By Faughn New Developments • New Location • Tourism 0 Comments

New $36 million hotel coming to Merced

The next addition to one of Merced’s newest shopping centers is about halfway complete and set to open next year. Those who have driven by Campus Parkway Plaza have seen the large project under construction.

The Hilton Garden Inn is scheduled to open in August or September of 2025, according to Daniel Moradzadeh, director of the Merced-based Shemoil’s Investment Development which owns the hotel and Campus Parkway Plaza property. The five-story hotel, which will consist of 133 rooms, is a $36 million project. “It’s taken three generations of investing in our local community by my family to get to this point,” Moradzadeh said. “It’s been a massive undertaking.”

The Hilton Garden Inn will become a new addition to the Campus Parkway Plaza, which already houses a Starbucks, Tractor Supply Co., Chipotle, McDonald’s, and two gas stations. The 44,224-square-foot hotel will sit on an 8.3 acre lot that sits on the southwest corner of Campus Parkway and Coffee Street. The hotel include a parking lot with landscaping components. The hotel will also have two kitchens, one dedicated to the hotel and the other to a banquet facility that will sit approximately 350 people. There will also be a full-service bar in the hotel. There will also be an outside sitting area with a fire pit. There are plans to have a projection TV near the outside bar area as well.

“The main reason why we decided to construct this hotel is because the City of Merced needs marquee development,” Moradzadeh said. “This will be something that’s not only elegant, but has the class to go with it.”

As a local investment and development company, Moradzadeh says they’ve hired local contractors, including Merced-based Marvulli Construction. “You want to keep as much money as possible with our local community,” Moradzadeh said. Moradzadeh felt the location for the new hotel is ideal with the freeway access at Campus Parkway, the proximity to UC Merced and the building of a nearby regional sports complex on the 40-acre Community Park 42, which will eventually host large sports tournaments.

Moradzadeh says the company was approached by many hotel and motel companies, but chose to go with Hilton Garden Inn because they allowed them to tailor the hotel to fit what they wanted to build in Merced. “We decided to secure our franchise with Hilton because they gave us the highest-rated brand we could bring to Merced,” Moradzadeh said. Moradzadeh says construction of the hotel has remained on schedule. “As far as our scope of construction goes, we’re approximately 50% done,” Moradzadeh said. “The structure is completed, it’s fully framed. We’re one year out from our our test runs.”

https://www.mercedsunstar.com/news/local/article290481614.html

By Faughn Hi-Tech • Tourism 0 Comments

Modesto-area 49ers fans can avoid traffic by taking ACE trains

Fans of the San Francisco 49ers can once again ride the Altamont Corridor Express to most home games. The trains will go to all but two games during the 2024 regular season at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. ACE cannot do the Monday night opener on Sept. 9 because it would interfere with normal passenger operations. The same goes for a Thursday night, Dec. 12. January playoff games could be added if the team qualifies. ACE has four weekday round trips between Stockton and San Jose, timed for commuters to Bay Area jobs. The closest station to the Modesto area is at the Lathrop/Manteca border. Levi’s is right next to the Great America station.

Details on train ticket prices and timetables are at www.acrerail.com. Riders who book early can get seven trips for the price of six. In a few years, ACE will be even more convenient. It has funding for one branch to Merced and another to Sacramento. Modesto and Ceres could get stations in late 2026 and other cities could join in between then and 2030. ACE has run the 49ers trains off and on since the 2014 opening of Levi’s Stadium. Fans avoid freeway traffic and parking fees.

“My blood pressure is low on the train,” one fan told The Modesto Bee’s Garth Stapley aboard a 2014 train. “It’s a lot easier than driving.”

ACE ALSO CAN SERVE CONCERTGOERS

The 2024 football service was announced in a news release from the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission, the governing body for ACE. “We want fans to be able to cheer on their team, allowing them to focus entirely on enjoying the game-day experience,” said Chairwoman Nancy Young, the mayor of Tracy. Early into its expansion, ACE plans to continue serving mainly commuters. Future funding could stretch it to other weekday hours and to weekends, meaning no more need for special trains to Levi’s.

