City Hall Cafe Lease Agreement
Summary
SCH Number
2026070070
Public Agency
City of Fresno
Document Title
City Hall Cafe Lease Agreement
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
7/2/2026
Document Description
The proposed project involved a lease of 1,852 square feet of City of Fresno owned land at City Hall to Vatche Moukhtarian. Vatche will be operating a cafe from an existing facility.
Under Section 15301/Class 1, the proposed project is exempt from CEQA requirements when the project consists of the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use. The key consideration is whether the project involves negligible or no expansion of use.
The project is exempt from CEQA because the City is proposing a Lease Agreement for café space that was previously leased to vendors operating a café prior to COVID. The project does not involve new construction, ground disturbance, or increased capacity beyond existing facilities and previously approved operations. Accordingly, the project will not have a significant impact on the environment, as it requires Reading and Beyond to continue operations in the existing facilities. Moreover, the two portable classrooms, gated playground, and two storage containers owned by Reading and Beyond are already existing facilities on the property.
None of the exceptions to Categorical Exemptions set forth in the CEQA Guidelines, Section 15300.2 apply to the project. Furthermore, the proposed project is not expected to have a significant effect on the environment. A categorical exemption, as noted above, has been prepared for the project and the area is not environmentally sensitive.
Contact Information
Name
Desiree Naranjo
Agency Name
City of Fresno
Job Title
Manager
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency / Project Applicant / Parties Undertaking Project
Phone
Name
Brian Barr
Agency Name
City of Fresno
Job Title
Director
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency / Project Applicant
Phone
Email
Name
Vatche Moukhtarian
Agency Name
Culinary Studios, Inc.
Job Title
Tenant
Contact Types
Parties Undertaking Project
Phone
Email
Location
Cities
Fresno
Counties
Fresno
Regions
Citywide, Southern California
Cross Streets
P Street & Fresno Street
Zip
93702
Other Location Info
Project location specific - 2600 Fresno St. Rm. 1016 & 1018
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Section 15301 / Class 1
Reasons for Exemption
This project is exempt since the City is leasing land that was previously under a lease agreement for the same use. The project does not involve new construction ground disturbance, or increased capacity beyond the existing facilities. The space has been previously used for the same cafe operations by a different tenant.
Under Section 15301 /Class 1, the proposed project is exempt from CEQA requirements when the project consists of the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use. The key consideration is whether the project involves negligible or no expansion of use.
The project is exempt from CEQA because the City is proposing a Lease Agreement for cafe space that was previously leased to vendors operating a cafe prior to COVID. The project does not involve new construction, ground disturbance, or increased capacity beyond existing facilities and previously approved operations. Accordingly, the project will not have a significant impact on the environment, as it requires Reading and Beyond to continue operations in the existing facilities. Moreover, the two portable classrooms, gated playground, and two storage containers owned by Reading and Beyond are already existing facilities on the property.
None of the exceptions to Categorical Exemptions set forth in the CEQA Guidelines, Section 15300.2 apply to the project. Furthermore, the proposed project is not expected to have a significant effect on the environment. A categorical exemption, as noted above, has been prepared for the project and the area is not environmentally sensitive.
County Clerk
Fresno
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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