But the City Council on Thursday extended the deadline to May 15 and also approved two loans for the project while its builders seek more money from the bond market. Though the project has been delayed for years, Mayor Jerry Dyer says it is necessary for downtown Fresno\u2019s revitalization.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese particular three lots that we\u2019re speaking of, they\u2019ve been vacant for decades with an inability to develop them,\u201d Dyer said during the meeting. \u201cIt is as close to shovel-ready as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
The project is one of several in the area that have stalled for years and are asking for money from the city\u2019s revolving loan fund for downtown and Chinatown developers. This project, though, has languished longer than most.<\/p>\n
Fresno City Council killed apartment project in 2022, revived it last year<\/p>\n
Noyan and his previous partner, Terrence Frazier, began working the plan\u2019s $15 million phase 1 in 2009 and got the project\u2019s first development agreement approved by the city in 2016, according to Bee reporting from that year<\/a>. At the time, it was intended to produce 51 units atop 10,000 square feet of retail space.<\/p>\n In the years that followed, amendments to the agreement yielded plans for 99 apartments at The Park at South Stadium, but not one unit was ever built. In a controversial vote in 2022<\/a>, city officials killed the project by choosing not to extend the agreement\u2019s deadline. Its projected costs had doubled to about $32 million since its inception, and Councilmember Mike Karbassi argued the developers had just taken too long to start building.<\/p>\n The council in November opted to give the project another chance when it voted to approve a new development agreement<\/a> with Noyan. The new version would cost $84 million and would produce 160 units \u2014 64 of them income restricted \u2014 above retail, conference rooms and a fitness center, according to the agreement.<\/p>\n When it extended the project\u2019s deadline Thursday, the council approved an amended agreement<\/a> that says the project will now cost $81 million and produce 174 units: 104 market rate and 70 income-restricted for 55 years. The plans still include retail space, conference rooms and the fitness center.<\/p>\n According to the new agreement, the apartment building\u2019s grand opening is now planned for July 2028.<\/p>\n Where do the city loans to Fresno developers come from?<\/p>\n The $11.7 million the city is loaning to the Park at South Stadium project has three parts.<\/p>\n An $8 million loan<\/a> comes from the city\u2019s revolving loan fund<\/a> intended to help downtown developers cover their final gaps in financing. It\u2019s a 5-year loan with a 4.8% annual interest rate.<\/p>\n The city launched the fund with $20 million last year, pulling from the latest $100 million Fresno has received in state money to renovate downtown Fresno\u2019s infrastructure<\/a> and incentivize home-building in the area. (The council on Thursday also OK\u2019d an $8 million loan from this fund for the Uptown Apartments<\/a> project, which is being developed by Fresno\u2019s Lance-Kashian firm and has also stalled for years.)<\/p>\n Another $3 million loan<\/a> for the project \u2014 which carries a 55-year term with 3% annual interest \u2014 is coming from the city\u2019s housing division, Dyer said. He said the city is also \u201cloaning back\u201d to the developers $727,000 that they were using to purchase the city land where they are planning to build.<\/p>\n Dyer said the loans are necessary for long-stalled downtown projects because \u201cmany of these projects do not pencil, they are not profitable.\u201d But he said he believes The Park at South Stadium will be catalyst for more housing construction in the area.<\/p>\n \u201cThis will be the first truly legitimate housing project in the South Stadium area,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n This story was originally published February 26, 2026 at 3:21 PM.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Fresno Bee<\/p>\n
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