The stadium also hosts top-tier concerts, sometimes with rail service from the Central Valley. ACE took Ed Sheeran fans to a show last September. It did not take part in the Taylor Swift mania two months earlier, but Amtrak’s Capitol Corridor between Sacramento and San Jose did.

https://www.modbee.com/news/local/article291070735.html

By Faughn Manufacturing 0 Comments

Agreement aims to put Fresno on the map for semiconductor-related opportunities

New partnerships seek to poise the Central Valley for a role in the growing semiconductor manufacturing industry.

On Wednesday, Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer and Councilmember Nelson Esparza travelled to San Francisco for the signing of a formal partnership memorandum of understanding (MOU) between global semiconductor manufacturing association SEMI; the City of Fresno; City of Clovis; California State University, Fresno; Fresno County Economic Development Corporation; and Silicon Farms Corporation (SiFa).

This agreement, the first of its kind in the Central Valley, is a step toward diversifying local economies, according to the mayor’s office.

The aim of the agreement is to place the Fresno region on the map as “open for business” for locating semiconductor supply chain and manufacturing facilities.

“This partnership is a monumental step towards ensuring that the semiconductor industry knows the advantages of the area and the support for their industry,” Dyer said. “Leveraging years of experience from the partners at Silicon Farms, Fresno is being positioned to have the best shot possible to capitalize on opportunities in the semiconductor industry.”

The MOU includes several elements, including “high-level” introductions by SEMI to semiconductor companies and related companies to SiFa and Fresno State.

There is also the intention that SEMI will use its global corporate and institutional framework to promote SiFa activities and Fresno State and encourage broad industry, government, and financial community engagement.

Atherton-based SiFa MANAGEMENT will fund and execute the agreed upon activities, events, programs, and partner services, unrelated to existing SEMI events.

Fresno State intends to establish a budget amount each fiscal year to support the execution of activities, events, programs, and partner services unrelated to SEMI events.

SEMI has 3,000 member companies worldwide, and its President and CEO Ajit Manocha said the semiconductor industry is expected to nearly double in annual revenue to $1 trillion around 2030.

“Adding new hubs such as the Central Valley will strengthen the semiconductor supply chain in the U.S. and globally,” Manocha said.

The Cities of Fresno and Clovis will assist with its resources to introduce SiFa and its related parties to local investors, property principals, and government officials.

EDC has intended obligations to support the overall strategy to enhance the efforts for the establishment of a High-Tech Park in the Fresno region.

“Our partnership with SEMI marks an important milestone for the Fresno region,” said Fresno County Economic Development Corporation President/CEO Will Oliver. “This collaboration will help diversify our economy, prepare local talent, and position the region to be part of the growing semiconductor industry, driving innovation and job creation for our community.”

By Faughn Economy • New Developments • Quality of Life 0 Comments

Construction to begin on improving Highway 99 and 120 junction

Construction will begin in August on upgrades to the junction of Highways 99 and 120 in Manteca. The $48.2 million project seeks to ease traffic between eastbound 120 and southbound 99. Many of the drivers are from Stanislaus County and points south, including commuters to the Bay Area. The work includes adding a second lane to the current connector ramp and a fourth lane on southbound 99 to about Austin Road. Austin will get a new bridge across the freeway and a new link to Atherton Drive and Woodward Avenue, key routes in south Manteca.

The project is scheduled for completion in summer 2026. It will be built by Teichert Inc. of Pleasanton on a contract with the San Joaquin Council of Governments. Construction will begin in August 2024 on a new connection between eastbound Highway 120 and southbound Highway 99 in Manteca, California. The project also involves replacing the Austin Road bridge over 99 and a new link between Austin and Moffat Boulevard. San Joaquin Council of Governments

OFFICIALS GATHER FOR GROUND-BREAKING SJCOG

oversees transportation funding for the county and its incorporated cities. It hosted a ground-breaking Wednesday, July 17, with local, state and federal leaders. SJCOG “recognized these improvements were essential to move people and goods within the region and across county borders,” Executive Director Diane Nguyen said. The new Austin Road bridge also will cross the freight tracks along 99, eliminating a safety hazard for drivers. By 2026, the tracks will be part of the expanded Altamont Corridor Express, which now takes passengers between Stockton and San Jose. The project is the first phase of an effort that eventually could involve other parts of the 99-120 junction, if funding is secured.

