MediterraneanGrocery Wholesalers in Fresno, CA

Last week’s ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit against the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration policy was not unexpected given the court’s history with the program, which has been tied in legal battles since President Donald Trump tried to end it during his first presidency.

The federal appeals court dealt a setback to the DACA policy by ruling it unlawful, though U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will continue processing DACA renewals for current recipients.

While the court ruling upheld a status quo that has been in place in recent years, the future of the DACA program remains uncertain.

Matias Bernal, executive director of the Fresno-based Education & Leadership Foundation, a nonprofit providing immigration services to recipients of the DACA program in the Central Valley, said the Jan. 17 rulling was disappointing, “but we were not surprised.”

“We expected such a ruling based on where it was located, and the fact that it’s been the same district court that ruled DACA unconstitutional a couple of years ago,” said Bernal, a DACA recipient since 2013.

The court’s ruling is the latest chapter in the long-running litigation challenging the DACA program.

The district court found that Texas still has standing to challenge DACA and declared the program as unlawful. However, USCIS will continue to process renewals for DACA beneficiaries at this time.

The ruling leaves the DACA program on hold for new applicants.

While the ruling stated that it was going to focus on the impacts on Texas, DACA advocates said they don’t know exactly what that looks like as of this moment.

“We are going to have to wait and see the implications that comes after that,” Bernal said.

In 2021, a district court held that Texas has standing to challenge DACA and called the DACA program unlawful. The court halted the program and barred the federal government from approving any new DACA applications, but allowed those who had already received their DACA status to renew.

More than 150,000 undocumented Californians benefit from the DACA program.

More than 800,000 people have had DACA at one time or another since the program’s creation creation in 2012. About 530,000 undocumented immigrants in the country, often referred to as Dreamers, maintain their DACA protections.

Bernal, who has been open about what’s it’s like to live under the constant uncertainty of deportation as a DACA recipient, said “we’re very much in the status quo.”

“We hope that the Supreme Court will take the case and will hopefully overturn that,” Bernal said.

DACA recipients are still able to apply to renew their status. Bernal encouraged recipients to renew if their work permit expires within a year or less. Renewals of these applications take an average of four months, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website.

DACA, created in 2012 by former President Barack Obama through an executive order, protects undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children from deportation and provides them with work authorization and social security numbers.

The program’s future, though, is uncertain. Trump has vowed to pursue mass deportations and end policies such as DACA and birthright citizenship during his second term.

In 2019, the court sided with DACA recipients and found that the Trump administration failed to provide a reasoned explanation for ending the program.

“The conservative 5th Circuit also made clear in its ruling the deep value of DACA by highlighting that ending the policy would do substantial harm to DACA recipients,” said Todd Schulte, president of FWD.us, a bipartisan political organization based in Washington, D.C. “As the court ruled Texas had only shown harm to itself, this ruling does not put a nationwide injunction in place on DACA.”

“No one should have to live their life from court decision to court decision, nor in two-year increments,” Schulte said. “DACA has transformed the lives of so many. It is long past time for DACA recipients, and so many others, to have a pathway to citizenship.”

This story was originally published January 23, 2025 at 12:40 PM.

María G. Ortiz-Briones

The Fresno Bee

559-441-6782

María G. Ortiz-Briones is a reporter and photographer for McClatchy’s Vida en el Valle publication. She covers issues that impact the Latino community in the Central Valley. She is a regular contributor to La Abeja, The Bee’s free weekly newsletter on Latino issues. | María G. Ortiz-Briones es reportera y fotógrafa de la publicación Vida en el Valle de McClatchy. Ella cubre temas que impactan a la comunidad latina en el Valle Central. Es colaboradora habitual de La Abeja, el boletín semanal gratuito de The Bee sobre temas latinos.

It’s a new year and new restaurants are coming.

Despite last year being a dismal one for the Fresno-Clovis restaurant scene, with at least 37 eateries closing, restaurateurs are a hopeful type.

They’ve got all kinds of new eateries in the works, from new locations of big chains, to little mom-and-pop smashburger places in southeast Fresno.

The owners of Saizon and Butterfish are gearing up to open their newest concept — and it might even be the year that Toledo’s Mexican Restaurant opens its newest locations, along with Randy’s Donuts.

Here’s a look at who’s coming in 2025.

Frida Café, the coffee shop inspired by Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, has been slated to go into downtown Fresno’s historic Water Tower for years. (It’s now operating inside Bespoke Cocktail Lounge on Fulton Street in the mornings.)

“This year, it will all come together,” Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias told The Bee on Friday.

Millions of dollars of work, including replacing an electrical transformer that served a city block, is almost finished.

Dave’s Hot Chicken is taking over the old Burger King near Fashion Fair mall on Shaw Avenue. The inside is demolished and rebuilding work will begin as soon as it gets permits, with hopes of a June opening, the franchisee said.

