Posts Tagged ‘eric tienken’

If you’ve been following this blog, you’ll know we haven’t updated it for quite some time. Mostly it is due to having a lot on our plate with the Fultonia project and limited time for much of anything else.

This entry is a brief update on where we are currently with a promise for more thorough information as well as new photographs that will show the dramatic transformation that is taking place in the Tower District.

A number of the residential units are completed and the remaining units are very close to being ready for occupancy. In fact, three of the units have been turned into models and are fully furnished to show ideas of how prospective residents can decorate their own apartments.

The landscaping is also near completion. All of the concrete was removed and new, stamped and colored concrete has been poured and new sod, trees and shrubs are planted.

Work on the commercial storefronts is also underway. Demolition has started while plans are being finalized to accommodate the new tenants. The proposed coffee shop is still part of the plan as well as the Laundromat that will serve the entire neighborhood and there is also a restaurant being designed adjacent to where the coffee shop will be located.

If you haven’t driven past the complex lately, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at the change that has taken place. You may also notice that a few other building owners in the vicinity have recently put a fresh coat of paint on their buildings and we anticipate more will follow suit, so everything points to a positive impact on the Tower District and its residents.

More to follow.

If you’ve heard about The Fultonia project either through the local news media or by following this blog, you’re probably familiar with the term, “SoTow”, and may have wondered what it means and why it is so significant to the Tower District and to Central Fresno. Basically, the term SoTow, (South of Tower) was created to help establish a new identity for the Tower District neighborhood south of Olive Avenue.

The term was first conceived when I was contacted by property owner Terance Frazier with TFS Investments, LLC to look at The Fultonia; a 39-unit apartment complex with 10 commercial spaces in front that he had just purchased. As I walked through the complex I saw a unique opportunity to bring a once-proud property with great architectural bones and a neighborhood that was suffering from years of neglect back to life.

I also saw an existing structure, built around 1950, that although in terrible condition offered something that was extremely rare in Fresno – an existing mixed-use property with both residential and commercial spaces available. The only other properties that offered this unique mix were either built recently or are currently under construction. A small complex was built a few years ago across from Fresno State that has retail on the ground floor with apartments above and Reza Assemi has become the preeminent mixed-use developer in the Uptown Arts District with both completed mixed-use projects and others in progress.

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With progress being made every day on the residential units at Fultonia, planning has begun on the ten commercial storefront spaces along Fulton Street. TFS Investments is already looking at adding a coin operated Laundromat in one of the spaces, so the Design-Build team at TYCO General, Inc. has submitted a conceptual plan for a coffee shop as an anchor tenant in an adjoining space.

The coffee shop conceptual plan was conceived to offer the SOTOW neighborhood with a place to enjoy high quality espresso-type coffees as well as specialty teas, fruit smoothies and more. Since Fulton is a heavily traveled street, especially with morning commuter traffic, having a coffee shop conveniently located will afford the public with a place to stop on their way to work each day. There is also a plan to have doors between the coffee shop and Laundromat so when local residents are washing clothes they can relax with a cup of coffee, tea or a soft drink.

The coffee shop will also offer an outdoor patio with market umbrellas, trees and lush landscaping.

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SoTow emerging as link between Tower and downtown

[The Fresno Bee],

May 21, 2009

Fresno has the Tower District, Old Fig and River Park. Now, people can add SoTow to that list.

That’s what Fresno City Council President Cynthia Sterling calls the region south of the Tower District. The neighborhood connects the Tower, known for its restaurants and nightlife, with downtown, the government center.

Sterling said SoTow is ready to emerge, starting with Fultonia — a 1950s-era apartment and commercial complex on Fulton Street near Belmont Avenue that is getting its own version of an extreme makeover.

“Fulton Street will be like the next Van Ness,” said Terance Frazier of TFS Investments, which bought the 40 one-bedroom and studio apartments and 10 commercial spaces at and near 608 N. Fulton St.

“They are the two arms between the Tower District, and this is the heart between them.” (more…)

The general store manager of the North Blackstone Lowe’s Home Improvement store, Dale Delmanowski, confirmed today his store’s involvement in The Fultonia Live Work Village, says Richard Deaver - Vice President of TYCO General and project manager for the development.

Lowe’s believes in the goals of the project and is pleased to take part in helping revitalize the newly formed SOTOW area of Fresno.  Increased affordable housing is a primary goal and with Lowe’s help, this project takes a huge step forward in accomplishing it.

Deaver is working with Lowe’s sales manager Michael Lucas in specifying deeply discounted brand name products for use in the project.

Additionally, Deaver is working with Lowe’s employee, and  NKBA Certified Kitchen Designer, Jessica Jovan on kitchen cabinet styles, layout and accessibility issues in the soon to be remodeled apartment units.

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Published online on Wednesday, May. 20, 2009

By Sanford Nax / The Fresno Bee

Fresno has the Tower District, Old Fig and River Park. Now, people can add SoTow to that list.

MARK CROSSE / THE FRESNO BEE

Fultonia Live/Work Village

by kiel on May 20, 2009

Fresno to Welcome The Fultonia Live/Work Village

Fresno, CA – Nestled in an area between downtown Fresno and the Tower District will be The Fultonia Live/Work Village, a mixed-use development that offers 39 units of quality, moderately-priced housing and 10 commercial spaces.

Project design and information

Those who don’t wish to pay substantial sums of money for premium housing may find a home at The Fultonia Live/Work Village.

The redevelopment, in an area that is being proposed as the SOTOW District, or South of Tower, also gives professionals and entrepreneurs the chance to invest in live/work units to reduce travel to and from work. (more…)

THE FULTONIA Live/Work Village Project Overview Project design and information

  Housing is an essential component to the success of The Fultonia Live/Work Village development. This project has been designed to help alleviate the shortage of moderately priced housing in Central Fresno by adding 39 rental apartments and 10-commercial spaces.

Many hard-working families and individuals in Fresno cannot afford to rent a high quality home or must pay a substantial proportion of their income each month for housing. There is also a need for quality live/work units for professionals and entrepreneurs seeking to lessen their impact on the environment by combining quality commercial space coupled with living space to minimize travel to and from their work. The Fultonia Live/Work Village addresses those problems by offering its residents options to rent a quality apartment in a safe and secure village environment, or they can also combine their housing needs with a place to operate their business within the same complex.

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