Long-vacant northwest Fresno land sold for development. Here’s what will be built there
.jpg "A parcel of land at the southwest corner of Herndon and Brawley in northwest Fresno has been sold by the city.")
A piece of property in northwest Fresno that has long been vacant in part because of its proximity to an airport flight path is being sold by the city of Fresno to a doctor with plans to develop medical offices on the site.
The land, about 14.6 acres, is at the southwest corner of Herndon and Brawley avenues. Across the street and slightly to the west is the runway for Sierra Sky Park, a subdivision created after World War II along the San Joaquin River as a pioneering community of fly-in homes.
On a 4-2 vote Thursday, Fresno City Council members approved the sale of the land for $1,850,000 to Dr, Lakhjit Sadndhu. Sandhu’s proposal was one of three evaluated by the city staff. The property was declared surplus by the city in 2020. Council Member Mike Karbassi, who represents District 2 which includes the site, and District 6 Council Member Garry Bredefeld voted against the sale.
Karbassi said his opposition was based on what he believed that by reaching out to individual City Council members during the evaluation process, Sandhu and his representatives violated a city non-contact ordinance intended to prevent improper lobbying of elected officials on city business.
“This is in my district,” Karbassi said. “When the residents have a problem with this, I’m the one who has to deal with it.”
He added that if either of the other two would-be buyers sue the city because of the alleged improper contact, “I want to make clear I was absolutely against this transaction.”
City Manager Georgeanne White said the city’s regulations allow exceptions to restricted communication if there is identical correspondence to all City Council members at the same time.
White added that the administration’s interpretation is that the communication to council members was a product of frustration with how long it was taking for the analysis of the proposals to result in a recommendation to the City Council. “We don’t believe that the (Sandhu) complaint affected the integrity of the decision,” she said.
The property will be subject to a “reverter clause” that would allow the city to buy back the property “should the Buyer not construct … a Class A medical office building within 36 months” after title to the land is transferred.
United Health Centers has developed offices on the north side of Herndon Avenue directly north of the site. At the southwest corner of Herndon and Brawley, adjacent to the site, a car wash and gas station/convenience store is in operation.
Across Brawley Avenue to the east sits a small shopping center that includes a Tractor Supply Co. store, a Good Guys auto service center, a Habit Burger restaurant and other businesses. Several other pieces of property south of Herndon and west of the site remain vacant.
This story was originally published July 22, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
