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hoodline.com
Downtown Fresno's New $30M Courtyard Hotel Opens After 28-Year Wait
A five-story, 144-room hotel opens its doors to guests Tuesday on a downtown Fresno corner that sat empty for a generation. The Courtyard by Marriott Fresno Downtown rises at the corner of M and Inyo streets, right next to the Fresno Convention Center, finally filling a gap that city leaders had been trying to patch since at least the late 1990s.
The Fresno Bee
Ice cream shop in Fresno sold after 22 years. See the new concept and name
From the street, the store’s sign still says Jack’s Sweets and Treats. From the parking lot, customers can see a new sign — Morgan’s Sweets and Treats . The original owner, Jack Rocha, spent more than 20 years behind the counter, scooping ice cream onto a frozen slab, preparing mix-ins and baking cookies, but Morgan won’t be doing that for a simple reason. Morgan is a little girl. She’s the daughter of the new owner, John Orellana, who bought the shop from Rocha at the beginning of October. Rocha opened the shop almost 22 years ago. “It was a good time and I found a great buyer,” Rocha said. Before the store was Jack’s Sweets and Treats, it was Marble Slab. Rocha originally opened the business as a part-time venture while working at Wonder Bread. When Wonder Bread declared bankruptcy and shuttered many of its bakeries, Rocha decided to make Marble Slab a full-time endeavor. Marble Slab was the first business to open in Via Montana Shopping Center, and Rocha has seen dozens of businesses come and go in the time he’s been there. “I think I was open a month before Yosemite Ranch,” Rocha said. Rocha has also been
sjvsun.com
Naindeep Singh’s breaks open District 1 race
Central Unified Trustee Naindeep Singh has taken a large lead in the race for Fresno City Council District 1. Along with Singh’s move, the latest election update from the Fresno County Registrar of Voters Tuesday afternoon also saw Asm. Joaquin Arambula (D–Fresno) and Ariana Martinez Lott maintain their leads in their respective races.
KMJ
Fresno City Council Votes to Bar ICE from Staging Operations on City Property
FRESNO, CA (KMJ/KFSN) – Fresno city council voted 6 to 1 Thursday to bar ice from staging their operations on city property. Residents showed up to support the measure to prohibit ICE agents from staging operations at city-owned parks, parking lots or buildings unless the federal agency has a valid judicial warrant or court order.
The Fresno Bee
Top stories: New Fresno hotel. Tulare sheriff allegations. Underdog judge candidate surges
Tuesday brought major developments across the central San Joaquin Valley, from serious allegations against a sitting Tulare County sheriff to a shifting race for a Fresno County judicial seat. The Fresno Bee covered the news shaping local communities, courts, campaigns and public safety. Here are the top stories of the day from our newsroom. Here are the top stories of the day Downtown Fresno hotel opens after decades of delays After decades of stalled proposals, Fresno’s downtown hotel is opening Tuesday. The five-story Courtyard by Marriott Fresno Downtown has 144 rooms, suites, a bistro, pool, fitness center and nearly 5,500 square feet of meeting space. Axis Hotel Group’s $30 million-plus project occupies a once-empty lot near the convention center; construction delays and redesigns pushed its opening beyond schedule by several years. Tulare County sheriff who ran for Congress accused of sexually abusing 2 girls, one age 11 Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux faces a complaint filed with the California Department of Justice accusing him of sexually abusing two minor girls in the 1980s and assaulting an adult woman in 2018. The complaint alleges that accusations against Boudreaux were reported to Tulare County Child Welfare Services as far back as 1991,
The Fresno Bee
Fresno council wants new license plate reader rules, but tables talks until December
The Fresno City Council has postponed consideration of new rules for the city’s use of automatic license plate readers, known as ALPRs, until next month after some officials said a deeper conversation is necessary. The city recently announced it will not renew its contract with ALPR company Flock Safety when the agreement expires in February, citing concerns the company's systems have proven vulnerable to misuse. The city still plans to find a new ALPR company to replace Flock in Fresno soon. On Thursday, the council was scheduled to begin considering stricter rules for the city’s use of ALPR camera technology, including language against the use of facial recognition and a 30-day limit on the retention of data not connected to any police investigation. Though the Fresno Police Department has its own ALPR policies, the new ordinance, sponsored by District 6 Councilmember Nick Richardson, was intended to create citywide rules and allow the council to provide oversight of the technology. The council ultimately decided to table the item until its Dec. 3 meeting after District 3 Councilmember Miguel Arias called for more time. He urged the council to wait for the newly-elected councilmembers to take office and said a discussion on
KMPH.com
Water main break displaces Southeast Fresno family as city promises reimbursements
FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) — Families in Southeast Fresno are facing an uncertain future after a city water main break flooded homes, forced residents to evacuate and left some properties unlivable. The City of Fresno says it will help cover certain expenses for displaced residents, including temporary housing and property...
