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Fresno is the county seat of Fresno County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 427,652. Estimates by the California Department of Finance (2005) approximate a city population of 464,727 and a metropolitan area of 1,002,284. Fresno is the sixth-largest city in California and the largest inland city in the state. It is located at 36°47' North, 119°48' West, in the San Joaquin Valley portion of California's expansive Central Valley. Its ZIP Code is 937xx. It is also the largest city in the United States that is not directly served by an Interstate highway (although there are long-term plans to upgrade California State Highway 99, the main freeway through the area, to Interstate standards; it is unofficially proposed to be designated b).

The "Fresno Municipal Sanitary Landfill" was the first modern landfill in the United States, and incorporated several important innovations to waste disposal, including trenching, compacting, and the daily covering of trash with dirt. It was opened in 1937 and closed in 1987. It is now a National Historic Landmark.

Fresno is also home to California's largest Hmong community. In East Fresno, many neighborhoods are 40-50% Hmong.

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Alan Autry was elected Mayor of Fresno in November, 2000. His first term was from January, 2001 to January, 2005. He was re-elected on March 2, 2004 with over 72 percent of the vote. His second term will be from January, 2005 to January, 2009. Autry is best known as an actor, however, starring as Capt. V.L. "Bubba" Skinner on the In the Heat of the Night television series from 1988-1994.

He recently drew attention to himself and the city with a brief feud with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger over local budgets and a "Marriage Commitment Day" for heterosexuals held in response to Gavin Newsom's (mayor of San Francisco) issuance of marriage licenses for same-sex couples.

On the first Monday of each month, Mayor Alan Autry meets directly with residents who wish to share their ideas and concerns.

The City Council consists of seven members elected by district, as follows.

Fresno is located at 36°46'54" North, 119°47'32" West (36.781549, -119.792113)sup .

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 271.4 km² (104.8 mi²). 270.3 km² (104.4 mi²) of it is land and 1.1 km² (0.4 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.42% water.

Fresno is about 50 miles south of Yosemite National Park. It is the closest major city to the park. Because it sits at the junction of Highways 41 and 99 (41 is the park's southern access road, and 99 branches east from Interstate 5 to serve the urban centers of the San Joaquin Valley), the city is a major gateway for visitors coming from Los Angeles.

Fresno has large public parks like Woodward Park and Roeding Park.

of 2000, there are 427,652 people, 140,079 households, and 97,915 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,582.2mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 50.17% White, 8.36% Black or African American, 1.58% Native American, 11.23% Asian (mostly Hmong), 0.14% Pacific Islander, 23.36% from other races, and 5.16% from two or more races. 39.87% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 140,079 households out of which 40.4% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.1% are married couples living together, 17.6% have a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% are non-families. 23.3% of all households are made up of individuals and 7.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.99 and the average family size is 3.57.

In the city the population is spread out with 32.9% under the age of 18, 11.8% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 17.2% from 45 to 64, and 9.3% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 28 years. For every 100 females there are 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 93.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $32,236, and the median income for a family is $35,892. Males have a median income of $32,279 versus $26,551 for females. The per capita income for the city is $15,010. 26.2% of the population and 20.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 36.5% of those under the age of 18 and 10.7% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

An October 2005 study by the Brookings Institution, entitled "Katrina's Window: Confronting Concentrated Poverty Across America" ranked Fresno as the city with the most concentrated level of poverty in the United States.[1] The study was prompted in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, in which the economic and racial divides of American cities became clearly visible.

Fresno is the location of several colleges: California State University, Fresno (Fresno State); Fresno Pacific University, a Christian private college; and Fresno City College, a community college. Fresno State's athletic teams have the Bulldog for their mascot.

Other accredited institutions include the Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary [2] and the Fresno campus of Alliant International University [3].

Arte Américas is a local Latino cultural center. Arte Américas was founded in 1987 by artists and teachers to "make the Central Valley a flourishing place for Latino arts." Building on past efforts to establish a community arts center, Arte Américas works toward this ultimate goal by maintaining a center where the visual arts can be exhibited. [4]

The Met serves the Fresno and greater Central California areas with a wide array of traveling exhibitions, shows from within its collection, lectures and outrech programming. The museum's most enduring feature is its acclaimed Reeves ASK Science Center. Developed through a partnership with San Francisco's Exploratorium, the Reeves ASK Science Center serves as an educational hub for the area, with hands-on science exhibits geared to children of elementary school age. The Exploratorium partnership allows for the rotation of these exhibits on an annual basis. The Science Center is open in a temporary location during an ongoing renovation of the Met's historic Fresno Bee Building home. The museum building is scheduled to reopen in Fall of 2006. The Met participates in Fresno's ArtHop program, and hosts outreach events and fundraisers on an annual basis, including First Friday Films, Christmas at the Met and a science-education based Bubble Festival. www.fresnomet.org

The Tower District in southwest Fresno is small avenue, home to a number of local eating establishments, nightclubs, and independent book and record stores - along with the historic Tower Theatre. The Tower Theatre is home to a range of performances: music, dance, comedy, etc. It is also home to Fresno Filmworks, an organization that every month shows a recent independent film via a group that rents the facility, that would otherwise not come to town. The Tower District is also home to Good Company Players who have two performance spaces within a block of one another (Roger Rocka's Dinner Theatre and the Second Space Theatre), and perform musicals and plays throughout the year. The neighborhood has a limited history of tolerance. In fact, every year Fresno's gay pride parade takes place right down the main street. It also hosts a mardi gras celebration also occur in along businesses on the street. The area has a few historic early 20th century homes and apartment buildings, many in the California bungalow . The continued preservation of these buildings in this and other areas of town is one of the many focuses of the group 1000 Friends of Fresno.

