Community & Regional Planning Center

To download the nomination packet, click the flyer below and follow the link under "download nominations packet"

 To see past winners please follow this link! 

 

 

 

The 2017 San Joaquin Valley Blueprint Awards were presented at the 12th Annual San Joaquin Valley Policy Conference on March 10, 2017 in Fresno. The awards program recognizes outstanding achievements and practices in the built environment.

 

Self-Help Enterprises awarded the Award of Excellence in Residential Development for their Highland Gardens Affordable Rental Project

Nominations were solicited throughout the San Joaquin Valley in the following sustainable development categories: residential, commercial, downtown revitalization, transportation enhancement, and historic revitalization. Nominations were also sought for individuals who have shown enthusiasm and tenacity in promoting the smart-growth principles.

 

City of Clovis, recipients of Award of Excellence in Commercial Development for Dry Creek Business Park Phase II and Award of Merit in Downtown Revitalization-Large Jurisdiction for Centennial Plaza.

This year's recipients included:

Darrel Hildebrand Blueprint Leadership Award

• Darius Assemi, Granville Homes, Inc.

Residential Development

• Award of Excellence -Highland Gardens Affordable Rental Project | Self-Help Enterprises
• Award of Merit - 541 @ South Tower | Fresno Housing Authority

Commercial Development

• Award of Excellence - Dry Creek Business Park Phase II | City of Clovis

Downtown Revitalization-Small Jurisdiction

• Award of Excellence - Rio Villas | Fresno Housing Authority

Downtown Revitalization-Large Jurisdiction

• Award of Excellence - The Lede | Granville Homes, Inc.
• Award of Merit - Centennial Plaza | City of Clovis

Historic Revitalization

• Award of Excellence - The Belding Building | Ten Space

Transportation Enhancement

• Award of Excellence - Multi-Phased Downtown Enhancement Project | City of Woodlake

 

Earlier in the month, CRPC staff attended the 11th Annual San Joaquin Valley Fall Policy Conference to present the 2015 San Joaquin Valley Blueprint Awards. The Blueprint Awards encourages quality in planning and development by recognizing and celebrating projects that reflect the Blueprint Principles. Categories included: Mixed Use, Residential, Downtown Revitalization, and Transportation Enhancement. In addition, the Darrel Hildebrand Blueprint Leadership Award was presented.

 

 

Winners included:

• MIXED USE PROJECT:
  • Award of Excellence-City of Bakersfield and Viridian Group, 1612 City Lofts (Bakersfield)
• RESIDENTIAL PROJECTS:
  • Award of Excellence-City of Turlock and EAH Housing, Avena Bella (Turlock)
  • Award of Merit-California State University, Bakersfield, Student Housing Complex (Bakersfield)
• DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION PROJECTS:
  • Award of Excellence-Granville Homes, Brio on Broadway (Fresno)
  • Award of Merit-Ten Space, The Newberry Building (Stockton)
• TRANSPORTATION ENHANCEMENT PROJECTS:
  • Award of Excellence-City of Clovis, Dry Creek Trailhead (Clovis)
  • Award of Merit-Caltrans (District 10), Bradley Overhead on Highway 140 (Merced)
• DARREL HILDEBRAND LEADERSHIP AWARD
  • San Joaquin Sustainable Communities Coalition (San Joaquin)

Above On July 29, 2015, OCED partnered with Cultiva la Salud to host a town hall meeting at the Orange Cove Community Center with over 60 participants, including city council members, the mayor, city manager, police department representatives, residents, and business owners. The purpose of the town hall meeting was to engage residents in a discussion about walkability and public health in Orange Cove. Through the community forum, participants learned about the realities of access to health food and the importance that walkability has on the health of the community.

Above Twenty Valley planners from Fresno, Madera, Sanger, Selma, and Visalia gathered on Tuesday, July 7 for the first Planners Who Lunch of the year. Planners Who Lunch is a quarterly, networking lunch speaker series hosted by the American Planning Association-CA Central Section and CRPC.

 

Above Dr. Sam Lankford, Professor and Chair of the Department of Recreation Administration at Fresno State, kicked off the lunch series with a presentation about the economic benefits of recreation development. Dr. Lankford has been a practicing planner in California, Oregon, and Hawaii, and specializes in tourism and recreation development. He is a member of the Urban and Regional Transformation Cohort at Fresno State.

The next quarterly lunch will be held in September. To receive updates on events from Valley planners, please contact Program Coordinator, Jenna Chilingerian at jennac@csufresno.edu.

 

Above Jenna Chilingerian, CRPC coordinator and John Gonzalez, program assistant presented a Walkability and Economic Development 101 Workshop to members of the Orange Cove Emerging Small Business class. The members of the class will be performing a walkability audit of the Orange Cove downtown business corridor in May as follow up to the presentation.

The Orange Cove Emerging Small Business class is part of a USDA Rural Business Development Grant that OCED's San Joaquin Valley Rural Development Center (SJVRDC) administers. The class is taught by SJVRDC staff and meets twice a week over the course of five months. Topics include: E-Commerce, Cottage Food, Microloans, Web Development, Social Media, Quickbooks, Marketing Strategies, and Energy/Water Conservation.

 

Above Fresno State students tended a booth at a Mendota weekly Farmers' Market on April 15. A team of seven students created a community questionnaire and walkability assessment tool as part of their Recreation Administration Research and Evaluation in Recreation, Parks, and Tourism course. The tools created will supplement the CRPC's StreetsAlive: a Walking and Bicycling Audit Program in the cities of Avenal, Mendota, Orange Cove, and San Joaquin.

 

 

Above Students handed out questionnaires to the public that asked a series of questions about the sidewalks, street connectivity and overall safety while walking and biking in the city of Mendota. A total of 45 surveys were collected (a 65% response rate). Ages of participants ranged from 10 to 64 years old. The students will present their findings as part of their class final and the questionnaire and walkability assessment tool template will be replicated throughout the Central Valley by CRPC.

For more information about StreetsAlive, click here.

Above Jenna Chilingerian, CRPC coordinator and John Gonzalez, program assistant presented a Walkability Workshop on StreetsAlive: A Walking and Bicycling Audit program at the Avenal Rotary Club. For more information about StreetsAlive, click here.