Water issues in Allensworth

An editorial photography assignment for Food & Environment Reporting Network had me down in Allensworth last month documenting the dire water situation the Tulare County town of 500 is going through.

Be sure to check out the story by reporter Teresa Cotsirilos, who did a great job painting a picture of the irony of how a place in California’s Central Valley, which produces 25 percent of the nation’s food supply, can have a water problem.

I’ve been to the state park Allensworth for editorial photography several times but never to the little town that actually has living residents in it just down the road. It really is a sad situation that the town that was founded more than 100 years ago because African Americans couldn’t get a fair shake unless they went out on their own, continues to fight discrimination and racist policies.

See the photos below for my coverage of the story:

Denise Kadara fills up her water bottle from a spigot producing the only clean water in the town of Allensworth collected from solar hydro panels, background, that suck ambient moisture from the air. (Photo by Craig Kohlruss)
Dusty roads and parched land lead through the town of Allensworth in rural Tulare County, California. (Photo by Craig Kohlruss)
A monument marks the location of Allensworth, California, a town established in 1908 by former slave Lt. Col. Allen Allensworth to become the only California town founded, built, governed and populated entirely by African Americans. The site is now a state park, but another Allensworth with a residential population of around 500 still exists down the road. (Photo by Craig Kohlruss)
A community center honors its namesake, Lt. Col Allen Allensworth in the town of Allensworth in rural Tulare County, California. (Photo by Craig Kohlruss)
A water storage tank and pump are no longer in service at the Allensworth Community Services Center as the water in the well is highly contaminated with arsenic. (Photo by Craig Kohlruss)
Denise Kadara, from left, Sherry Hunter and Valeria Contreras talk on the steps of the Allensworth Community Center on Friday, Aug. 26, 2022. The women are residents of the small Tulare County town and are trying to get help to provide its residents with clean water. (Photo by Craig Kohlruss)
Valeria Contreras, a resident of Allensworth in rural Tulare County, California, stands in a dusty dirt road leading into the town on Friday, Aug. 29, 2022. (Photo by Craig Kohlruss)
Hundreds of acres of pistachios are irrigated from groundwater pumps a couple of miles down the road from Allensworth. (Photo by Craig Kohlruss)
by Craig KohlrussPosted in Editorial

New training center coming to west Fresno

Congressman Jim Costa was joined by Chancellor of State Center Community College District Dr. Carole Goldsmith, EDC president and CEO Lee Ann Eager, Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias and Chuck Riojas of the State Building and Construction Trades Council to announce $1.9 million in funding was secured for a new training center at Fresno City College’s west Fresno campus, which continues to progress toward completion on Monday.

This means new training, assistance and better jobs ahead for the local community of southwest Fresno that has been underserved for so many years. A ground-breaking ceremony followed by construction for the facility is expected soon.

Construction progresses on the West Fresno Campus of Fresno City College on the southeast corner of Church and Walnut avenues in south west Fresno on Monday, April 18, 2022. The Fresno Economic Development Corporation is receiving $1.9 million to construct a 60,00-square-foot training center on the campus to assist women, minorities, veterans, ex-offenders, at-risk and disconnected young adults and other underrepresented individuals as part of $11 million for local projects secured by Congressman Jim Costa through the Fiscal Year 2022 government funding package.
Construction progresses on the West Fresno Campus of Fresno City College on the southeast corner of Church and Walnut avenues in south west Fresno on Monday, April 18, 2022. The Fresno Economic Development Corporation is receiving $1.9 million to construct a 60,00-square-foot training center on the campus to assist women, minorities, veterans, ex-offenders, at-risk and disconnected young adults and other underrepresented individuals as part of $11 million for local projects secured by Congressman Jim Costa through the Fiscal Year 2022 government funding package.
Congressman Jim Costa holds a press conference to announce the construction of a 60,00-square-foot training center on the West Fresno Campus of Fresno City College to assist women, minorities, veterans, ex-offenders, at-risk and disconnected young adults and other underrepresented individuals as part of $11 million for local projects he secured through the Fiscal Year 2022 government funding package.
Congressman Jim Costa holds a press conference to announce the construction of a 60,00-square-foot training center on the West Fresno Campus of Fresno City College to assist women, minorities, veterans, ex-offenders, at-risk and disconnected young adults and other underrepresented individuals as part of $11 million for local projects he secured through the Fiscal Year 2022 government funding package.
by Craig KohlrussPosted in Editorial

Fresno Secret Suppers event at the Painted Table

These are photos I made back in September of 2021 of a Fresno Secret Suppers event held at the Painted Table in Fresno.

