Mold Remediation in Clovis, CA

Give your friends pumpkin to talk about! Celebrate October by visiting some of the best pumpkin wonderlands Fresno County has to offer. Create perfect, priceless, pumpkin-y memories at these local pumpkin patches!

Location: 18266 E Kings Canyon Rd, Sanger, CA 93657

Contact: (559) 400-3211

Discover one of the newest pumpkin patches in town! Sunflower Farm Stand, located just off Highway 180 and South Reed Ave, was recently known for its stunning sunflower fields open during the summer. Now, they're embracing the autumn spirit by unveiling a charming pumpkin patch.

To kick off the fall season, they're hosting their Fall Festival on Friday, September 29th. This exciting event will feature a sunflower maze, delightful horse-drawn wagon rides, a thrilling hay slide, pumpkin bowling, cornhole, and a variety of other enjoyable activities. Additionally, you'll have the opportunity to purchase their fresh produce, delectable jams, honey, and home decor.

These festivities will be available every Saturday and Sunday, running from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm, until the end of October.

Location:284 South Temperance Ave. Fresno, CA 93727

Sunshine's Farm, a cherished family-owned farm, is renowned for its delightful U-pick strawberry events in the summer. However, the excitement doesn't end there; Sunshine's Farm is now embracing the beauty of autumn! Experience the charm of their welcoming pumpkin patch and wander through their stunning sunflower fields, which bloom during the same season. To kick off the fall season, Sunshine's Farm invites you to their free annual Hello Fall Festival on September 30th. Join them at their farm for scrumptious food, refreshing drinks, family-friendly activities, and an abundance of other exciting entertainment!

Location: 225 W Bullard Clovis, CA 93612

Harvesting the perfect pumpkins for you and your family and friends! Wild Patch Pumpkins in Clovis has a varied selection of small, big, white, yellow, orange, and gourdgeous pumpkins for any occasion! Whether for carving Jack-o-lanterns or for your porch or for making delicious pumpkin pies, these pumpkins are carefully nurtured and gathered for everyone to enjoy. Also the ideal place to appreciate your pumpkin picking pet companions by taking a picture along with their perfectly sized pumpkins! Visit Wild Patch Pumpkins from October 1st through Halloween to get your very own pumpkin!

Location: 5365 Mendocino Ave. Clovis, CA 93619

Visit this cute little boutique cut flower farm, Sweet Thistle Farms, along with Rocky Oaks Goat Creamery where they will be having different pumpkin varieties anyone can pick from, hay rides, photo opportunities, tractor rides, food trucks, barn vendor shopping, and scrumptious cheese sampling. Kids will also get the fun opportunity to meet some of Rocky Oaks friendly goats and farm animals. And on your way out take a quick picture at Sweet Thistle Farms’ cool pumpkin wall and wagon that give off all the fall feels.

Location: 14265 E. Goodfellow Ave., Sanger, CA 93657

Contact: 559-356-3962

Wanting a less scary experience for the kids at Hobb’s Grove? Take a stroll through Billy Bob Hobb’s Pumpkin Grove! They are open for weekday group tours for schools and families. Kids will have a fun-filled educational experience and also get a school size pumpkin (included in their ticket purchase) to take home afterwards!

Families also have the opportunity to participate in the various activities they offer like hayrides, mini corn maze, and a mystical fairy village. Don’t miss out in all this fun, reserve your spot soon!

Location: 2629 S. Clovis Ave., Fresno, CA 93725

Contact: 559-237-2294

Simonian Farms does not only grow over 180 varieties of fruits and vegetables but it has a beautiful pumpkin patch each year that is filled with beautifully picked pumpkins. Kids can also experience the haunted caboose that will sure give them a fun spooky scare! There will also be a free photo op spot for everyone to take some fall-themed pictures with the whole gang!

Location: Hillcrest 6943 S. Reed Ave. Reedley, CA

Contact: 559-638-2762

This is an all-ages event, tailored to suit your little ones needs without the scares and ghouls included! This is a patch you can enjoy a train ride, hayride, and of course gourds of all shapes and sizes! Take your littles ones for pure family fun with pumpkins galore at Hillcrest Pumpkin Patch.

A stretch of Shaw Avenue in Clovis is getting a lot more appetizing.

A 1-mile section of the road — roughly between Peach and Clovis avenues — is home to six eateries that are newly opened or will be soon.

The new restaurants range from small mom-and-pops to bigger companies, including chains and national franchises.

And the cuisines? Everything from Mexican food to Indian pizza. There are even two Vietnamese sandwich spots just a few blocks from each other. All are on the south side of the street.

The busy stretch of Shaw is a logical place for companies to locate, said Shawn Miller, business development manager for the City of Clovis.

“It’s really a re-emerging area with the new Costco locating right over there,” he said. “It’s a good time for someone to move in there and open a business.”

