Fresno County Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously selected a contractor to build two new libraries, one in Clovis and one in Reedley.

Supervisor Brian Pacheco, however, wanted to make it clear that Highway City is next in line.

In addition, Fresno County Board Chair Nathan Magsig directed Fresno-based Harris Construction to have the Clovis and Reedley libraries finished within weeks of one another.

“Both have been waiting for nearly 20 years for new libraries,” Magsig said during the meeting.

Magsig, Pacheco, and Supervisor Buddy Mendes voted to approve Harris as the contractor. Supervisors Steve Brandau and Sal Quintero, who are running for reelection in November, recused themselves from the vote because of campaign contributions they’ve received from Harris owner Richard Spencer.

Magsig acknowledged that he received money from Spencer in 2023, but he told GV Wire he returned the money and was thus eligible to vote.

Clovis Waiting 20 Years for New Library

The Clovis branch library opened in 1976 when its population was 24,000; it’s now nearly 128,000, according to census data. When Magsig sat on Clovis City Council 20 years ago, county officials told him they wanted to build a new library, he said.

“If you look at the roughly 34 different libraries that exist throughout the county, the Clovis library branch is one of the most heavily utilized libraries,” Magsig said.

The new 26,000 square-foot library would more than triple the footprint of the previous one, according to county documents.

The city of Reedley has also outgrown its current library, said Nicole Zieba, city manager. She said the community depends on it for classes and tutoring. The new library would nearly triple the old one, going from 5,000 square feet to 14,000.

The county budgeted $24 million for the Clovis library and $13 million for Reedley. But it wasn’t until eight years ago that the county started setting that money aside to build the libraries.

Rather than having the county do its own designs for the libraries and have contractors bid on it, staff put it out to contractors to come up with design-build proposals.

Magsig said he hopes to have groundbreakings on both libraries in the coming weeks.

Related Story: Supervisors May Go Big With Vote on Clovis, Reedley Libraries

Highway City Next in Line, but Will Have to Wait for Measure B Renewal

Pacheco reminded supervisors at the meeting that after Clovis and Reedley, Highway City is next in line for an upgrade. Like Clovis and Reedley, the unincorporated community west of Highway 99 has grown significantly, Pacheco said.

In 2019, with then-Fresno City Councilwoman Esmeralda Soria and community activist April Henry, supervisors found a space to build a satellite library, Pacheco said.

“It was understood that at a future point in time, the county would actually build a full-fledged library in Highway City,” Pacheco said.

Pacheco said he’s been fortunate to have libraries built in Kerman, Mendota, Firebaugh, and Tranquility. His priority, he says, is to have the Highway City prioritized.

With funds from the library tax measure, Measure B, all allocated, it won’t be until after it is renewed that the library could be funded.

The 1/8th-cent sales tax expires in 2029. Fresno County Library PIO Susan Renfro said the plan is to have the measure on the 2026 ballot.