Merced Sun-Star
Fresno airport breaks passenger record for fifth year in a row
For the fifth year in a row, Fresno Yosemite International Airport has broken its own record for passengers flying in and out of the airport. In 2025, the region’s airport served more than 2.7 million travelers, a 2.97% increase over the total in...
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Highway 99 in Fresno has a history of fog-related pileups
The Tule fog has a long history of putting the San Joaquin Valley under conditions ripe for catastrophe, a situation made deadly over Fresno’s history when drivers haven’t taken precautions on Highway 99. The Fresno Bee archives list deadly pileup...
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Coroner identifies Fresno man killed in Highway 99 pileup
A 61-year-old Fresno man has been identified as the sole fatality in a massive pile-up that prompted a mass-casualty/ trauma response along Highway 99 on Sunday. Gustavo Villanueva Vargas was struck and killed in a chain reaction of crashes caused by...
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Minn. officials kept out of ICE shooting investigation
A top state law enforcement official said Thursday that federal agencies were denying Minnesota investigators access to evidence from a fatal shooting by an immigration enforcement officer the day before, preventing them from participating in the...
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County homeowners spend 6 figures to become Clovis residents
A group of Fresno County homeowners set to become Clovis residents will pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to connect to the city’s municipal services amid depleting groundwater resources. Quail Run, a 41-acre neighborhood with 18 homes located at...
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Construction at major intersection creates maze of detours
Construction work at the perennially busy intersection of Shaw Avenue and Golden State Boulevard near Highway 99 has created multiple detours to build a new overpass for the California High-Speed Rail project. The overpass being built along Shaw...
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Sensory gym for special needs children coming to Clovis
For Christopher Reyes, a sensory gym coming to Clovis means more than indoor zip sliding, mountain climbing and other fun for children with special needs. It means those children will have a place without judgment, and where their parents don’t...
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New owners of Bekins building plan ‘modern-day man cave’
Drinks, music, space for cars and car lovers. That’s the vibe that local developer Reza Assemi and his business partner, Jaime Gonzalez, are shooting for in their redevelopment plans for Fresno’s historic Bekins building, known for its Peelz Citrus...
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Arthur’s Toys a beloved memory years after store closes
Want a shot of nostalgia that will bring a smile to almost any longtime Fresnan’s face? Say the words Arthur’s Toys. The now defunct local toy shop was around for about six decades, with multiple locations across the city. Memories exist in the brains...
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‘Massive’ costs stall plans for Bank of Italy building
The future of downtown Fresno’s Bank of Italy building is hanging in suspense after proposed plans to renovate the building have stalled. In October 2022, an agricultural technology coalition led by the Central Valley Community Foundation announced...
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Absentee owners lead to fire risks: Will city crack down?
After a structure built in the late 1800s burned down in Fresno’s Chinatown on Sunday, neighborhood leaders say they wish owners of vacant buildings in the area would work harder to keep their properties properly secured. They say some owners of...
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Plans for new homes in downtown Fresno stalled
Downtown Fresno is no stranger to news about the future construction of apartments. Several projects in the pipeline — some on private property and others on city-provided land with city-approved development agreements — would add hundreds of new...
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Clovis infill building plan stirs traffic, safety concerns
Dozens of Clovis homeowners voiced opposition Thursday to a proposal that would build 1,300 housing units on 20 parcels of infill development to comply with the state’s affordable housing mandate. The proposal to redesignate 20 underutilized parcels...
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Tribe reclaims 900 acres near Yosemite National Park
A Native American tribe that was displaced by the establishment of Yosemite National Park is getting part of its lands back. The land transfer, from Pacific Forest Trust, is considered a major milestone for Indigenous cultural and land restoration in...
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What we know about mass shooting in Stockton
A child’s birthday party in Stockton turned into one of the region’s deadliest mass shootings in years, leaving four people dead — three of them children — and nearly a dozen others wounded. The tragedy unfolded just before 6 p.m. Saturday at a...
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Dozens of Chihuahuas abandoned in Modesto, Ceres
Abandoned dogs were living in ‘unimaginable’ conditions in a Modesto home Original story: A Merced animal rescue organization is looking for foster homes for dozens of Chihuahuas that were left abandoned at homes in Modesto and Ceres. According to...
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Fresno firefighters rank high in city overtime pay
Firefighters rank highest among Fresno city employees raking in overtime hours and pay, and city leaders say they try to strike a balance between OT and hiring more people to reduce spending. Six of the city’s top 10 highest compensated employees for...
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Jobs report shows gains in September, but unemployment rose
Employers notched a very respectable month of hiring in September, ending a slow summer on a positive note, while the unemployment rate edged up to 4.4%. The data, delayed by six weeks because of the government shutdown, is an already out-of-date...
