Developer Reza Assemi Advances Restoration of 1927 Craycroft Home, Plans Nearby Apartments

Developer Reza Assemi is advancing restoration work on the landmarked Frank J. Craycroft Home, a brick residence built in 1927 along North Palm Avenue in north Fresno, with the carriage house already removed and extensive interior cleanup completed. Assemi’s team found original floors intact and wallpaper still hanging in parts of the house, and he is now working on structural plans to determine what further rehabilitation will be required.

The Craycroft Home was built by Frank J. Craycroft, owner of the Craycroft Brick Company, and sources say the property sat vacant for decades after the Craycroft family sold it in the 1970s or 1980s and the building was subjected to vandalism. Local family member Beverly Knobloch recalled that “going to the home surrounded by figs was a favorite past time,” and she is publicly rooting for Assemi’s restoration effort.

Assemi decided to act after “driving by the property with his daughter,” purchased the house, removed the carriage house and prioritized interior stabilization, saying the home “is still solid.” With structural plans underway, Assemi faces the next phase of work that typically includes formal structural reports, permit submissions and contractor selection; those documents have not been released publicly in the materials reviewed for this story.

Financing and income strategy for the project are being tied to a proposed multi‑family apartment development nearby. Multiple news reports and a social-media post state Assemi plans apartments to help pay for renovations; the social post specifically claims the apartments are planned “on same site,” but most reporting describes the apartment project as being built nearby rather than on the Craycroft parcel itself. GVWire noted that “Finding the right tenant for a nearly century-old brick home in north Fresno is second on the mind of developer Reza Assemi right now,” underscoring that tenancy and financing remain priorities as restoration planning continues.

Key facts that remain unreported include the home’s exact parcel number or street address, the formal landmark designation authority or date, the closing date and purchase price paid by Assemi, and detailed plans for the proposed apartments such as unit count, parking, zoning approvals and financing sources. CraycroftDesign website entries from 2025 document other local restoration projects and permit activity, but those posts do not explicitly connect to the Frank J. Craycroft Home.

Assemi’s immediate next steps are completing structural plans and moving toward whatever city planning and building-permit filings are required; until permit records or detailed site plans are filed, the scope of the apartment project and the official preservation requirements tied to the house’s “landmarked” description remain to be confirmed. The project, if completed as described, would revive a nearly century-old brick landmark on Palm near Sierra and pair historic rehabilitation with new multi-family housing in north Fresno.