The City of Fresno announced Jan. 28 an agreement with Gap, Inc. that gives Fresno land for a state-of-the-art, no kill animal shelter.
The 4.8-acre parcel of land is located on Airways Boulevard, just south of Clovis, near the company’s Gap Pacific Distribution Center at 3400 Gap Drive.
Fresno originally sold Gap the land in 2007 to build the distribution facility.
Gap will now sell its extra land back to Fresno for a symbolic $1.
Gap also announced it will donate another five acres of land for a Boys & Girls Club of Fresno County.
The Fresno City Council will vote on the agreement regarding the animal shelter at its Feb. 13 meeting. It is also expected to finalize its agreement regarding the Boys and Girls Club by the same time.
“We looked at a number of locations around Fresno that would be suitable for a new animal shelter and this property is by far the best site because it’s centrally located and close to the Airport,” Fresno Mayor Lee Brand said in a statement. “Gap Inc. has been a great corporate partner since the 1990’s and they’ve invested significantly in our city by adding their West Coast e-commerce fulfillment center to its distribution facility in 2018 and bringing over 500 good-paying new jobs to Fresno. Gap Inc.’s generous gesture shows the importance of that investment and the depth of their concern for the community where their team members live, work, raise their families and play. On behalf of the people of Fresno and all of our four-legged friends, I say thank you very much to Gap Inc. for stepping up to the plate in a very big way.”
The land purchase is the second step to opening the new no kill shelter. Fresno’s first move to build the shelter happened Jan. 16, when the city council awarded a design contract for the shelter to a group headed by Tim Simons of Fresno-based construction company Northstar General, Inc.
The project, which is slated to complete construction in summer 2021 if it is approved, aligns with Governor Gavin Newsom’s new goal of making California a “no-kill state.” This means the elimination of euthanizing treatable and adoptable animals.
Newsom said $50 million of California’s 2020-2021 budget would go to achieving the goal.
Fresno’s contract with the Central California Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (CCSPCA) to provide animal control services will expire in June after the organization declined to renew its contract last year.
The SPCA is expected to continue its operations in Fresno County, though it will no longer handle animal control services with the city.
Mark Standriff, director of communications and public affairs for the City of Fresno, said the city does not yet know who will be contracted to run the new facility if it is approved.