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Clovis widens major road using eminent domain
Clovis has cleared the way for a project to widen Shepherd Avenue by securing a right-ofway acquisition of a property on Fowler Avenue through eminent domain. The parcel is located at the intersection of Fowler and Shepherd avenues, with its...
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Merced City Council ‘supports the KKK,’ member says in posts
Merced City Councilmember Fue Xiong accused his fellow members of supporting the Ku Klux Klan in social media posts over failed votes about flying several commemorative flags in Bob Hart Square. Xiong also liked a comment on his Instagram post by a...
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Merced College to offer students new pathway to law careers
Merced College is planning a partnership with California LAW Pathways designed to help students chart an early path from community college to a law career. The new program is slated to begin next spring and will be open to current and incoming...
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Food bank braces for SNAP cuts set to impact 720,000
As the government shutdown drags on, the Central California Food Bank is preparing for funding cuts that could send hundreds of thousands across the San Joaquin Valley scrambling for emergency food resources. Co-CEO Natalie Caples told The Fresno Bee...
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Fresno plan hopes to combat food, healthcare deserts
West Fresno residents live in what some describe as a food and healthcare desert, which puts residents at increased risk for a number of chronic diseases. A new plan is designed to bring long-awaited resources to the area divided by Highway 99. After...
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After much anticipation, Target opens at Fancher Creek
Target has opened its new store at Fancher Creek in southeast Fresno. It was a big deal, judging by who showed up to celebrate. Fresno Street Eats rolled out half-dozen food trucks and vendors for an outdoor market in the parking lot of the shopping...
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Thousands march in Central Valley’s ‘No Kings’ protests
Lori Pardi, a 56-year-old facilities management staff member at Fresno State, had never attended a protest—until Saturday. Standing among hundreds at the “No Kings” rally outside the Manchester Center in Fresno, she said it was time for her to speak...
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Lotus Pond taps ‘memories lost’ for Asian community
On 20 acres surrounded by farmland a few miles outside of Fresno, a small pond attracted visitors all summer from around California and as far away as North Carolina. They came to Fresno County to see flowers with hues of pink, white, yellow and gold...
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Clovis is building a 12-acre park at Loma Vista
Construction will begin next summer on a 12-acre park and recharge basin in the Loma Vista area of Clovis. Located at the intersection of Barstow and Agua Dulce avenues, Agua Vista Park will feature an adaptive playground, overlook areas, a pedestrian...
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Data shows Fresno making economic, racial inclusion gains
Fresno has historically ranked near the bottom nationally for economic and racial inclusion, but new data suggests the city is reversing its trend of decades of exclusion. The report by the Central Valley Community Foundation shows that while...
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Expansion to Clovis trail system coming soon
A trail expansion project along the Big Dry Creek Canal bank and Letterman Park in Central Clovis will soon begin construction. The project includes grading of the existing canal bank, construction of a new concrete sidewalk from Letterman Park to the...
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Chains, mom-and-pop business coming to Clovis corner
Construction is about to start on what will become a few big popular chains and a locally owned restaurant and coffee shop in Clovis. Near Highway 168 and Temperance Avenue, the strip center will be built just north of Owens Mountain Parkway. It’s a...
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James Dean memorial restored for 70th anniversary
Almost 70 years ago to the date of the fatal car crash that took the life of old Hollywood legend James Dean, the actor’s San Luis Obispo County memorial is set to return with a new look. Since 1977, a memorial erected by Dean superfan Seita Ohnishi...
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Fresno celebrates Mexican Independence Day with flag-raising
The annual Mexican flagraising ceremony held at Fresno City Hall to commemorate the 215th anniversary of the Independence of Mexico drew a smaller crowd than past years, though city and consulate officials said it remains an important tradition. Irma...
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State’s largest ICE detention facility has 500 detainees
California’s largest immigration detention center has already filled up with 500 detainees since it quietly opened two weeks ago, according to a California City official. Immigration advocates and lawyers say Tennessee-based private prison operator...
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Mother nature helps battle fire, sequoias still threatened
The battle against the raging wildfire burning in eastern Fresno County took a turn in favor of firefighters. Officials said Wednesday that the Garnet Fire’s activity decreased due to lower temperatures and higher humidity recoveries Tuesday...
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Farmers accuse raisin packer of failing to pay them
Several Fresno County farmers are accusing a longtime Sanger raisin packer of failing to pay them hundreds of thousands of dollars for raisins they delivered but never got paid for. The farmers allege the Chooljian Brothers Packing Company accepted...
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Needle exchange clinic helped dad turn life around
Douglas Nelson began to turn his life around in March with the help of a needle exchange pilot program that, until recently, operated out of the Fresno County Health Department building. The 26-year-old Fresno father had become addicted to Xanax to...
