Arias Wins Battle Against Downtown 7-Eleven. It’s Closing.

The shelves are bare at the downtown Fresno 7-Eleven on Tulare Street near City Hall. Several “out of order” signs hang from its beverage dispensaries.

There will be no more Slurpees and rollers, at least in the near future.

An employee at the downtown location said Thursday would be the last day. The woman did not give her name and said any further comment would have to come from corporate 7-Eleven in Dallas.

The company did not respond to GV Wire’s request for comment.

The beverage dispenser is “out of order” at the downtown 7-Eleven on Tuesday, July 25, 2023. (GV Wire/David Taub)

Arias Complained About the Location

The location at 2630 Tulare Street had been the subject of complaints by Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias. He publicly complained about the location across the street from City Hall, at the Jan. 19, 2023 city council meeting.

Police responded to the 7-Eleven more than 280 times in a 12-month period ending this January.

At the time, Arias — who represents downtown Fresno — said the 7-Eleven was “a textbook case” of a location not living up to its permit to operate. He cited incidents of drug use, human waste left behind, and loitering by transients.

“It doesn’t surprise me, given the lack of operational security that the establishment has been able to execute,” Arias told GV Wire.

Arias said the 7-Eleven was granted the rare right to sell single-use alcohol but did not live up to its conditional use permit.

“I think it’s in the best interest of the neighborhood and the city to ensure that the operator doesn’t continue to, on a daily basis, violate the conditional use permit and become a nuisance in the neighborhood and city,” Arias said.

The downtown 7-Eleven is set to close. (GV Wire/David Taub)

Landlord: Operator Could Have Done Better

The store is owned by the 7-Eleven corporation and leases its space.

A spokesperson for 7-Eleven’s landlord, P Street Partners, said they are “optimistic” about finding a solution to the “nuisances.”

“I don’t have any direct knowledge as to exactly what they did or didn’t do. But records of police calls would indicate that they probably could have done a much better job as operators,” the spokesperson said.