Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Prime Minister of Yemen’s Houthi Government Killed in Israeli Strike

1 day ago

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Signs Law Redrawing Congressional Maps

2 days ago

US Air Force will Offer Military Funeral Honors to Slain Capitol Rioter

2 days ago

US Republican Senator Joni Ernst Will Not Run for Re-Election, CBS News Reports

2 days ago

Wall Street Falls as Dell, Nvidia Drive Tech Losses

2 days ago

US Denies Visas to Palestinian Officials Ahead of UN General Assembly

2 days ago

Minneapolis Children Revealed Courage, Absorbed Fear During Church Shooting

3 days ago

Ford Recalls Nearly 500,000 Vehicles Over Brake Fluid Leak

3 days ago

Fresno-Bound Passenger Says Delta Attendant Slapped Him, Seeks $20M

3 days ago
Can Brand Forge Unity for Parks/Public Safety Tax?
David Taub Website photo 2024
By David Taub, Senior Reporter
Published 7 years ago on
January 31, 2019

Share

Lee Brand is still optimistic about proposing a combined parks and public safety tax to voters in 2020. He reiterated his plan during remarks at a Fresno Area Hispanic Foundation breakfast Wednesday (Jan. 30).
Fresno’s mayor also talked about industrial development in south Fresno and uses for legalized marijuana revenues.

“My goal is to get the two sides together to find a way in 2020 to provide a more balanced approach.” — Mayor Lee Brand
“There’s certainly a need for parks. There’s a need for public safety. My goal is to get the two sides together to find a way in 2020 to provide a more balanced approach,” Brand said.
He floated the idea of a half-cent sales tax, which would raise $50 million annually.
“It would totally transform this city,” Brand said.
Brand compared a potential parks/public safety tax to Measure Z, the county-wide zoo tax that, in his description, turned a run-down zoo into a world-class facility.
Measure P, a three-eighths-cent sales tax that would have raised $38 million a year for parks, garnered 52% support in November. But it needed two-thirds approval to pass.
“People have to work together,” Brand said. “That is the hard part, be willing to compromise, be willing to move the city forward.”
Brand said, that unlike the 30 years of taxes in Measure P, he’s looking for a shorter duration.

Some Parks Supporters Mount Legal Fight

Fresno Building Healthy Communities, which was part of the Yes on Measure P coalition, sent Brand a letter last week, exploring the possibility that the parks tax could pass with 52%.
Photo of Fresno for Parks supporters
The letter, from attorney Lance Olson of Sacramento firm Olson Hagel & Fishburn LLP, asked Brand to take action to start the tax collection process. BHC is using a 2017 state Supreme Court decision on implementation of petition-led tax initiatives, like Measure P.
The Fresno City Council will discuss the item in closed session Thursday (Jan. 31). A City Hall spokesman said the mayor is likely to let the council respond to the letter.
Fresno BHC president and CEO Sandra Celedon did not respond to GV Wire’s request for comment.
But the organization tweeted that it wanted parks supporters to be at City Hall at 10 a.m. Thursday for the council meeting.


Not Giving Up on South Industrial Park

At Wednesday’s breakfast, Brand touted the city’s 5.4% unemployment rate and the jobs created by the opening of Amazon and Ulta Beauty warehouses in south Fresno.
He lamented, however, a lawsuit brought by neighbors and environmental groups that scuttled development of an adjacent 110-acre industrial park. Developer Caglia Environmental hoped to build the site but pulled out as the case made its way through court.
Brand said what turned the tide was the intervention of the state Attorney General’s office on behalf of the plaintiffs.
“No good deed goes unpunished,” Brand said.
The lawsuit alleged that the city signed off on the project without it receiving a proper environmental review.

The city now is spending $500,000 to produce an EIR for an expanded zone described as a “South Industrial Priority Area” (click here for detailed map). Brand said it should be completed by the end of 2019.
He said three major employers wanted to move in: an electric car parts manufacturer, a shoe distributor, and a container company. They could provide up to 3,500 jobs, the mayor said.

Marijuana Spending

Brand continued to voice his support for medical marijuana dispensaries in Fresno and his opposition to recreational cannabis sales.
marijuana buds displayed in glass jars
After city voters passed Measure A in November to create a business license tax, the council moved ahead on licensing medical cannabis dispensaries in the first year, and recreational afterward.
Brand said he would like the city’s cannabis revenues to go to fight human trafficking.
“Gangs rely on two things: drug money and human trafficking. If you cut the head of the snake off, you are going to be successful.”

