Top stories: Curry pizza bar; Granite Park returns home; $1M for animal shelter

The Fresno Bee on Friday tracked three major local developments: a popular pizza chain’s new venture into cocktails, a court ruling returning a major sports park to city control and a push to dramatically expand the city’s animal sterilization budget.

Here are top stories of the day:

• This popular Fresno pizza chain opened a location with something new – a bar: Curry Pizza Company opened its fourth Fresno location at Belmont and Fowler avenues on Monday, marking the first time the chain has included a bar. Owner Malhi Singh designed a cocktail menu with local flair, featuring drinks like Sunnyside Spice, Fresno Heatwave and Tower District Sour, alongside 12 beer taps. A fifth location is planned for Campus Pointe near Fresno State by year’s end or early next year, possibly with a bar and expanded wing menu.
• Granite Park to return to city of Fresno. ‘You’re trying to steal land’: Fresno County Superior Court Judge Jonathan Skiles on Friday let stand his ruling that the Central Valley Community Sports Foundation breached its lease with the city, ending a 10-year arrangement at Granite Park Sports Complex. CVCSF President Terance Frazier called the ruling unfair and said an appeal is planned. The city set aside $847,900 to operate the park next fiscal year, though Frazier said it takes at least $1.5 million yearly.
• Could $1M help Fresno’s animal crisis? That would triple city spending on strays: Councilmember Annalisa Perea made a motion to allocate $1 million in the city’s fiscal year 2027 budget for spay and neuter services, nearly tripling the $350,000 originally proposed by Mayor Jerry Dyer. The motion is contingent on a $500,000 matching grant from the Sonoma County-based Dogwood Animal Rescue Project. Of roughly 10,000 animals taken in by the Fresno Animal Center last year, about 27% were euthanized. The council votes on the motion June 16, with a final budget vote June 23.

Original stories by Bethany Clough, David Taub and Melissa Montalvo

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists. Before publishing, journalists reviewed this content in compliance with McClatchy Media’s AI policy.