The theme of this event was “South in Yo Mouth” which featured a massive tasty meal with southern tastes. Wish I could have stayed to eat!

The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
The Painted Table Fresno Supper Club South in Yo Mouth
by Craig KohlrussPosted in Events

Fresno leaders meet with trailer park residents

Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer and other city leaders met with residents of the Trails End Mobile Home Park in Fresno to provide information about how the park will be managed in the upcoming days and weeks.

Residents had hoped that the city would somehow block the sale of the trailer park to Harmony Communities but Mayor Dyer said that the city did not have the legal jurisdiction to stand in the way of the sale.

These are the images from that meeting:

Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer meets with Trails End Mobile Home Park resident Heidi Phipps and her family at the park on Friday, March 25, 2022. Dyer and Fresno City Councilmember Garry Bredefeld spoke to residents to discuss concerns about the possible sale of the park to Harmony Communities on Friday, March 25, 2022.
Trails End Mobile Home Park residents listen to Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer and Fresno City Councilmember Garry Bredefeld during a meeting at the park on Friday, March 25, 2022.
Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer, right, and Fresno City Councilmember Garry Bredefeld speak to each other after arriving at the Trails End Mobile Home Park in Fresno to speak to residents on Friday, March 25, 2022.
Trails End Mobile Home Park resident Patricia Shawn holds up signs protesting the possible sale of the park to Harmony Communities, as Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer and Fresno City Councilmember Garry Bredefeld arrive to speak to residents on Friday, March 25, 2022.
California Rural Legal Assistance attorney Mariah Thompson provides input from residents of the Trails End Mobile Home Park during a meeting by Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer and Fresno City Councilmember Garry Bredefeld at the park on Friday, March 25, 2022.
by Craig KohlrussPosted in Editorial

Fresno State moves on in Basketball Classic

The Fresno State men’s basketball team defeated Youngstown State to advance to the semifinals in the 2022 Basketball Classic to be held on Monday, March 28, 2022 at the Save Mart Center in Fresno.

These images are from the quarterfinal match on Wednesday, March 23, 2022.

Fresno State’s Leo Colimerio, right, collides with Youngstown’s Tevin Olison while going for a loose ball during their quarterfinal game in the 2022 Basketball Classic tournament at the Save Mart Center in Fresno on Wednesday, March 23, 2022.
Fresno State’s Leo Colimerio is congratulated by teammates Braxton Meah, left, and Jordan Campbell, right, after picking up a foul against Youngstown State during their quarterfinal game in the 2022 Basketball Classic tournament at the Save Mart Center in Fresno on Wednesday, March 23, 2022.
Fresno State’s Braxton Meah dunks the ball on a lob against Youngstown during their quarterfinal game in the 2022 Basketball Classic tournament at the Save Mart Center in Fresno on Wednesday, March 23, 2022.
Fresno State’s Orlando Robinson, center, tries to find an opening to the hoop against Youngstown during their quarterfinal game in the 2022 Basketball Classic tournament at the Save Mart Center in Fresno on Wednesday, March 23, 2022.
Fresno State’s Destin Whitaker, right, fires off a three-point shot while defended by Youngstown State’s Dwayne Cohill during their quarterfinal game in the 2022 Basketball Classic tournament at the Save Mart Center in Fresno on Wednesday, March 23, 2022.
Fresno State’s Braxton Meah goes for a dunk against Youngstown State during their quarterfinal game in the 2022 Basketball Classic tournament at the Save Mart Center in Fresno on Wednesday, March 23, 2022.
by Craig KohlrussPosted in Editorial
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