Construction is well along on the new United Health Centers of the San Joaquin Valley headquarters building on the northwest corner of Herndon and North Brawley avenues in north Fresno. Company officials plan to move in and begin operations there in January. Photo by David Castellon

For years, the busy intersection of West Herndon and North Brawley avenues has been best known for its proximity to Sierra Sky Park and the vacant lots on each of the four corners.

But over the past several months that has changed, starting with the construction of a Tractor Supply Hardware store off the southeast corner that was finished and opened in September 2017.

Since then, construction has been underway for a Chevron gas station and convenience store, along with an automated car wash, on the southeast corner, while work is well along to build a new headquarters building for United Health Centers of the San Joaquin Valley on the northwest corner.

United Health is based in Parlier, but the building there, constructed in 2011, is too small for the current needs of the company, which operates 15 health centers with plans to open a 16^th in November in Selma, said David Phillips, a company spokesman.

He said the new administrative building in Fresno will offer 53,000 square feet of room and is expected to open in January.

No estimated completion date has been offered on the Chevron station being built across the street.

As for the southeast corner, a sign has gone up on the vacant land next to the Tractor Supply stating it will be the future home of Good Guys Tires & Auto Repair, and representatives of the Valley-based business — which currently has five shops in Fresno — have confirmed a sixth will be built off Herndon and Brawley, though a start date will not be available until after construction plans for the shop are submitted to and approved by the city of Fresno.

Plans are to turn the southeast corner into a small shopping center called “River Oak Plaza,” anchored by the Tractor Supply and the Good Guys, said Scot Patterson, president of California Gold Development Corp. in Sonora, which owns the parcel.

He said a Verizon Wireless store is planned for the site, along with a larger building that would house multiple businesses.

Patterson declined to discuss potential tenants for those storefronts.

On the northeast corner, a sign sits on the vacant parcel announcing a planned long-term senior care facility is coming soon. It also shows an artist’s rendering of multi-story apartments, some apparently five stories tall.

As for who’s building it, the sign boldly says, “Liberty Health,” and lists a website, www.libertyhealth.care. But attempts to access the website result in a “Website Expired” message.

An attempt to contact one on the listed owners of the property through his publicly listed phone number revealed it had been disconnected.

Fresno officials said no construction plans had been submitted on the 1.56-acre property.