Hazen Burgers, at 4772 E. Olive Ave. near Chestnut Avenue, is a little smashburger place also serving classic burgers, milkshakes, asada fries, quesadillas, burritos and more. It’s scheduled to open Feb. 8.

House of Pendragon, the Sanger-based brewery, is opening a tap room and barbecue restaurant at the northwest corner of Pollasky Avenue and Eighth Street this spring.

Los Amigos Mexican Restaurant is planning a location inside Fresno Yosemite International Airport. It will be a 2,000-square-foot mariachi- and folklorico-themed restaurant in the newly expanded terminal concourse opening this fall. It will have a sit-down dining room, a full bar and a panaderia with fresh baked goods.

Ono Hawaiian BBQ is planning to open a location this year in The Trading Post Shopping Center at Herndon and Clovis avenues, according to retail broker Lewis Smith of NEWMARK Retail California.

Otherside Cafe is a coffee shop and bakery by the same people who own popular restaurants Saizon, Heirloom and Butterfish. It’s at Shepherd and Willow avenues, near Saizon. It should open within the next couple of weeks. Follow its Instagram for updates.

Paris Baguette, a popular French-inspired chain bakery with South Korean roots, has two new locations coming this year. The first, in the Villaggio shopping center at Blackstone and Nees avenues, is scheduled to open in mid-March. Another is headed to the Marketplace at El Paseo, near Highway 99 and Herndon Avenue.

Randy’s Donuts is getting close to opening its two locations in Fresno (which won’t have giant 35-foot wide donut signs on top like the one in “Iron Man 2”. The iconic Southern California company has a store coming to Shaw Avenue near the Red Wave Inn and Maple Avenue. Another will open at Palm and Bullard avenues, behind the car wash.

The donut shops had planned to open by late last year, but kept pushing back the date. Now a bit gun shy, they say they’re still planning to open, but told The Bee don’t want to give out any updates.

River Park has two new unnamed restaurants that have signed leases and are scheduled to open this year, according to the shopping center. A locally owned Mexican restaurant will open in a month or two in the former Rubio’s spot.

A local chicken restaurant is slated to open in the former Smallcakes Cupcakery spot in the main plaza area in about four months.

Roll-Em-Up Taquitos is a franchised restaurant specializing in taquitos that plans to open its first Fresno location in the Marketplace at El Paseo this year. It serves two-, three- and four-packs of hand-rolled, pan-fried taquitos, along with nachos and sides.

Satay Thai Kitchen & Bar, a modern Thai food restaurant, is taking over the former Nambo Vietnamese spot at Shepherd and Chestnut avenues. A full-service, sit-down spot with a full bar, it’s scheduled to open in February.

Seoul Meat Co. is opening a Korean barbecue restaurant in the outdoor portion of Fashion Fair mall. The restaurant has locations in Kirkland, Wash., and Riverton, Utah, where customers can cook their own meat at their table.

Take 3 and Grumpy Burger Lady’s made a big splash on social media late last year, but said they didn’t quite get the green light from various governing agencies to officially open. Now, the owner tells The Bee the restaurant on Fulton Street in downtown Fresno is slated to open Monday, Jan. 27.

Teriyaki Madness is a quick-service Asian restaurant from Seattle specializing in chicken teriyaki bowls and teriyaki dishes. It plans to open in new construction near the theater at The Marketplace at El Paseo.

Toledo’s Mexican Restaurant will finally open the new location its been working on for years at Cedar and Nees avenues. Jesse Toledo, part of the family who owns it, isn’t saying when just yet. He’s waiting on a few last-minute construction details and then the project will need to pass various inspections, he said.

“My wish would be as soon as possible,” he said. “As soon as they’re done, we’re gonna open.”

Uncle Harry’s NY Bagelry & Coffeehouse is returning to Fig Garden Village after closing its location there in 2017. The popular hangout wanted to stay at the time, but couldn’t agree on a lease. Now, they have, and it’s slated to open near its old location sometime this spring.

The Fresno Bee

(559) 441-6431

Bethany Clough covers restaurants and retail for The Fresno Bee. A reporter for more than 20 years, she now works to answer readers’ questions about business openings, closings and other business news. She has a degree in journalism from Syracuse University and her last name is pronounced Cluff.

Rain is returning to the Fresno area after a lengthy dry spell, according to the National Weather Service.

A storm will pass through the southwestern United States over the weekend, bringing widespread rain and mountain snow, the weather service said in an X post.

“Chances of precipitation are in store for the region from late Saturday through early next week,” the agency said via X.

Rainfall amounts in the Fresno area will be around a tenth of a rain to quarter of an inch, according to David Spector, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Hanford office.

Communities at elevations of 3,500 feet and higher should see some snow, Spector said.

The last time Fresno was saw any measurable rain was Jan. 3, when the city received five hundreths of an inch of rain.

“It’s been unusually dry this month,” Spector said.