The second phase could cost about $28 million and open by 2033, according to the California Department of Transportation. It projects a $62 million cost and 2042 opening for the third phase. These phases would widen both 99 and 120 and improve connector ramps at the junction.

LOCAL SALES TAX HELPS FUND PROJECT

Local funding for the first phase includes the Measure K sales tax and fees on property developers. SJCOG also tapped state and federal transportation programs and federal payments to local governments amid COVID-19. The ground-breaking featured Lathrop Mayor Sonny Dhaliwal, who chairs SJCOG. “We’re bringing together our member agencies and public and private partners to build this highway-to-highway connector to serve the transportation needs of everyone who lives, works and travels in San Joaquin County,” he said.

https://www.modbee.com/news/local/article290199884.html

By Faughn New Developments 0 Comments

Lathrop Groundbreaking Ceremony Kicks Off Construction Phase for Valley Rail Program

STOCKTON, CA – June 20, 2024 – This week representatives of the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission (SJRRC), the San Joaquin Joint Powers Authority (SJJPA), and South San Joaquin Irrigation District (SSJID) officially broke ground on the Lathrop Wye Box Culvert (Box Culvert) project, marking the first major step in the construction phase of the Valley Rail program. Valley Rail is a transformative program that will enhance rail connectivity and service between the San Joaquin Valley, Sacramento, and the Bay Area, significantly improving regional mobility and sustainability for Valley travelers, visitors, and residents.

Transforming Regional Rail Connectivity: Lathrop Wye and Track Extension Project

Sited near the Manteca Unified School District office complex, the Box Culvert project is the first component of the two-part Lathrop Wye and Track Extension Project which will construct a concrete structural box culvert that provides a platform for the future track associated with the Lathrop Wye.  The second phase will construct the Lathrop Wye Track and will provide the necessary track infrastructure to allow direct ACE train service between Ceres/Merced and San Jose. The second phase is scheduled to begin construction in late 2025 or early 2026.

The 384-foot-long Box Culvert will function to allow the current irrigation drainage ditch to continue to provide irrigation for farms receiving water from the South San Joaquin Irrigation District (SSJID) and as storm drain conveyance for approximately 10,210 acres of land in south Manteca and several regional municipalities. The culvert will consist of a double-barrel reinforced cast-in-place concrete culverts and is needed to support the new wye connection tracks, which will curve over a portion of the SSJID canal. The box culvert is expected to be completed by early 2025.

The project demonstrates how the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission is working in partnership with agencies, districts, and cities along the corridor as it moves forward with the infrastructure improvements necessary to upgrade tracks, build stations, and create new connections.

Nancy Young, Tracy Mayor and SJRRC Chair, said: 

“This project is significant as it is the first step in delivering the infrastructure necessary to connect Stanislaus and Merced counties directly to the Tri-Valley and San Jose. The Valley Rail Program will significantly enhance regional mobility and sustainability, benefiting travelers, visitors, and residents of the San Joaquin Valley and California as a whole.” Mayor Young continued, “I want to say a special Thank You to the South San Joaquin Irrigation District. Your partnership is invaluable. It is incredibly important to the Valley Rail Program as well as all the communities that we serve.”

Vito Chiesa, Stanislaus County Supervisor and SJJPA Board Member, said: 

“The exciting part of this project today, specifically, is that it supports the expansion of ACE service down to Stanislaus County with stops in Modesto, Ceres, and Turlock,” Chiesa continued. “This opens up all of Northern California for Stanislaus County residents to ride rail just about anywhere. Regarding air quality, we’re in an impacted basin in the San Joaquin Valley and programs like Valley Rail will be an important way to improve air quality for all of our residents.”

