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From left, Nick Audino of Newmark Pearson Commercial, Bonique Emerson of Precision Civil Engineering and Matthew Hargrove of the California Business Properties Association discuss real estate policy during the Fresno County Economic Development Corp. Real Estate Forecast on April 16, 2026. Photo by Gabriel Dillard<\/p>\n
During the final panel of last week\u2019s Real Estate Forecast, industry leaders took a look at how state policy, permitting timelines and regulatory uncertainty are shaping development across the state, while noting that Fresno and the Central Valley is somewhat of an outlier.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nick Audino of Newmark Pearson Commercial moderated the two-person panel of Sacramento-based lobbyist Matthew Hargrove, president and CEO of the California Business Properties Association, and Bonique Emerson, vice president of Precision Civil Engineering\u2019s planning division.<\/p>\n
Sacramento\u2019s maze
Hargrove described Sacramento as a minefield for developers due to the roughly 2,500 bills that are introduced yearly, with the commercial real estate industry tracking around 400 of them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe probably are tracking more pieces of legislation than any other single industry,\u201d Hargrove said. The most common pain points include the California Environmental Quality Act, zoning, greenhouse gas regulations and taxation and fees.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He said many policies indirectly impact real estate. For example, climate goals could require all buildings to move away from natural gas by 2045, which could potentially force developers to rethink infrastructure.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Where are the cranes?
Transfer taxes also drew attention. In Los Angeles, a 5.5% tax \u2014 Measure ULA \u2014 layered on top of existing fees has slowed development activity, according to Hargrove.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s just a haircut off the top on a project,\u201d he said, pointing to the lack of construction cranes in Downtown Los Angeles compared to other major cities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Industrial buffers
The panel also discussed Assembly Bill 98, which introduced industrial buffers of up to 900 feet from sensitive receptors such as homes. Audino said that in the Central Valley, where farmland and residential use usually sit near industrial areas, such rules can reduce usable land and compliance site planning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hargrove warned that a push toward housing development in areas not traditionally zoned for it \u2014\u00a0support by many \u2014\u00a0could put industrial development in conflict with new housing.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re going to get an EJ (environmental justice) group or a neighborhood group or NIMBY group come in and say, \u2018you know, we really don\u2019t like that warehouse, and we\u2019ve now got apartments here,\u201d Hargrove said.<\/p>\n
CEQA bottlenecks
Emerson spoke on CEQA being a major bottleneck in the entitlement process, which can take 18 months for even simple projects and up to four years for complex or contested developments.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She advocated for expanding ministerial approvals \u2014 projects permitted by right without discretionary review, to bypass the slog of environmental analysis.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you can bypass that huge hurdle, that saves tons of time \u2014 at least a year on most projects,\u201d Emerson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mixed-use opportunities
Despite some statewide challenges, Hargrove pointed to opportunities in mixed-use development, where recent legislation provides CEQA exemptions and other incentives when residential components are included.<\/p>\n
However, he warned that new bills are already emerging to roll back those benefits.<\/p>\n
Fresno: \u2018The Beachhead\u2019
Despite challenges and uncertainty, Audino said Fresno is still the place to be.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe deal always follows the path of least resistance,\u201d Audino said. \u201cFresno is where everyone wants to be. It\u2019s the beachhead of the Central Valley. It has the biggest opportunity to grow in every single sector.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n