The Fresno Bee
State Center College District picks new chancellor. She worked under embattled predecessor
The State Center Community College District has officially selected a new leader: an internal candidate who formerly worked alongside the former, controversy-embroiled chancellor. During Tuesday night’s board meeting, trustees unanimously decided that deputy chancellor Christine Holt-McDonald will assume the role of chancellor. The district entered into a two-and-a-half-year employment agreement with Holt-McDonald, who will earn an annual salary of $365,000. “I’m very honored and very humbled, to be the next chancellor of State Center Community College District,” Holt-McDonald said during the meeting. Holt-McDonald joined the district in 2025 and previously served as the chancellor of a university in Arkansas. She worked closely alongside Carole Goldsmith, who served as the chancellor from November 2021 to September 2026. In November 2025, 250 members of the district’s faculty union unanimously issued a vote of no confidence in Goldsmith’s leadership. Hours ahead of this vote, Goldsmith announced that she’d retire in September 2026 and said the union actions had nothing to do with the decision. Ahead of trustees’ decision, Keith Ford, president of the State Center Federation of Teachers, said there are some concerns surrounding the prospect of an internal candidate leading the district. “We would be looking immediately for her to break with
The Fresno Bee
Bee's Best: Who is The Fresno Bee Player of the Week for playoff openers
Vote for the Fresno-area players for the week of Nov. 6, in the playoff openers. Numerous players are selected for the poll following standout performances in big games. Voting for the poll begins now and ends at 11:59 p.m. Sunday. To vote again, simply refresh the page. Coaches may nominate a player for next week’s poll by emailing agalaviz@fresnobee.com . Please note: The Bee discourages all voting irregularities and any form of harassment. All voters are expected to demonstrate good sportsmanship. If inappropriate behavior occurs, please report it to the platform where it appears. The Bee expects good sportsmanship and fair play from everyone who participates. The poll is intended to allow readers to vote for their favorite player in good fun. If any voting irregularities are suspected, the player involved will be disqualified. Please keep the voting fair and sportsmanlike. Thank you.
The Fresno Bee
City attorney cleared over confirmation of candidate's DUI to media; questions remain
The investigations that the Fresno city attorney and a councilmember called for against each other over the handling of a candidate’s DUI charge were closed by city council in closed session last week without explanation. A short, joint statement from the Fresno City Council said City Attorney Andrew Janz did not violate any policies when he confirmed to media that council candidate Naindeep Singh had been arrested on suspicion of DUI a week before the Nov. 3 election, and that the matter was now closed. The unusual, unsigned, two-sentence statement on council letterhead was released on Monday, but it did not include how or when the council reached that conclusion. Kevin Little — an attorney representing Singh — told The Bee that his client still believes a thorough and unbiased investigation should be conducted into why he was arrested and then information of the arrest disclosed. At a press conference last week, Singh and Little called for Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office to get involved. “We are interested in facts, not bare conclusions,” Little said. “We have submitted exhaustive requests for public records and hope that those requests result in the disclosure of the requested information, since apparently now the