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Plan to rebuild air traffic control tower draws criticism
Fresno Yosemite International Airport’s air traffic control tower began operating in 1962. A Fresno Bee story from that year noted its “strict, simple” lines and “modern American” materials — hallmarks of inenvironmental ternational-style architecture...
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Extreme heat: Zoo has strategies to keep animals comfortable
As temperatures climbed into the hundreds last weekend, Merced residents had to find ways to keep cool, including the furry and feathery residents at the Merced Applegate Zoo. When the temperatures reach the high-90s, including as being predicted for...
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Former Fresno State and CSU leader Joseph I. Castro dies at 58
Educator and trailblazer Joseph I. Castro, who rose from humble roots in Hanford to become the first San Joaquin Valley native and Latino to serve as president of Fresno State and then later CSU chancellor, died Sunday after battling cancer. He was...
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Belmont Avenue hosts 10 classically Fresno restaurants
If you were to pick a street in Fresno to show off to out-oftowners, it probably wouldn’t be Belmont Avenue. One of the oldest streets in town, it’s covered in miles of sun-baked pavement and security gates, and crammed with every kind of auto...
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Groundwater pumping takes toll on aqueduct
Years of collapsing areas of land in the San Joaquin Valley — caused primarily by the overpumping of groundwater for farming — has taken a toll on California’s largest water delivery system that relies on stable land to work well. A state report...
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Food truck park at Merced rental car lot grows into hotspot
For Courtesy Rent a Car president Jeff Henenfent, hosting food trucks is nothing new. He hosted the first food truck on the business’ property near west 15th and R streets sometime around 2015. Henenfent said that vendor operated exclusively...
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Wine industry downturn forces Valley farmers to mothball vines
If you drive around the San Joaquin Valley these days don’t be surprised if you see vineyards with weeds growing between the rows and bunches of dusty grapes dangling from tangled vines. The vineyards may look abandoned and in some cases they truly...
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Food trucks are expanding in Merced. This is what it costs to run one
What does it cost to buy a food truck? The cost of a food truck depends on the specific equipment inside. There is also a significant cost difference between food trailers, which must be towed, and food trucks, which have their own...
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What’s going in at corner of 16th and V streets in Merced?
A new gas station and convenience store is slated to take over a Merced lot which previously served as home to Smiley’ gas station for several decades as well as a used car lot. The 0.69-acre lot at 1480 V Street, sits at the southeast corner of V...
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Zoo rendering hints at expansion into Playland
On proximity alone, Playland seems inextricably linked to the Fresno Chaffee Zoo. The historic children’s theme park sits just across the road from the zoo’s main entrance off Highway 99, and shares space inside the city’s 90-acre Roeding Park. That...
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3 chain retailers set for Loma Vista shopping center
The latest phase of the newest shopping center in Clovis is taking shape with exterior construction nearing completion for at least 10 more businesses. Located at the southwest corner of Leonard and Shaw avenues in the growing area of east Clovis, the...
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Dyson designed Clovis Botanical Garden’s new attraction
founders of the Clovis Botanical Garden long envisioned it would include a visitor center to welcome people to one of the region’s most breathtaking attractions when they first presented their idea to the Clovis City Council in 1993. Three decades...
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$10.5M park in southwest Fresno set to open soon
A $10.5 million park that spans 10 acres in southwest Fresno nears completion of its first phase of development — a significant milestone that’s expected to be followed by new housing and businesses in the coming years. Fresno City...
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Merced parks offer sports, swimming and playgrounds
How many parks are in Merced? The city of Merced operates 38 parks and the county operates 10 community parks and three larger regional parks. How many playgrounds are in Merced? Thirty-four city parks have playgrounds. Parks without playgrounds are...
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Pillow pairings to perk up a space
Ilove the changing of the seasons. One of my favorite rituals as the cold months fold into warm, and back again, is to switch out the accent pillows on my sofa, chairs and bedding. In a few weeks, I will unzip my heavy weight plaids and replace them...
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Fresno DACA recipient ‘self-deports’ to Mexico
The decision to “self-deport” was not an easy one for DACA recipient Patricia Vázquez Topete. After all, California has been her home for the last two decades. “I’ve achieved the American dream, in my perspective. But I started to feel like I was in...
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‘Pokémon cards are like drugs’: Card-collecting takes Fresno
From assaults to break-ins to reoccurring thefts, the craze for Pokémon cards has led some to the dark side of collecting. Videos of Pokémon horror stories can be found all over the Internet, some taking place in Fresno. In April, a Fresno man was...
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Meet ‘Bubba Gump of sweet potatoes’: Farm kitchen opens in downtown Merced
In her own words, Angélica Estrada is “the Bubba Gump of sweet potatoes.” Her business, Sweet Roots Kitchen, sells sweet potato pie, candied sweet potato, sweet potato enchiladas, sweet potato chips, and parfaits and overnight oats with sweet potato as...
