FRESNO, Calif. – New data suggest Fresno is a more prosperous city than it was 12 years ago.
The analysis, released this week by the non-profit Central Valley Community Foundation, shows Fresno has made measurable economic progress since 2013 – particularly when it comes to economic inclusion and racial inclusion, which measure how low-income people and people of color benefit from economic growth.
The data show that, among the largest U.S. cities, Fresno climbed 33 places in a ranking of economic inclusion, and 62 places in a ranking of racial inclusion. The data also show an increase in employment rates and a significant drop in concentrated poverty – in a city that’s long reported lower incomes and higher unemployment than the state average.
“It's the first time in my career I can ever remember that we're seeing such positive momentum,” said foundation President & CEO Ashley Swearengin, who is also the city’s former mayor. “I fell off my couch when I saw that in the draft numbers.”
The organization released the data on the five-year anniversary of its massive economic initiative known as Fresno DRIVE. The initiative consists of collaboration of hundreds of local leaders and community organizations that together brought more than $600 million into the city to provide jobs and economic opportunity to Fresno residents.
“Investing in people is the cornerstone of building a stronger, more resilient Fresno,” said Kurt Madden, CEO of a Fresno DRIVE initiative known as Career Nexus, in a press release. “Graduating more than 1,000 interns from our program is a powerful testament to what’s possible when we connect talent with pathways to meaningful careers.”
“Being part of the Fresno DRIVE Executive Committee has been such a rewarding experience,” said Cassandra Little, CEO of the Fresno Metro Black Chamber of Commerce, in the release. “Through our incubator, we’ve supported and graduated 140 entrepreneurs with an 82 percent completion rate. An overwhelming 92 percent of these businesses are Black-owned, 5 percent are Latinx-owned, and more than half are women-owned.”
Earlier this month, a new study also found that household income has grown faster in Fresno than in almost any other major city in the country.
Finance tech company SmartAsset analyzed Census Bureau data to see where incomes are rising the fastest. Last year, the median household income nationwide grew just over one percent due to inflation.
Fresno, however, stood out. Median income here jumped more than 10%, according to the analysis, reaching more than $74,000 dollars. Families with children saw the biggest jump of nearly 30%.
Fresno ranked fourth in the nation for income growth, right behind Long Beach and San Francisco.
Swearengin said it’s too early to say whether Fresno DRIVE can take credit for any of these improvements – and it’s certainly no time for a victory lap.
“It's up to us to figure out, how do we turn that bounce into consistent, more widespread improvement?” she said. “Let's take this momentum and let's re-dedicate ourselves to the next five years of growth.”
Editor’s Note: The Central Valley Community Foundation is a financial sponsor of KVPR.
