calling Phillip Siegrist, 559-621-8061 or email phillip.siegrist@fresno.gov. Public comment is open until Sept. 14.
šļø Whatās Going on with Rent?
A new bill, AB 3088, went into effect this Monday, which extends the previous eviction protections for tenants who can prove COVID-19 impact.* We put an asterisk there because there are some new things to keep in mind now. Coupled with the CDCās nationwide moratorium, itās confusing AF. Fresnoland did a great job laying it all out but Iām here to make it even simplerāsimple enough for even stupid millennials like me to understand.
There are two laws primarily affecting tenants in Fresno (and California in general), the CDC eviction moratorium and AB 3088.
Hereās what the CDC moratorium does and how to qualify for it:
You have to expect to earn no more than $99,000 in annual income or $198,000 if joint filing.
You were negatively affected by COVID-19
You try to make partial payments
And tried your best not to be homeless (ābest effort to obtain all available government assistanceā in their terms)
Oh AND you have to sign this form and declare it to your landlord if you meet all of the above requirements.
Hereās what AB 3088 does:
It prevents landlords from evicting you for non-payment of rent that was due between March 1, 2020 and Aug. 31, 2020
Landlords cannot evict you for non-payment of rent between Sept. 1, 2020 and Jan. 31, 2021 IF you do the following:
Provide your landlord proof that you are negatively affected by COVID-19
And pay 25 percent of the rent due between Sept 1. 2020 and Jan. 31, 2020.
Landlords are required to give a 15-day notice to evict you and during that time you can do all of the above to prevent eviction.
OH AND ALSO they can sue you in small claims court for unpaid rent between March 1, 2020 and Jan. 31, 2021. So thatās funā¦
You are also advised to DOCUMENT every interaction with your landlord.
Whew, I hope that kind of makes sense. If not, well, take it up with Danielle Bergstrom over at Fresnoland, she knows more about this and can explain it better than I could š
š„ Wildfires in Eastern Fresno/Madera Counties
A wildfire that started Friday evening has called for the evacuation of the areas around Shaver Lake and the surrounding areas. By Saturday 2 p.m., the fire has grown to 2,000 acres spreading to the north of the San Joaquin River into Madera County. 1,000 people are currently trapped near the Mammoth Pool Reservoir and were told to shelter in place and, if needed, going into the water to get away from the fires.
š« School is Cool?
It is the Year of Our Lord 2020 and children are protesting to go back to school. Screenshot via The Fresno Bee
About 100 people came out to protest for Fresno schools to reopen at the corner of Herndon and Palm on Thursday. The organizers were parents from Fresno Unified School District and many of them expressed how they want the choice between distance learning and in-person classes. The Fresno Beeās Monica Velez spoke to a number of teachers complaining about the difficulties teaching through Zoom. Many children were also in attendance for the protest and it is a wild image to see children protesting for schools to open. 2020, the year children REALLY want to go back to school.
š§ Restaurants also protesting
Also on Thursday, a group of restaurant and bar owners had their own protest at Yosemite Falls at Blackstone and Shaw. Many of them claim that Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state legislature are out of touch. Fresno restaurants are far off from being cleared to reopen under Californiaās new color-coded system. Fresno City Councilmember Garry Bredefeld and Fresno County Supervisor Steve Brandau were in attendance. Fun!
š æļø Letās š æļøarklets
You can now have a new dining experience along Olive street with the new outdoor dining parklets being installed in Tower. $600,000 of Fresnoās CARES act money is being used to build the parklets in response to COVID-19 guidelines. Ireneās Cafe already has some temporary parklets installed alongside Olive but will now have proper parklets built this coming week with The Revue and The Lincoln Pub & Grub next. We donāt advise eating out right now but if you must, eat local and not somewhere likeā¦ Dennyās.
