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Bee photo barks up the wrong tree

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A Jan. 4 photo caption in the Fresno Bee incorrectly reported that Chestnut Avenue had been blocked to allow work crews to cut down eucalyptus trees lining the west side of the road

Actually, the project was to repair a failing irrigation pipe near the intersection of Bullard and Chestnut. In order to accomplish this repair work, Chestnut Avenue between Barstow and Bullard avenues was closed for only a few days.

The campus has been working closely with the City of Fresno, and there has been extensive consultation with various campus committees to fully understand the impacts involved with widening Chestnut Avenue. The widening of Chestnut Avenue, which includes the installation of a traffic signal at Barstow and Chestnut avenues, was identified as a mitigation requirement in the final Environmental Impact Report (November 1999) for the Save Mart Center project.

The improvement of Chestnut Avenue will help mitigate increased traffic caused by growth of the surrounding area due to the completion of the State Route 168 interchanges, completion of the Save Mart Center, as well as increased campus enrollment. Several design alternatives have been considered, including the possibility of removal of the older eucalyptus trees, removal of trees in the farm laboratory orchard to the east, or realigning the roadway in some way to protect the trees. University officials have been reviewing alternatives with the Agricultural Foundation Board, the Arboretum Subcommittee, Facilities and Campus Environment Liaison Committee (FACEL), and the Campus Planning Committee.

The university's review also is considering the impact of the road's widening on farm operations, educational uses of the adjoining orchards, safety issues and maintaining the aesthetic qualities in that area of the campus.

About half of the eucalyptus trees are on Fresno State property and the other half are on the City of Fresno right-of-way. Chestnut Avenue would widen to four lanes south of Bullard Avenue all the way to Shaw. A traffic light will also be installed at Barstow and Chestnut.

A final decision regarding the alignment has not yet been made. Whatever decision is made, any work in the area would not occur for more than a year.

Back to University Journal, 1/21/02 Issue