Bomel Construction will build the 600-car Carnegie Parking Garage in Downtown Fresno in about 12 months. City of Fresno rendering

Local and state leaders gathered on a chilly Monday morning in Downtown Fresno to officially break ground on the eight-story North Fulton Parking Structure designed to support housing and other Downtown Fresno businesses. 

Mayor Jerry Dyer said the project is part of the continued effort to create a more active downtown.

“You have heard me say many, many times that great cities have great downtowns,” Dyer said. “If we are truly going to have a vibrant downtown that is year round and beyond the eight to five (work day), we need people living here.”

The structure, which Dyer said he will ask city council to be called Carnegie Garage, in honor of Fresno’s historic Carnegie Library, will include 603 parking stalls and is projected to cost $37.2 million. Dyer said it will support nearby businesses and The Roos, a future housing development nearby that will include over 450 market-rate and affordable units. 

 

The parking structure will be located in between Tuolumne and Merced streets on Congo Alley.

He added that there will be a 900-stall parking construction near Chukchansi Park that is set to break ground in the next three months. 

He also noted that construction for the Carnegie Garage is expected to be completed within the next 12 months. 

“It’s not often I say a parking structure is beautiful, but I want to promise all of you this parking structure will be absolutely beautiful,” Dyer said.

The structure will be built by Bomel Construction in Irvine.

Funded by a $30,000 grant from steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and built in 1904, the Fresno Carnegie Library was one of nearly 1,700 Carnegie funded across the country — and a dozen built locally.

It was located near the Hotel Fresno, not far from the parking garage site.

The project was funded through a combination of state and local resources, including part of $250 million that was secured from the state for Downtown Fresno infrastructure and housing initiatives. Dyer said the city is also establishing a $20 million revolving loan fund to assist with gap financing for shovel-ready projects.

Council Vice President Miguel Arias, who represents the district that covers Downtown Fresno, said that residents have been longtime advocates for reinvestment focused on housing and infrastructure. 

“For decades, residents have believed in Downtown Fresno,” Arias said. “If we don’t invest in that infrastructure, that means that it comes at the expense of higher rents for people to live in Downtown Fresno.”

California Sen. Anna Caballero said the investment followed the city’s decision to rezone, which created capacity for thousands of housing units. 

“They’re ready to build 75,000 housing units, but they need the infrastructure,” Caballero said. “That became Fresno.”

Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula and several other speakers highlighted collaboration among local and state leaders, praising Gov. Gavin Newsom for his involvement.

“None of us are able to do this alone,” Arambula said. “We’re here today to show the hard work that we’ve done to put people back to work.”

Fresno Housing CEO Tyrone Roderick Williams, said the parking structure will support multiple housing developments already in progress.

“Housing is coming,” Williams said. “We are aligned in our commitment to bring all levels of housing to downtown.”