šļø Groundbreaking for Gentrification
Granville Realty had a groundbreaking for an 18-unit apartment community on the corner of the Van Ness and Alhambra avenues. The Fresno City Council had previously reached out to Granville and their CEO Darius Assemi about building the complex. Dubbed āThe District,ā itās designed to āattract young professionalsā with its location near Towerās nightlife. The estimated cost is $4 million and set to be completed by next year. Hereās a twitter thread of community concerns. Gentrification vibes.
š„µ Itās hot! Again! Wow!
Temperatures in the Central Valley are expected to be in the triple digits again. This means cooling centers around the area will be open until further notice. Here are their locations:
Ted C. Wills Community Center, 770 N. San Pablo
Frank H. Ball Neighborhood Center, 760 Mayor
Mosqueda Community Center, 4670 E. Butler
Pinedale Community Center, 7170 N. San Pablo
š„ Coronavirus Updates
As of Sept. 5, the most recent data available at the time of writing, there have been a total of 25,978 total confirmed (+1,366) cases and 263 (+49) deaths in Fresno County. Currently, there are 156 (-45) hospitalized. A total of 13,458 people have recovered. It was the number 1 cause of death for Fresno County in August.
Oliver Ilseta, a Fresno nurse at Community Regional Medical Center, has died from complications of COVID-19 this week. Ilseta, 58, is the second nurse in Fresno that has died from COVID-19.
Testing is available around Fresno. Visit lhi.care to set up an appointment. Itās free even without insurance. If you have insurance, you can also try these other testing sites here.
There will be a no-cost COVID-19 testing event tomorrow, Monday, Sept. 7, at Fresno City College. 8 a.m. - 10 a.m. will be by appointment only and 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. no appointment required. Register for an appointment here: UCSF Registration Link
Fresno senior citizens can get assistance for food through Fresnoās new pilot program.1,500 food boxes a week are available for delivery or pickup as part of the Fresno City Councilās initiative to help seniors. Call 311 for information on delivery or pickup.
If you would like something added to the Community Board, email us at contact@fivebyfivenine.com or DM us on social media @fivebyfivenine
šCommunity Board
Help the Fresno Police Reform Commission
The Fresno State Sociology Department is seeking community input on how to reform the Fresno Police Department.Ā Take the survey here. Complete this by Sept. 15.
Financial Assistance for the Stephens-Rima Family
The Democratic Socialists of America is asking for financial assistance for the Stephens-Rima Family. Nine members of the family tested positive for COVID-19, devastating both their health and financials. The funds will go to paying their medical bills, grocery, utilities, and housing.
Hereās the familyās story from Kristin and Leslie Stephens-Rima
The GoFundMe Page
Fresno Community Fridge
TheĀ Fresno Abolition Book ClubĀ is starting a community fridge! Right now they are looking to talk to Fresno businesses and restaurants to receive food donations or volunteers for upkeep with the fridge. If you would like to get involved email:Ā abolitionfresno@gmail.com or follow them onĀ TwitterĀ /Ā InstagramĀ @abolitionfresno
Donāt Forget to Register to Vote
If you havenāt already,Ā register to vote!Ā The last day to register online to vote is Monday, October 19, 2020. Everyone registered to vote by that date should be getting a mail-in ballot in early October.
š§ On the pod this week
The progressive podcasters press Alexandria Ramos-OāCasey on her time as a field director for the Bernie Sanders campaign, and her current role as a political consultant for friend of the pod David Paredesā school board campaign.
Follow AlexandriaĀ @AROC_TIAĀ on Twitter.
Listen to the episode through this email or on these other podcasting platforms:
Apple PodcastsĀ |Ā SpotifyĀ |Ā AnchorĀ |Ā Google Podcasts
Also pls give us 5 Stars on Apple PodcastsĀ š„ŗ š š
This newsletter was written by Ram Reyes (@vibesradiator) and edited by Tommy Tribble (@tomiiwrites) | Follow Five By Five Nine onĀ InstagramĀ &Ā Twitter