The area has the right demographics for big companies with plenty of potential customers in apartments and houses nearby, he said. And the rents are right for start-ups opening their first locations.

Here’s a look at who is opening and when.

The newest restaurant is Paris Banh Mi Cafe & Bakery, a franchise that opened a few days ago at Peach and Shaw avenues, behind See’s Candies.

The business specializes in banh mi, the Vietnamese sandwiches served on French baguette-style bread with pork or other fillings. The blending of cuisines stems from when France colonized Vietnam.

One twist on the typical banh mi restaurant? You can get the sandwiches on the traditional bread, a hamburger bun or a croissant, all baked in house daily.

It’s a franchise with dozens of locations that started in Orlando, Fla., by a woman who grew up in Paris and her husband, who owned a chain of eateries in Saigon.

It also has a full tea menu, with boba, fruit teas, milk teas and slushes.

Details: Paris Banh Mi is at 300 W. Shaw Ave. Hours: 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. 559-701-3779

A new Mexican restaurant is slated for the same shopping center as Straw Hat Pizza near Shaw and Minnewawa Avenue.

A sign at 30 W. Shaw Ave. says Canton Mexican is coming soon, but the restaurant concept has changed since the sign went up.

It’s going to be a Taco Tempo, according to the retail broker who leased the space, Jose Chavez of South Pacific Commercial in Bakersfield.

That’s a new franchise and a twist on the chain of restaurants created by “Mr. Tempo” — Tempo Cantina, Mr. Tempo Sports Bar & Cantina and King & Queen Cantina. Based in the Los Angeles area, the company has at least 25 locations, mostly in Southern California.

Mr. Tempo is actually Jorge Cueva, who came to the United States with his family in 1991. An undocumented immigrant who didn’t speak English, he started working by washing dishes and cleaning restrooms at restaurants. He eventually clawed his way up to manager at age 23 and began opening his own restaurants.

Forbes called him “The Michael Jordan of restaurants.”

Taco Tempo is a new concept with tacos and beer and is franchised by a separate owner. It’s expected to open in a couple of months, Chavez said.

About a mile down the street from Paris Banh Mi is another banh mi spot, this one family owned.

Le Banh Mi Bistro opened in April at Shaw and Clovis avenues, near Planet Fitness. It’s owned by the Le family with the name of the restaurant referencing both the family name and translating to “The” in French.

Most of the menu is the sandwiches served on baguette-style bread, including a grilled barbecue pork sandwich and another with a crispy pork belly made in house. The “classic grand daddy of them all” is the Saigon special with ham, pork belly, head cheese (the bits from the head of a pig) and a pork pate, said owner DJ Le.

The recipes were handed down from grandmother to mother to him, including the crispy pork belly made the Vietnamese-Chinese way that takes 72 hours, Le said.

His mom also works at the restaurant.

“Mom’s very particular of how things are done — very old school,” he said. “It’s one way or the highway.”

One thing different about this place: Its banh mi is unusually large.

“The guys are sizing up their whole forearm to it and that’s like the iconic image for the shop now,” he said.

The restaurant started as a mobile food vendor, selling at the River Park farmers market and others. It makes its own bread and almost everything else from scratch.

Details: Le Banh Mi Bistro is at 610 Shaw Ave. 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

The building that once housed a Mattress Land was torn down and Panda Express is being built in its place.

At 288 W. Shaw Ave., between See’s Candies and Crunch Fitness, the previous building was labeled a “total eyesore” by Clovis planning commissioner Amy Hatcher.

The bones of the building are up, with still more construction left to be done.

The building will look a little different than a typical Panda Express. Last year, the project went before the Clovis Planning Commission and a the owner of the shopping center said it would be the company’s new “Panda Home” design.

The style debuted in Texas with a curved roof line, Chinese characters on the exterior and dragons depicted in murals and as neon signs.

The center owner said Panda Express is looking at opening in February. It has started hiring for all positions.

Tandoori Pizza serves both Indian-inspired and American pizza. Midway between Minnewawa and Clovis avenues, it opened in the spring.

It has the classics, including an “all-meat” combination and a vegetarian pizza.

But the star of the menu here are the 17 pizzas with Indian flavors. They range from butter chicken pizza to lamb kabab pizza. Pizzas come in various spice levels, with numerous vegetarian options. Crust options include traditional, thin, gluten-free and cauliflower.

Pasta, chicken wings, and cauliflower “wings” are also available.

Details: Tandoori Pizza is at 270 Shaw Ave. Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 559-509-2000.

Construction is hopping along at the future Vallarta Supermarket in the shopping center at 170 W. Shaw Ave. near Villa Avenue. The store is shooting for a mid-November opening.

If the store is anything like all the others, it will have an in-store restaurant called La Cocina.

Vallarta did not share details about its plans for prepared food.

Other Vallarta stores have seating areas where people can dine on freshly prepared food, or they can get it delivered via DoorDash.

