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FRESNO CALIFORNIA Fast Fresno Facts • Centered in the World’s 6th Largest Economy • California’s 5th Largest City • Metro GDP - $38.8 Billion • Birthplace of High-Speed Rail in the U.S. • Fresno is Spanish for “Ash Tree” 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS About Fresno............................. 3 Location & Infrastructure........... 12 Mayor Lee Brand...................... 4 Logistics.................................... 13 Demographics.......................... 5 Transportation.............................. 14 Workforce................................ 6 Housing Market........................... 15 Higher Education.................... 7 Recreation & Tourism................... 16 Top Employers.......................... 8 Weather...................................... 18 Business Activity....................... 9 2 ABOUT FRESNO History The City of Fresno’s history stretches back to the years following the 1849 California Gold Rush. Fresno County was formed in 1856 and was named after the abundant ash trees found along the banks of the San Joaquin River. The tiny town of Millerton, which sat along the banks of the San Joaquin River, was the first county seat. A little more than a decade later, A.Y. Easterby purchased land in what is today southeast Fresno in a part of town known as Sunnyside. In 1872, the Central Pacific Railroad established a station near Easterby’s farm for the new Southern Pacific line. Leland J. Stanford, a director for the railroad, is credited with selecting the site of the new station. Not long after, a store was built and the town of Fresno Station – later to be called Fresno – was born. Fresno became an incorporated city in 1885. In 1890, its population was 10,818. By 1940, it was more than 60,000. The real boom came after World War II, when the population went from 91,669 in 1950 to 354,202 in 1990. Today, the population is more than 525,000 with a metropolitan area population of more than 1 million people. The area has had an ethnic mix from the earliest years with Chinese railroad workers and Scandinavian farmers joined by Germans from Russia, Japanese and Armenians and by the early 20th century a large Hispanic population. There are now more than 70 ethnic groups in the metropolitan area. From the start, agriculture was the backbone of the local economy. Major crops include grapes, almonds, cotton, peaches and nectarines. Now, though, Fresno is diversifying into distribution and e-commerce, as well as growing its manufacturing base. It also has a budding technology sector. When the high-speed rail line is finished to San Jose, it is expected that Fresno will boom with not only Silicon Valley commuters, but also Bay Area tech businesses who will find this region attractive for expansion. Government The City of Fresno has a “Strong Mayor” form of government. The City Charter designates the Mayor as the Chief Executive Officer and the City Council as the legislative branch. If the City was a private corporation, it would be one of the largest employers in Central California. Council members would be the equivalent of the board of directors. The Mayor has veto powers and the authority to draft and propose a budget. The Mayor also appoints a Chief Administrative Officer – or City Manager – who is responsible for appointing department heads and overseeing the day-to-day operations of the city. Earlier this year, Brand named Wilma Quan-Schecter as City Manager. Quan-Schecter officially took over in July, becoming the first female City Manager in Fresno’s history. 3 MAYOR LEE BRAND Lee Brand is the 25th Mayor of the City of Fresno. He won the seat in the November 2016 election and was sworn into office on January 3, 2017. Brand grew up poor in Fresno’s southeast area. He was the middle child who grew up surrounded by his mother and her extended Italian family. Brand’s maternal grandfather Ralph immigrated from an Italian village and ended up in Fresno. After an Army stint he settled down and sent for a mail-order bride from Italy. After struggling as a youth, Brand earned an undergraduate degree – graduating summa cum laude – from California State University, Fresno, and a graduate degree in public administration from the University of Southern California. In the late 1970s, he began dabbling in real estate. Eventually, he co-founded Westco Equities, Inc., a property management/construction firm which he owned and operated for 29 years. Brand sold his interest in the business when he became mayor. He is a licensed Real Estate Broker, a licensed General Contractor and a Certified Property Manager. Before becoming Mayor, Brand served as City Council President, Chairman of the Redevelopment Agency and as a Commissioner on the Fresno City Planning Commission. During his eight years representing District 