From the web site of the museum: "Since its inception as a regional arts center in 1948, the Fresno Art Museum has grown into an important museum of contemporary and modern art. The Museum evolved from a group of local artists who formed the Fresno Art League in the late 1940's for the purpose of critiquing and exhibiting their artwork. In 1958 the Fresno Art League joined forces with others interested in building a place to exhibit and study art, and the original building was constructed on Fresno city property at Radio Park. Originally called the Fresno Art Center and Museum, it changed to the Fresno Art Museum in the late 1980's." The museum is still located in Radio Park, and puts up a rotating series of exhibits. It participates in the monthly Art Hop, and has a variety of film programs where one can see classic films, anime, and international selections. Select evenings throughout the year bring Art Under the Stars, where the museum and invited performances can be enjoyed.

Fresno Arts Council holds a monthly Art Hop that features many artists in the Fresno area and is held every first Thursday of the month from 5 pm - 8 pm. One of the biggest art events takes place during the annual Rogue Performance Festivalin March.

Roeding Park ([5]) is convienently located near the 99 freeway, close to downtown. Besides the standard park facilities, the park is also home to the Chaffee Zoo and two Rotary Parks, Playland and Storyland. Chaffee Zoo recently received a boost with the passing of Measure Z, a city-wide 110 cent sales tax, which has allowed the hiring of a new zoo director, and promises to provide the zoo with $10 million annually over the next 10 years. Playland is an amusement park that recently passed its 50th anniversary with the restoration of old ride attractions and the opening of a few new ones. Storyland is geared toward younger children. The amusement park consists of talking environments from popular stories and fairytales, some inhabited by live animals. In the summer, young performers put on plays based on fairytales in the ampitheatre located inside Storyland.

The Save Mart Center is a large indoor arena that was completed at the end of 2003 on the campus of Fresno State. It has hosted a wide range of music acts, from Britney Spears to KISS, as well as other shows, in addition to all Fresno State home basketball games and Fresno Falcons home games. Trade publication Pollstar ranked the arena number 24 in the world for 2004 ticket sales. The new arena replaces downtown's Selland Arena as the home for Fresno State men's basketball, Fresno Falcons games, and major events.

The Forestiere Underground Gardens ([6]) in northwest Fresno near Highway 99, are unusual manmade creations built by Baldasare Forestiere over a period of 40 years. For a fictionalized account of Forestiere and his lonely obsession, see the short story "The Underground Gardens" by T. Coraghessan Boyle, published in i

Fresno Reel Pride ([7]) is the sixth oldest -- and has grown to become one of the largest -- gay and lesbian film festivals in the US. Now located in the historic Tower Theatre, Reel Pride is a celebration of gay and lesbian cinema and is a premiere cultural event in central California.

One of two indoor malls, Fashion Fair, recently underwent major renovations. It hosts Macy's, Gottschalks, JC Penney, and over 100 other retailers. An outdoor expansion, named "The Village at Fashion Fair" has recently been constructed. New tenants include The Cheesecake Factory, Anthropologie, Brookstone, Sephora, Metropark, Z Gallerie, and Fleming's Steakhouse.

The "River Park" area (so named for its proximity to the San Joaquin River, which divides Fresno and Madera counties) in north-central Fresno is a major shopping and entertainment district, right in the middle of the rapidly expanding northern sprawl. It properly refers to only the River Park shopping center located between Blackstone Avenue, the 41 freeway, Minarets Avenue, and Nees Avenue, but locals usually use the name to refer to places on the west side of Blackstone or the region in general. The area houses a Gottschalks, Best Buy, Target, Borders Books Music, Chico's, Jos. A Bank, Nordstrom Rack, several "big-box" retailers, and a 22-screen Edward's movie theater. The true backbone of the area may be the many popular restaurants, such as P.F Chang's China Bistro, Claim Jumper, Macaroni Grill, California Pizza Kitchen, Fuzio, Hooters and The Elephant Bar.

Fig Garden Village (or simply "Fig Garden") houses many city icons, such as The Warner Company - a heavily city marketed jewelry producer, and La Boulangerie - small French bakery. It also features events such as the annual "Fig Gig" jazz festival. Due to a lack of upscale retailers in Fresno, Fig Garden Village has been expanding and refining its offerings. This includes the planned development of around 50 new stores including Pottery Barn, Banana Republic, Coach, Coldwater Creek, and J. Jill. These new aspirations for Fig Garden Village have caused some people to question if they might detract from the plaza's locally-owned, non-commercialized feel. At the present time, only a handful of national chains are located in the center such as Whole Foods Market, The Bombay Company, and Chico's.

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