West Fresno residents won a victory when it was announced last week that the Police Activities League (PAL) was not going to take over the Frank Ball Community Center. Neighbors were upset when the City of Fresno announced the plan at a June 19th meeting. You can see what happened at that meeting here: http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/06/21/18509945.php .

The response from the June 19 meeting was enough to stop the city in their tracks. Not only did they drop plans to turn the beloved Frank Ball Center into a PAL outpost, they also agreed to start some much needed repair and upgrading of the existing center. A new sound system, new lighting, and a computer lab was installed in time for Saturday’s meeting (July 19, 2008).

The meeting started off with Assistant City Manager Bruce Rudd apologizing to residents for not recognizing the value of the Frank Ball Center and for not having had better communications before making decisions that would affect them. Parks and Recreation director Randall Cooper was also at the meeting and apologized for not having consulted with the community before decisions to transfer the community center were made.

Most of the speakers at the community meeting were not pacified and spoke angrily about the lack of city resources put into West Fresno. You can hear the residents, in their own words, in the video below. The video starts out with Rudd and Cooper’s apology.

There will be a meeting on Monday to discuss another West Fresno Community Center that is in trouble:

Monday, July 21
5:30 - 8 PM
Are you aware that a serious disservice is happening in our community? It may not be directly affecting you today, but what about tomorrow? It is urgently important that you attend a community meeting to get the facts. You can help bring this unfortunate situation to a halt. The Time Is Now! Let Your Voice Be heard! This meeting will be held at the Hinton Community Center 2385 S. Fairview, Fresno. Brought to you by: The Hinton Center Community Action Committee http://westfresno.blogspot.com . For more information, call (559) 494-0483