Fresno Approves Street Vacation for Fresno Pacific University Campus Expansion — Photo: SecretName101 — CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Fresno Approves Street Vacation for Fresno Pacific University Campus Expansion
The Fresno City Council voted to vacate three streets adjacent to Fresno Pacific University’s campus in December 2021. The resolution passed removes sixty-foot-wide public right-of-way segments on East Townsend Avenue, South Garden Avenue, and East Heaton Avenue, originally dedicated in 1956.
The stated rationale: incorporating these street segments into the University’s “daily use.” The material offers no detail on what that daily use entails — no campus master plan, no proposed construction timeline, no stated public benefit offsetting the loss of street access. The Council adopted staff’s environmental review finding no significant impact and set a required hearing for January 13, 2022.
These streets lie west of South Winery Avenue in Tract Number 1552, recorded in 1956. The vacation removes public access rights the original tract map established nearly seventy years ago. The material does not state whether any adjacent property owners objected, nor does it name what consideration, if any, the University provided in exchange.
The Breakdown
- The Council adopted Resolution of Intention No. 1144-D on December 9, 2021, initiating the vacation process.
- The resolution covers three street segments totaling 180 feet of public right-of-way width (sixty feet each), though the material does not state the total acreage or linear distance being vacated.
- Staff determined the vacation would have no significant environmental impact under CEQA Guidelines Section 15070, a finding the Council adopted without commissioning an independent environmental impact report.
- The material states the University “is proposing” the vacation but does not disclose whether the University applied through a standard process available to any property owner or received special consideration.
- A public hearing was scheduled for January 13, 2022, though the material does not state what public notice was given or whether the hearing occurred.
What This Means for You
The Council transferred public infrastructure to a private institution based on a one-sentence justification — “daily use” — with no disclosed public return. Voters weighing Council District 5 representation need to know whether their elected officials apply a cost-benefit standard to asset transfers or simply accommodate institutional requests. The streets in question were public for nearly seventy years; the material offers no explanation of what changed or why the University’s operational preference outweighs continued public access.
What to Watch
The material names Fresno Pacific University as the beneficiary but states no cost, no payment, and no public quid pro quo. Did the University pay fair market value for these street segments, or were they transferred at nominal cost? The staff report offers no valuation, no appraisal, and no comparison to similar transactions — leaving voters unable to judge whether this was a routine administrative matter or a giveaway.
The sixty-foot width of each street suggests substantial acreage. Without a stated total area or appraised value, there is no way to assess the magnitude of the asset transfer. The January 2022 hearing date offers a procedural checkpoint, but the material does not state what standard the Council applied at that hearing or whether any objection was raised.
A broader question: what precedent does this set for other institutions or developers seeking to absorb public right-of-way? The material describes no limiting principle — no threshold for when a vacation serves a legitimate public interest versus when it simply privatizes a shared resource for one party’s convenience. Voters should ask what the Council’s standard actually is, not just for this university but for the next applicant.
