There are just 3 days left to submit comments on the River West Fresno Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR). Comments are due by April 15, 2017. 

Your comments matter. Please take the time to submit a comment today. 
We encourage you to submit comments that request the Conservancy Board to approve the DEIR with all three access points (Perrin Ave undercrossing accessible from Madera County on Old Highway 41, Riverview Drive, and Palm and Nees). 



Send your comments to:
Melinda Marks, Executive Officer 
San Joaquin River Conservancy 
5469 E. Olive
Fresno, CA 93727
or Melinda.Marks@sjrc.ca.gov

Click here to download a sample letter. 

Earlier this week we shared information about the Palm and Nees access point, also known as Alternative 5 in the DEIR. The San Joaquin River Conservancy Board will consider providing vehicular access at Palm and Nees as depicted in the graphic below. 

Click on the image to open a larger version of this image.

There are people in the community advocating for Route 5b, which is not part of Alternative 5 in the DEIR. Route 5b would include building a new road down a steep bluff near Spano Park. This route was evaluated in the DEIR and removed from consideration due to the significant environmental challenges related to the construction of a road that begins and ends on landfill property. 

Sometime in the last few years the City of Fresno conducted an engineering study on Route 5b. We understand that the estimated construction cost for the road is slightly more than $2 million. We also understand that this estimate does not account for any additional costs related to property acquisition or landfill remediation/cleanup. We have requested a copy of this document but haven't yet received it. 

Here's our question to you: considering the environmental challenges and construction costs, does it make sense to build a new road when there are two existing roads within a few blocks of this site? We are interested in your thoughts about this issue. Please respond to this email if you would like to share your perspective. 
In order to help you better visualize the project and alternatives described in the DEIR, we've made some video You can check out the videos by visiting the River Parkway Trust's YouTube channel at  https://www.youtube.com/user/SJRParkwayTrust.  

As a reminder, the River Parkway Trust is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that was formed in 1988 to create the San Joaquin River Parkway.  The San Joaquin River Conservancy is a State agency that was formed in 1992 by assembly bill 2452 (Costa) to create the San Joaquin River Parkway.  We work closely together because we have the mutual goal of creating the Parkway, but the Conservancy Board is the decision-maker on this particular project.  The River Parkway Trust is providing this information as a service to the community.
 
Don't give up your right to ask for public access! Be sure to send your comments on the DEIR to Melinda Marks by April 15, 2017.

You can review the River Parkway Trust's previous comments on this project at  https://www.riverparkway.org/index.php/land-and-trails/river-west .
 
If you have questions, please respond to this email or call us at 559-248-8480. 

Sincerely,

Sharon Weaver
Executive Director