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Farmworkers once again in Trump’s deportation crosshairs
An apparent pause in the search for undocumented workers in agriculture has been restarted by President Donald Trump, sending renewed fear and frustration through the state’s multibillion-dollar farming community. Farmers and worker advocates had been...
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Climate report says nearly half of Fresno residents may leave
new risk report from a private firm predicts a large exodus of residents from Fresno County as the effects of climate change exacerbate the region’s issues and costs of living in the next three decades. The risk-assessing firm, First Street,...
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Fresno State professor’s physics toys go viral on Instagram
Every room in Ray Hall’s home features some kind of science toy. Some of the Fresno State physics professor’s vast array of toys are simple, like tippy tops that, when spun, suddenly flip to spin on their narrow stems. Others are more complex,...
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Merced City School superintendent reflects on first year in the district
With the school year winding down, Merced City School District superintendent Julianna Stocking is closing in on her first year on the job. It’s bee a busy year filled with many changes as Stocking had to oversee district enrollment boundary changes,...
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Sexual assault allegations emerge in Caleb Quick murder
The defense attorney for the 16-year-old accused of shooting Caleb Quick in the head outside a McDonald’s in Clovis revealed details in court Wednesday related to a possible motive involving sexual assault. Byron Rangel faces a murder charge and an...
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Pickup driver arrested after woman, toddler killed in crash
Two people were killed Sunday night, including a toddler by a suspected DUI driver in Merced County. Officers responded to the collision in the area of Southern Pacific and Commerce avenues, involving a pickup truck and sedan and found a 20-year-old...
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Trump questions CIF eligibility of transgender athlete
This weekend’s California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) State Track and Field Championships at Buchanan High School in Clovis will be held under a cloud of controversy after President Donald Trump questioned the eligibility of a transgender female...
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Merced tackles homeless crisis with many housing projects
Merced currently has over 500 units of affordable housing in different stages of development as the city continues to try to make a dent in the homeless population. Merced has made strides in reducing the homeless population in the area. The...
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California to sue over Congress blocking climate waivers
California will sue to block Congress from overturning the state’s ability to set its own climate emission rules, Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta said Thursday. The two officials’ announcement in Sacramento about the impending suit...
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Long waits deter Luke Bryan concertgoers at Castle Airport
Jenny Hickman and a group of friends expected to spend Thursday night singing, dancing and having a memorable experience at the Luke Bryan Farm Tour 2025 stop at Castle Airport. Instead, their girls’ night turned into dinner at Chili’s in...
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Newsom’s budget revision extends high-speed rail funding
California’s high-speed rail project could see a major infusion in funding over the next 20 years of at least $1 billion annually from the state’s capand-trade program. The greenhouse gas-reduction program is the sole source of ongoing funds for the...
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Why Merced’s crime rate dropped in the first quarter of 2025
Crime stats are down across the board through the first quarter of 2025, according to Merced Police Chief Steven Stanfield. Car thefts, burglaries, assaults, shootings, murders, homicides and traffic accidents are all occurring less frequently,...
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Dom’s Bomb Gourmet Popcorn opens kiosk in Merced mall
Merced resident Dominique Pruitt, 36, quit her day job and in 2021 founded her business Dom’s Bomb Gourmet Popcorn, driven by her passion to provide the best popcorn in unique flavors. After serving customers throughout the Central Valley and select...
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High-speed rail project plans to downsize Fresno station
The California High-Speed Rail Authority plans to downsize its massive Central Valley stations, including the downtown Fresno station, in an attempt to narrow the project’s focus on only building infrastructure essential for Central Valley...
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Mayor may seek bond for downtown as state funds delayed
With $200 million promised to Fresno in 2023 still held up by the state, the city is beginning to consider how else it could pay for infrastructure upgrades that are crucial to its ambitious downtown revitalization plans. “We need the money,” Fresno...
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Gray practices at Merced College for Congressional Baseball Game
Adam Gray traded in his suit and tie to don Merced College baseball warm-up gear on Friday morning and stepped into the batting cage to take some swings. Gray, 47, a member of the United States House of Representatives from California’s 13th...
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Developer envisions thriving shopping plaza off Highway 99
A local developer envisions Campus Parkway in the southeast side of Merced becoming the best exit off Highway 99 in the Central Valley. The goal is to create a new standard for Merced, attracting out-of-town revenue and enhancing the local economy by...
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Highway 41 work in Madera County to cost $150M
It will cost Madera County an estimated $150 million to expand the two-lane Highway 41 near Riverstone and Tesoro Viejo, where daily rush-hour congestion makes obvious the need to improve the state road. That’s a large price tag in a county where many...
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