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

DON'T MISS

US Judge Blocks Deportations of Unaccompanied Migrant Children to Guatemala

DON'T MISS

Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet

DON'T MISS

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

DON'T MISS

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

DON'T MISS

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

DON'T MISS

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

DON'T MISS

Labor Day Quiz: Do You Know What a Knocker-Upper Is?

DON'T MISS

Bulldogs Check All the Boxes in Runaway Win Over Georgia Southern

UP NEXT

Dollar Trades Lower With Fed Cut In View, On Course For Monthly Drop

UP NEXT

Visalia Semi Crash Injures Amazon Truck Driver After Red Light Collision

UP NEXT

A Goodbye Love Note to My Dog: Remembering My Best Friend Harriet

UP NEXT

Fresno County Garnet Fire Expands to 17,561 Acres, 8% Contained

UP NEXT

Lawsuit Links CA Teen’s Suicide To Artificial Intelligence

UP NEXT

Fresno Spotlight: Lawsuit in Killing of Homeless Man by Deputies Will Go to Trial

UP NEXT

Fresno County Needs Election Workers for November Redistricting Vote. Apply Now

UP NEXT

Hearing Ends Without Ruling On Trump’s Firing Of Fed Governor Cook

UP NEXT

Gov. Newsom Launches New Task Force To Clear CA Homeless Encampments

UP NEXT

Fresno Supervisor Nathan Magsig Says Crews Gaining Ground on Garnet Fire

David Taub,
Senior Reporter
Curiosity drives David Taub. The award-winning journalist might be shy, but feels mighty with a recorder in his hand. He doesn't see it his job to "hold public officials accountable," but does see it to provide readers (and voters) the information needed to make intelligent choices. Taub has been honored with several writing awards from the California News Publishers Association. He's just happy to have his stories read. Joining GV Wire in 2016, Taub covers politics, government and elections, mainly in the Fresno/Clovis area. He also writes columns about local eateries (Appetite for Fresno), pro wrestling (Off the Bottom Rope), and media (Media Man). Prior to joining the online news source, Taub worked as a radio producer for KMJ and PowerTalk 96.7 in Fresno. He also worked as an assignment editor for KCOY-TV in Santa Maria, California, and KSEE-TV in Fresno. He has also worked behind the scenes for several sports broadcasts, including the NCAA basketball tournament, and the Super Bowl. When not spending time with his family, Taub loves to officially score Fresno Grizzlies games. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Taub is a die-hard Giants and 49ers fan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in communications and political science. Go Blue! You can contact David at 559-492-4037 or at Send an Email

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

10 hours ago

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

10 hours ago

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

10 hours ago

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

10 hours ago

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

10 hours ago

Labor Day Quiz: Do You Know What a Knocker-Upper Is?

11 hours ago

Bulldogs Check All the Boxes in Runaway Win Over Georgia Southern

21 hours ago

Judge Blocks Pillar of Trump’s Mass Deportation Campaign

1 day ago

Classic Cars Will Still Need a Smog Test in California After Lawmakers Reject Jay Leno Bill

1 day ago

Visalia Driver Arrested for DUI After Multiple Crashes and Pedestrian Injured

1 day ago

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

A lightning-sparked wildfire, the Garnet Fire, in the Sierra National Forest has burned 18,748 acres in Fresno County and remains at 8% cont...

10 hours ago

Photo: USDA - Forest Service Tanker 40 at Fresno Air Attack Base. The Fresno County Garnet Fire in the Sierra National Forest has burned 18,748 acres and is 8% contained as crews make progress on containment lines while bracing for possible thunderstorms early this week. (Sam Wu/USFS)
10 hours ago

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

U.S. flag and Judge gavel are seen in this illustration taken, August 6, 2024. (Reuters File)
10 hours ago

US Judge Blocks Deportations of Unaccompanied Migrant Children to Guatemala

Smoke rises from Gaza after an explosion, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, August 31, 2025. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
10 hours ago

Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet

Demonstrators hold a banner during the 'March for Australia' anti-immigration rally, in Sydney, Australia, August 31, 2025. REUTERS/Hollie Adams
10 hours ago

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

President Donald Trump walks on the grounds of the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, U.S., August 30, 2025. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)
10 hours ago

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

Activists Yasemin Acar, Greta Thunberg and Thiago Avila attend a press conference before the departure of the Global Sumud Flotilla, a humanitarian expedition to Gaza, at the port of Barcelona, Spain August 31, 2025. (Reuters/Eva Manez)
10 hours ago

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

National Guard troops wear gas masks during protests against federal immigration sweeps, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., June 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
10 hours ago

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

A view of tents sheltering Palestinians displaced by the Israeli military offensive, in Gaza City, August 23, 2025. (Reuters File)
10 hours ago

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

Search

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Send this to a friend