Does Fresno embrace warehouses, distribution centers? Here’s what survey doesn’t say | Opinion
The email landed in my inbox like a sack of bricks with an all-caps subject line prefaced by a siren emoji.
SURVEY SHOWS 71% SUPPORT FOR FRESNO’S RETAIL DISTRIBUTION AND WAREHOUSING
Apologies to your eyeballs for the extra effort.
“This week,” the email began, “INVEST Fresno released the results of a recent public opinion survey, showing overwhelming support for the city’s retail distribution and warehousing business sector.”
Just as I began to wonder who INVEST Fresno is and what it does, besides overuse capital letters, the next sentence came to my rescue.
“INVEST Fresno, a nonpartisan organization committed to building a diverse and sustainable economy that elevates the community of Fresno for all its residents, recently commissioned a public opinion survey of more than 400 registered voters in Fresno.”
Those surveyed included voters from all seven council districts. Residents were polled about their general attitudes toward the state and city, their top priorities and their “perspective on retail distribution and warehousing.”
After highlighting the respondents’ 71% “overwhelming support” for warehouses and distribution centers, the email followed with a quote from INVEST Fresno Board chair Ethan Smith.
“It is clear that residents throughout all seven council districts recognize the immense value that retail distribution and warehousing, primarily housed in South Central Fresno, bring to the entire city,” Smith said.
Clustered in one part of town
Did Smith just say Fresnans far and wide are more than happy to have warehouses and distribution centers localized in one part of town?
I believe he did.
“These businesses are fueling Fresno’s economy – providing much-needed jobs, health care benefits, and career advancement, not to mention the tax revenue that funds essential services for all residents,” Smith added.
“Fresno has the opportunity to facilitate an environment that supports policies to not only retain existing businesses but attract new businesses and industries to the area so Fresno can continue to grow and thrive for future generations.”
The results of five questions were helpfully included, along with a hyperlink in the “About INVEST Fresno” section. The website it directed me to didn’t contain much information about the organization besides listing an “advisory committee” composed primarily of executives from various business and trade associations.
Curious about Smith, the INVEST board chair who sung the praises of warehouses and distribution centers, I googled his name and “Fresno.” The top result was Smith’s personal page at nmrk.com. That’s stock market-speak for The Newmark Group, a global commercial real estate firm based in New York.
After being greeted by Smith’s smiling face, I read about his background and career then kept scrolling until stopping at a heading entitled “Partial List of Sales Transactions.”
The top listing is for 202,000 square feet of “Class A warehouse” space in Fresno, which sold for $16,050,000. The second is a 44-acre Amazon delivery station in Fresno, which sold for $7,650,000. The third is a 20-acre “industrial development” in Fresno, which sold for $3,195,000. The sixth is for a 72-acre Amazon fulfillment center in Fresno, which sold for $12 million even.
On and on it went. The 17 sales transactions included on Smith’s “partial list” added up to 1.93 million square feet of warehouse space and 286 acres of commercial property, which sold for a combined $127.5 million.
There are a couple obvious points to make here. One is that Smith must be good at his job. The other is his extremely vested interest in any organized effort that keeps the commission checks rolling in.
South Fresno land use policies
Why did INVEST Fresno conduct and release this survey now? That’s fairly plain too.
Sometime in December, the Fresno City Council is expected to tackle use policies in the city’s most industrialized area. As currently written, the South Central Specific Plan contains zoning changes (none that would impact current businesses) and creates a 1,000-foot buffer between polluting industries and “sensitive receptors” such as schools and community centers.
Such policies do not prevent warehouses and distribution centers from being built. It simply adds safeguards designed to protect south Fresno residents who have long been overburdened with air pollution and truck traffic.
The pro-business set doesn’t see it that way. To them, the fewer constraints the better. So in order to promote their views, they concoct surveys filled with vaguely worded questions (i.e. “Are warehouses and distribution centers good or bad for Fresno?”) designed to get the intended response.
Since I gave room to a commercial real estate broker who makes sales commissions off warehouses and distribution centers, it’s only fair to carve out space for someone who feels their negative impacts.
“I’d like to know how many people surveyed live near one of these warehouses or distribution centers, or like my neighborhood does, a cluster of these businesses all together, polluting our air, damaging our roads, and putting our children and grandchildren in harm’s way,” Panfilo Cerrillo said.
A member of the South Fresno Community Alliance who has lived in south central Fresno for nearly 70 years, Cerrillo said he’s tired of his neighborhood being “a dumping ground” for such projects.
“The fact of the matter is that if the city continues the way it has, our community will not survive. We believe there is a better way, and we stand ready to work with anyone who wants to find solutions that work for everyone.”
Before buying into public opinion surveys, always sift through who’s doing the surveying.