Stacey Mortensen, Executive Director (SJRRC), said:

“The Valley Rail Program is one of the most transformational things happening in the Valley for probably 100 years. Passenger service disappeared in the Valley for many years on this particular line. Valley Rail brings that passenger rail service back with a vengeance.” Regarding the Lathrop Wye Box Culvert Project, Mortensen said “Where we are right here [in Lathrop] is a connection in the Central Valley that has never existed. Trains today cannot come from the Modesto area and seamlessly travel over the Altamont Pass. They all have to either go north to Sacramento or they have to perform a long series of moves to travel toward the Tri-Valley and South Bay Area. This project, today, helps us make that connection so that trains can make a “through move” with passengers over to the Bay Area and Back.”

Forrest Killingsworth, Engineering Department Manager, South San Joaquin Irrigation District (SSJID), said:

“The significance of the project is to provide irrigation tail water and stormwater runoff capacity for the French Camp Outlet Canal, which is an SSJID tail water infrastructure canal. …What it will do is allow for the Lathrop Wye track construction to be constructed in an arched or a curved fashion over the top of the channel.”

Peter Rietkerk, General Manager (SSJID), said:

“The project is meant to serve as a foundational piece or initial piece for the larger Lathrop Wye Project, which is going to provide a huge benefit, especially in mobility, for our local residents, [and] people that visit the area and want to travel regionally.”

Mike Weststeyn, Board President (SSJID), said:

“It’s great to be a part of this transformational project that’s just getting started today. And, for [the] South San Joaquin Irrigation District, and as the President of the board, it’s great to be involved in a project like this that’s going to change our community.” 

Valley Rail: Enhancing Connectivity and Sustainability in Northern California

Valley Rail is a joint program that includes improvements and expansions of both ACE and Amtrak San Joaquins that is focused on improvements between Sacramento and the San Joaquin Valley. Valley Rail implements two new daily round-trips for the Amtrak San Joaquins service to better connect San Joaquin Valley travelers with the Sacramento Area, and extends Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) service between Sacramento and Merced. In addition, Valley Rail will convert the entire fleet including the thruway bus network to renewable diesel fuel, providing greenhouse gas (GHG) benefits across the entire existing (449 track miles) and proposed expanded (119 track miles) San Joaquins and ACE services.

The Valley Rail Program consists of several project segments that together improve rail service on ACE and the San Joaquins for the San Joaquin Valley, Sacramento, and the Bay Area. The project segments include: Lathrop to Ceres Extension, Sacramento Extension, Ceres-Merced Extension, Stockton Diamond Grade Separation, Madera Station Relocation, and the Oakley Station Project.

https://www.sjrrc.com/lathrop-groundbreaking-ceremony/

By Faughn Energy • Hi-Tech 0 Comments

New battery installation comes online in eastern Kern

Clearway Energy Group’s 147-megawatt Rosamond Central Battery Energy Storage System is the company’s first battery retrofit project, made up of lithium-ion batteries delivering power for four hours nightly to support the reliability of California’s power grid.

The project, located adjacent to Clearway’s 192-megawatt Rosamond Central solar array, brings the company’s battery storage portfolio to more than 850 megawatts.

Energy storage at the site is contracted to Rosemead-based utility Southern California Edison under a long-term power agreement. It and Clearway have partnered on projects accounting for more than 1.5 gigawatts of renewable power, including the Alta Wind Energy Center at the Tehachapi Pass.

Clearway reported Rosamond Central BESS is among the first battery energy storage projects financed under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’s energy community bonus incentive. The measure offers a credit of up to 2.75 cents per kilowatt-hour for renewably produced power projects built by workers, including qualified apprentices, are paid prevailing wages.

The company said more than 50 union workers led by San Jose-based electrical contractor Rosendin, built the installation over 115,000 man-hours of injury-free labor. The batteries were supplied Finnish Wärtsilä.