6 on the City Council, Brand authored and successfully passed more than twenty legislative initiatives, which regulate fiscal responsibility, accountability, and transparency, in addition to such initiatives as the Water Conservation Act and the School Liaison Act. Brand’s mayoral goals are led by economic development, with its cornerstone ten year “Path to Prosperity,” which will ultimately bring 10,000 new jobs to Fresno by 2027. Other priorities are public safety, water supply and quality, and addressing poverty and homelessness. His public safety goal is to at least 1,000 sworn police officers in the City of Fresno. Mayor Brand celebrating the 207th anniversary of Mexican independence with local students at City Hall. 4 DEMOGRAPHICS Since the 2010 census, the population of Fresno County has grown by 3.6 percent. According to California Department of Finance population projections, the county will grow to over 1 million residents by the year 2020. Source: California Department of Finance DIVERSITY Fresno County is a geographically and culturally Projected Growth Rates diverse county encompassing nearly 6,000 square miles. With 15 incorporated cities, Population (2015-2030) ranging from a few thousand in population to Fresno County 22.4% the 5th largest city in the state, the county is able California 13.4% to suit a wide variety of industries. Population (2017) Fresno County 995,975 Clovis 110,762 Coalinga 16,982 Firebaugh 8,202 Fowler 6,091 Fresno* 525,832 Huron 7,186 Kerman 14,614 Kingsburg 12,338 Mendota 11,828 Orange Cove 9,369 Fresno State Partners with the University of Parlier 15,500 Guadalajara on Pilot Study Abroad Program Reedley 26,152 Acknowledging the growing importance between Sanger 26,412 Fresno and Guadalajara, the University of Guadalajara San Joaquin 4,070 offered ten Fresno State students scholarships for a Selma 25,156 summer study abroad program in Guadalajara during *5th largest city in California by population the 2016 academic year. FACT: 49% of Fresno metro area residents are of Mexican heritage 5 WORKFORCE Current labor and industry information Fresno County Labor Force 449,100 along with occupational industry Employed 411,400 projections for the Fresno Metropolitan Unemployed 37,700 Statistical Area (MSA) Unemployment Rate 8.4% California Employment Development Department, June 2017 Industry Employment - Fresno MSA Top 5 Projected Growth Occupations by Occupational Classification - Fresno MSA (2012 - 2022) Jun ‘17 Jun ‘16 YOY YOY Industry Employed Employed Change Change (%) SOC Rank Occupational Title % Growth Total, All Code 398,800 389,800 9,000 2.3% Industries Personal Care & Svs 1 39-0000 38.0% Total Farm 53,300 52,000 1,300 2.5% Occupations Architecture & Engineering Total Nonfarm 345,500 337,800 7,700 2.3% 2 17-0000 35.4% Occupations Mining & 400 400 0 0.0% Construction & Extraction Lodging 3 47-0000 32.2% Occupations Construction 17,200 16,100 1,100 6.8% Healthcare Support 4 31-0000 26.0% Manufacturing 24,800 25,500 (700) (2.7%) Occupations Trade, Trans., & Computer & Mathematical 67,000 65,000 2,000 3.1% 5 15-0000 24.8% Utilities Occupations Information 3,700 3,700 0 0.0% California Employment Development Department, Employment Projections by Industry and Occupation, Feb. 2015 Financial 13,700 13,200 500 3.8% Activities Professional & 32,100 31,900 200 0.6% Business Svs Top 5 Projected Growth Industries by Educational & 65,700 63,800 1,900 3.0% Employment - Fresno MSA (2012 - 2022) Health Svs Leisure & Rank Industry % Growth 32,500 33,400 (900) (2.7%) Hospitality 1 Construction 37.7% Other Services 12,400 11,500 900 7.8% Educational Svs, Health Care, 2 31.9% Government 76,000 73,300 2,700 3.7% & Social Assistance California Employment Development Department, June 2017 3 Professional & Business Svs 31.4% 4 Leisure & Hospitality 22.1% 5 Financial Activities 19.5% California Employment Development Department, Employment Projections by Industry and Occupation, Feb. 2015 6 HIGHER EDUCATION Universities Fresno State University of California, San Francisco - Fresno Ranked as the 17th best national university by Washington Monthly, UCSF Fresno is a major clinical and educational branch of California State University, Fresno, universally known as Fresno the UCSF School of Medicine. It is the only major campus of the State, is the largest university in central California with a student five UCSF campuses to be located outside the city of San Francisco. population of more than 23,000. Consisting of eight Schools UCSF is exclusively dedicated to graduate education in the health and Colleges, Fresno State offers undergraduate, graduate, and sciences and is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading doctoral degrees. It was the first university in the U.S. to operate a universities in medical

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