The menu at the other Fresno stores includes burritos, pupusas, ceviche — and pozole on weekends. The horchata drink is also a popular seller. Large portions for families or catering events are also available.

This story was originally published September 25, 2024, 3:39 PM.

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.

Fresno Unified’s $500 million school bond appeared headed toward approval, while support for Clovis Unified’s $400 million bond to build a new high school and intermediate school sat just above the required 55% voter threshold.

The Fresno and Clovis school bonds headlined the dozen Fresno County school bonds on the November ballot that would raise a combined $1.3 billion for facilities spending. Voters appeared to support majority of school bonds, according to ballot returns tallied as of 12 a.m. Wednesday.

As of midnight, reports from the Fresno County Clerk show Fresno Unified’s Measure H had 61.65% approval. Clovis Unified voters, meanwhile, cast “yes” votes in 55.17% of ballot returns for Measure A — a percentage that falls 0.17 percentage points above the required 55% voter approval. Central Unified’s Measure X had 61.24% voter approval in the county’s latest returns.

Here are the results as of Tuesday night.

Fresno Unified’s largest-ever $500 million bond would prioritize repairs for schools in the worst condition, as well as add fences and single-point entrances for schools, replace aging portables and ensure schools comply with ADA accessibility requirements.

The area’s current tax rate of $213.86 is the second highest of all K-12 school districts in Fresno County. If Measure H passes, the rate will rise to $238.86.

Measure H was the most contested K-12 school bond in the county leading up to the election.

Susan Wittrup, Fresno Unified’s board president, opposed the bond, as did Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias, former Fresno Unified Trustee Brooke Ashjian, and Granville Homes developer Darius Assemi. Opponents criticized the bond’s increase in property taxes and its allocation plan because it would mean some affluent areas, such as the Bullard region, would get less funding than their taxpayers paid into the bond.

The six other school board members defended the district’s public engagement process and supported the bond’s focus on equity. Supporters also included the Fresno Teachers Association, Fresno Chamber of Commerce, and the League of Women Voters of Fresno.

The district’s $400 million Measure A would go toward modernizing school facilities and safety and technology improvements. District leaders say they need to pass the bond to finish construction of the new Clovis South High School.

No increase will be added to the current tax rates of $155 per $100,000 of assessed property value if the new bond passes. It’s an extension of the district’s existing school bond, and Clovis Unified’s tax rate has not been changed since 2012.

“We remain hopeful that late voting returns will push us over the 55% needed for Measure A’s success because it is critical for our community’s future,” Clovis Unified Superintendent Corrine Folmer said in a statement Tuesday night.

“While I do not yet know the outcome of Measure A, what I do know is that I am extremely proud of our Clovis Unified team for the efforts they put into sharing factual information about the purpose and need for this bond measure,” Folmer said. “(I’m) especially thankful for the incredible team of volunteers who have been working round the clock in our community to advocate for its passage.”

The Clovis Unified bond narrowly sat above of the approval threshold with about 46% of ballots counted as of 12 a.m. Wednesday, according to the Fresno County Clerk.

With the inflation and rising construction costs, the district is running out of funds to finish the academic buildings for the new educational center that will house Clovis South High.

About $180 million from the new bond would be earmarked for construction, according to the school district. The district budgeted $250 million for the project in the last bond and has invested $330 million in the construction so far.

District spokesperson Kelly Avants said in an earlier interview that if the bond fails, the district has enough funds to complete construction of the middle school and some shared facilities on time to receive students next year.

“So we definitely want our community to understand that it was a thoughtfully put together budget at the time, and we are really caught in a situation as anyone else who started trying to build something before the pandemic and is trying to finish it after the pandemic, that the costs have escalated beyond anything that we have seen in modern history,” said Avants.

Central Unified’s bond measure would make repairs to the district’s aging schools. According to the district’s project list, five elementary schools and two high schools would be modernized if the bond passes, renewing classrooms, libraries, cafeterias, admin buildings and other school facilities.

A new agricultural lab would also be constructed at Central High School.

Central Unified’s current tax rate is $222.03 per $100,000 of assessed property value. If Measure X passes, a lower tax rate of $215.57 will be extended.

Located at the western edge of Fresno, Central Unified is the fastest-growing school district in the Fresno area with over 16,000 students enrolled last academic year. The district opened a new high school in 2021 and is in the process of building a new elementary school. With some schools over 75 years old, the district just redrew its attendance boundary maps in the spring to re-balance enrollment at schools, which will go into effect for the 2025-26 school year.

This story was originally published November 5, 2024, 9:51 PM.

The Fresno Bee

559-825-0190

Leqi Zhong is the education reporter for The Bee. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley with a Master’s degree in journalism. Before moving to the Central Valley, she covered tech, business, and internet safety and regulations in the San Francisco Bay Area. Leqi grew up in China and is native in Cantonese and Mandarin.