“Battery storage projects like Rosamond Central BESS play an essential role in deliverying on California’s Resource Adequacy program to keep the lights on for homes and businesses acros sthe state during peak hours,” Senior Vice President of Operators Valerie Wooley of Clearway said in a news release.

https://www.bakersfield.com/news/new-battery-installation-comes-online-in-eastern-kern/article_2ecbdf72-4b72-11ef-b656-9fd614a7e911.html

By Faughn New Developments • Quality of Life 0 Comments

‘Let’s Get Digging:’ Madera County Food Bank breaks ground on new facility

For something that has been a long time coming, it has finally come true for Madera County Food Bank Executive Director Ryan McWherter. 

McWherter and his staff officially broke ground on its new 21,800-square-foot facility during a ceremony Friday that was attended by many Madera dignitaries.

“I look at the crowd, and for a person that talks a lot, I’m kind of speechless,” McWherter said during the ceremony. “I’ve been to groundbreakings and ribbon cuttings, I’ve never seen this many people. It speaks to the need and the amount of sacrifice and hard work this food bank has put in. It’s not just the director. It does take a village. My staff is so awesome. We’re family.”

https://www.maderatribune.com/single-post/let-s-get-digging-madera-county-food-bank-breaks-ground-on-new-facility

By Faughn Economy • Energy • New Developments 0 Comments

Hydrogen projects sprout in the Valley

Plans for using hydrogen to fight climate change are sprouting all over the San Joaquin Valley this summer. Projects are in the works in western Fresno County, in Pixley in Tulare County and in Orange Cove where SoCal Gas will blend 5% hydrogen with natural gas for retail customers reducing overall greenhouse gases.

When hydrogen is injected into a fuel cell, hydrogen generates electricity but emits only heat and harmless water vapor and has great potential to cut global carbon emissions and keep toxic pollutants out. Experts say hydrogen could make the biggest difference in sectors now mostly powered by fossil fuels — trucking, shipping and aviation.

In the westside of the Valley, the Darden Clean Energy Project would cover 9,500 acres owned by Westland Water District and include a trifecta of green technologies including a 3.1 million solar panel farm, a 1,150MW green hydrogen plant and a 4600MWE hour battery storage plant.

An electrolyzer water treatment plant would be powered by solar power capable of producing 220 tons of gaseous hydrogen per day that could be used as zero carbon transportation fuel. To bring electricity to the grid the sprawling energy farm would be connected to a 15 mile transmission line to a PG&E substation near Highway 5.

Instead of seeking approval through Fresno County, the massive project is going direct to the California Energy Commission (CEC) for final permitting under a new provision approved by the legislature in 2022 called opt-in, the first in the state to do so.

Largest in the world

The Darden Clean Energy Project, which more than rivals the largest solar battery storage combination in the world, is located in Kern County at Edwards Air Force Base and is said to be about 4,000 acres. It houses 1.9 million solar panels and generates 3287MWh for the battery storage facility. The Kern County project also does not include a hydrogen manufacturing component.

In terms of the hydrogen plant at the Darden site, the capacity at 220 tons of hydrogen a day compares to just three tons a day at the largest existing hydrogen production plant on 324 acres also in Fresno County that started up last year led by a Spanish firm.

The CEC must find that Darden has submitted a complete application and then has 270 days to approve the project, which is considered a fast-track process in order to get more battery storage in California online sooner.

Hydrogen’s flexibility as a fuel source including for transportation, industrial, and power generation sectors and its ability to be stored is helped by new tax incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act. Producing only water as a byproduct hydrogen can be injected into the natural gas distribution system managed by utilities like SoCal Gas and PG&E. Add the synergy of combining solar power generation and hydrogen manufacturing – the process is given a big boost by the power from the sun typically on-site.

