School board in Fresno opposes SEDA, says plan puts district on ‘back burner’
The Central Unified school board voted Tuesday to oppose the Southeast Development Area (SEDA) plan backed by Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer, making it the school district in the area to take a public stance on the mega-development plan.
At Tuesday’s board meeting, the district’s seven trustees unanimously passed a resolution stating Central Unified’s opposition to SEDA, and directed the district superintendent to actively participate in SEDA’s public process, according to the resolution.
The proposed development plan, with a total estimated price tag of $4.3 billion, aims to build an estimated 45,000 homes on 9,000 acres in southeast Fresno. The plan is expected to worsen Fresno Unified’s declining enrollment as the new housing developments would fall within the Clovis Unified and Sanger Unified’s attendance boundaries.
Central Unified, which operates schools in northwest and west Fresno, does not border the proposed SEDA site. But trustees said they oppose SEDA because the project conflicts with long-overdue needs — such as roads, facilities, parks and public transportation services — in communities west of Highway 99.
“At the end of the day, there’s a limited amount of taxpayer money. There’s a limited amount of benefits that we as a community get, we as Fresno get, and this plan puts Central Unified, again, on the back burner for a different plan proposed in a different part that’s even outside our city,” said Trustee Jaspreet Sidhu. “Families that Central Unified serves have waited long enough, and that equitable growth must begin where the need is greatest, not where the land is cheapest.”
Trustee Nabil Kherfan acknowledged that California is in the midst of a housing crisis, but within Central Unified’s service area, there’s a community-led West Area Specific Plan, which was approved by the City of Fresno last fall.
“We have the opportunity to do that same growth to fill Fresno housing needs here on the west side, smartly filling in the holes that have been left behind through leapfrog development,” Kherfan said. “I support this resolution because we need to see this kind of community-led development in Fresno.”
About a dozen residents and community members spoke at the board meeting in support of the resolution. They praised the Central Unified Board for taking a public stance on the plan.
“There are classrooms, teachers, entire school communities at risk,” said April Henry, a west Fresno resident and leader of a community development nonprofit. “At the same time, we’re talking about 9,000-acre development, larger than the size of Clovis, being built while our city is already financially stretched, completely boned out, and already struggling to maintain the infrastructure we have today.”
Central Unified’s neighboring school district, Fresno Unified, which serves 68,000 students and will be directly impacted by SEDA, was supposed to vote on a public stance on SEDA in February. But four board members chose to table the item, reasoning that taking an opposition on a city’s development plan fell outside the school district’s jurisdiction.
According to a Fresnoland report, Dyer texted each Fresno Unified trustee the night before the February board meeting, pressuring them not to interfere with the development plan. Recently, Board President Veva Islas said that she would bring back the item for a second vote in May.
Central Unified Trustee Naindeep Singh said he did not receive any communication from Dyer regarding the school district’s resolution. Singh is finishing his second term on the Central Unified board, and he is running for a seat on the Fresno City Council.
Matthew Gillian, a resident of northwest Fresno, said he was deeply moved by the Central Unified’s stand against SEDA that he attended the board meeting.
“I’m raising my son in the city of Fresno, and it’s a shame that our school district hasn’t shown the same courage that you guys have, because it’s showing in our school system and showing in my son’s daily education,” Gillian said.
Clovis Unified, which will benefit from the proposed SEDA, has no plan for the board to discuss or vote on a public stance on the development plan, according to district spokesperson Kelly Avants.
This story was originally published April 29, 2026 at 2:54 PM.
