‘Makes a big difference’: Trees planted near Fresno State

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – The City of Fresno celebrated Earth Day with a special event on Tuesday. 

Fresno State football players and city leaders gathered to plant 162 trees along Barstow Avenue near Fresno State. 

Student Jordan Brown is one of the volunteers who helped at the event, and says it was wonderful to work with his fellow teammates on a project for the city. 

“Giving back to the environment is beautiful,” he said. “Fresno is a great place to be, especially right here around Fresno State, it’s beautiful to see. People are going to be coming out to the games and all that, driving by, seeing these trees flourish.”

Fresno City Councilmember Tyler Maxwell helped spearhead the effort.

“It’s hard when the streets around you fall into disrepair when you don’t have trees or the trees that you have are dead and decaying,” Maxwell said.

Maxwell believes the seeds they planted will grow to have a lasting impact on the community. 

“If you were to look at an aerial map of Fresno, there are some neighborhoods that are lush with trees and mature landscaping. And there’s some other neighborhoods like the ones that I represent that have little to no trees whatsoever. And it makes a big difference,” he said. 

Mayor Jerry Dyer says he hopes the trees will improve the area near Fresno State.

“We’re planting 162 trees along Barstow Avenue to provide shade, combat the pollutants in the air, and also the beautification efforts along Barstow Avenue,” he said. 

Fresno State President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval says the goal is to make the community more beautiful for everyone.

“The environment is everything for us. It’s the valley. It’s also our community. And it’s also the Ag component that we live with here in the valley,” he said. “It’s really a testament of faith for the future, a testament of who we are as a valley, who we are as a university, as well as Fresno State.”