Lawsuit in Tulare County

In Pixley in Tulare County, another company is proposing to build a 1.2 million square-foot 28-acre hydrogen plant that will manufacture, store and distribute pressurized liquid hydrogen fuel for trucks and include 114 acres of solar power generation. The location of the $120 million plant is at the southwest corner of Avenue 120 and Road 120 near Highway 99.

Last summer the County of Tulare determined their project was allowed by right under the CEQA common sense exemption since the property was already located in a manufacturing zone. In March 2024 a citizen group with members from Pixley filed a lawsuit objecting that the county had not properly followed CEQA rules and should require a full impact report.

Oil company wants in

Also this spring, Chevron New Energies, a division of Chevron U.S.A. Inc., announced it is developing a 5-megawatt hydrogen production project in Lost Hills.

The project aims to create lower carbon energy by utilizing solar power, land, and non-potable produced water from Chevron’s existing assets at the Lost Hills Oil Field in Kern County. This low carbon intensity electrolytic hydrogen will be produced through electrolysis, which is the process of using electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen.

“Hydrogen can play a vital role in our journey toward a lower carbon future,” said Austin Knight, vice president for hydrogen at Chevron New Energies.

Blending hydrogen

Use of hydrogen will hit the retail market in Orange Cove says SoCalGas.

At the direction of the California Public Utilities Commission, SoCalGas is proposing a local demonstration project that could safely blend up to 5% clean, renewable hydrogen into the natural gas system serving approximately 10,000 residents, along with commercial customers in the City of Orange Cove, in Fresno County.

SoCalGas is proposing an 18-month demonstration project that will blend clean, renewable hydrogen serving residents and businesses. This project would offer a real-world environment to better understand how clean hydrogen and natural gas can be safely delivered to customers in the future. This is part of a broader effort by California and utilities to develop a standard for safe hydrogen blending, which could reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality, says the company.

 

https://hanfordsentinel.com/business/hydrogen-projects-sprout-in-the-valley-john-lindt/article_2bb4ee2f-d177-5e65-ae81-3c037848c76b.amp.html

By Faughn New Developments • New Location • Tourism 0 Comments

Another truck stop pulling into Tipton

A new truck stop will be pulling into Tipton soon.

Mike Washam, head of economic development for Tulare County, said plans for a TA Truck Stop have been filed to locate at Avenue 120 and Road 124 on the eastside of Highway 99 near Tipton. Avenue 120 is at the north end of Tipton, just a few miles south of Tulare. It is also the location of the California Dairies plant where the company manufactures milk powder, bulk butter, nutritional powders and processed fluids.

“They are doing civil works now” to locate the multi pump station with a convenience store, showers and a restaurant, Washam said. The site was formerly an old cotton gin.

The TA chain is owned by TravelCenters of America LLC, the largest publicly traded full-service truck stop and travel center company in the United States. The company operates full-service centers, convenience stores, and restaurants under the TravelCenters of America, TA, Petro Stopping Centers, TA Express, and GOASIS brands. TA has Highway 99 locations near Bakersfield and in Madera.

TravelCenters of America is headquartered in Westlake, Ohio, operates in 44 U.S. states, and employs nearly 20,000 people, as of 2021. Stations are typically large at 10,000 square feet. In terms of the number of pumps, there will be 20 pumps for gasoline and 20 pumps for diesel if it is anything like TA’s truck stop in Buttonwillow, Calif.

In May 2023, British owned oil company BP Products North America Inc., a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of BP plc acquired the TravelCenters of America. TA plans to open 20 new locations this year, as well as add 1,600 new truck parking spaces, add Pulse EV charging stations at select sites, enhance store layouts, and upgrade mobile maintenance and emergency roadside assistance vehicles to better serve its fleet customers and professional drivers. TA opened is 300th location in Walton, Kentucky in February.

The new Highway 99 truck stop will compete directly with two major players including Loves and Flying J, both in Tulare as well as the new Mavericks station under construction on Cartmill Avenue, a Valero gas station on Caldwell Avenue as well as several others in Goshen. There’s also a new truck stop south of this site as well near Earlimart called Akal Travel Center.