Here’s what to expect:

Thu, 1/23/25 @ 5:15 AM PST - Chances of precipitation are in store for the region #cencal from late Saturday through early next week. #CAwx pic.twitter.com/TA0qX0VlSF

— NWS Hanford (@NWSHanford) January 23, 2025

Friday was expected to have increasing clouds with a high temperatures near 67 degrees and calm winds, according to the weather service’s latest seven-day forecast.

The overnight low temperature will be around 41 degrees.

On Saturday, there’s a 30% chance of precipitation with rain after 4 p.m., the weather service said.

The day will be mostly cloudy before becoming sunny, with a high near 59.

More rain is expected after 10 p.m. Saturday in Fresno, which will be mostly cloudy overnight with a low around 42.

“We’re looking at a 60% chance of rain on Saturday night and Sunday morning,” Spector said. “That’s going to be the best chance (for rainfall).”

The Fresno area could get “around a tenth of an inch to a quarter of an inch” of precipitation, Spector said.

On Sunday, rain will be likely before 10 a.m.

Sunday will be mostly cloudy, with a high near 54 and an overnight low around 38.

There is a 40% chance of rain for Sunday night, mainly before 4 a.m.

Fresno is expected to get more rain on Monday, according to Spector.

The city will see a 20% chance of rain before 10 a.m. and areas of frost before 9 a.m., the weather service said.

Monday will be mostly sunny with a high near 55 and an overnight low around 36.

Fresno will dry up after Monday, according to the weather service.

“Tuesday through Thursday will definitely be dry days,” Spector said.

Tuesday will be sunny with a high near 57 and and an overnight low around 38.

More sunshine is predicted for Wednesday, which will have a high near 58 and a low around 38, and Thursday, which will have a high near 59.

This story was originally published January 24, 2025 at 11:53 AM.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta is suing a Central Valley city for failing to evaluate the health impacts of cold-storage facilities on nearby disadvantaged communities.

According to the lawsuit, the city of Tulare approved its Zoning Ordinance Update last month in violation of state planning and zoning laws, as well as the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA.

By approving the ordinance, the city failed to conduct environmental review for the Zoning Ordinance and its by-right permitting of cold-storage and other industrial facilities, according to the state’s lawsuit. Bonta’s complaint also alleges the city failed to account for the health risk assessment requirement in its General Plan and failed to mitigate all significant environmental impacts of the Zoning Ordinance Update, as required by law.

The lawsuit said these facilities could have serious health implications for communities like Matheny Tract, “a previously racially-segregated community that is now one of the most pollution-burdened and disadvantaged communities in the State.”

Cold storages are essentially “refrigerated warehouses,” the lawsuit said, and require the use of diesel-powered trucks and trailers with “transport refrigeration units,” which emit more harmful pollutants than standard trucks, the lawsuit said.

These facilities are known to increase cancer and other health risks for residents living nearly one mile away, Bonta said in a statement.

“Matheny Tract residents deserve environmental protections that prioritize their health and well-being,” Bonta said. “That’s why we’re filing this lawsuit, which would hold the City of Tulare accountable for violating the law and compel the City to fulfill its legal requirements to mitigate the potential environmental harms to local residents.”

Mario Zamora, city attorney for the city of Tulare said in a phone interview that he was aware of the suit but had not yet seen a copy.

“As far as I know, we haven’t been served yet,” he said.

The Zoning Ordinance Update, which was approved by the Tulare City Council in December, allows warehouses and cold-storage facilities to be developed “by right,” meaning without environmental analysis, mitigation measures or with limited public notice or participation in all zones in which they are allowed.

The updated ordinance says these developments are exempted from state environmental review because they fall under the “common sense” exception of the law. Under this exception, the city must demonstrate “with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment,” the lawsuit said.

According to the lawsuit, the city is not properly applying this common sense exemption to CEQA review.

“By forgoing CEQA review of its Update, the City allows large facilities with known human health and environmental impacts to be built without environmental review or appropriate mitigation, harming residents, families, communities, and the environment in violation of CEQA and state law,” the suit said.

Matheny Tract is a a historically Black community south of Tulare established in 1947 by E.S. and Grace Matheny during a time in which racially restrictive covenants prohibited Black people from living in the city.

Today, the majority Latino census-designated place is home to about 1,000 residents and 330 homes, according to U.S. Census data.

The lawsuit said there is “substantial pre-existing pollution in the area” given the residential community is surrounded by industrial land on two sides.

Residents in the community suffer from some of the highest exposures statewide to fine particulate matter (95th percentile), which are microscopic particles that can enter into human lungs and are linked to increased risk of premature death, cardiovascular disease, lung cancer and asthma attacks, the lawsuit said.

The community is surrounded by cotton and orchard crops, as well as recycling, auto, trucking and agriculture businesses, The Bee reported in 2017.

This story was originally published January 24, 2025 at 7:00 AM.