Fresno developer Tom Richards steps down from high-speed rail board
Fresno is losing Tom Richards from the high-speed rail board just as the project shifts into track laying, a change with direct stakes for downtown development.
Fresno developer Tom Richards stepped down from the California High-Speed Rail Authority board as the long-delayed rail project moved into a new phase that could shape station-area development, contracts, land use and timelines in Fresno County.
Richards, the chair and CEO of Fresno-based The Penstar Group, had served on the board since 2010 and became board chair in 2020. His departure removes one of Fresno’s most visible local voices from the panel that oversees planning, construction and operation of California’s high-speed rail system, a project that has already altered downtown Fresno and Southwest Fresno and continues to influence private investment around the corridor.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority board was established in 1996 under California Public Utilities Code §185020. In a statement released May 8, agency CEO Ian Choudri thanked Richards and Vice Chair Nancy Miller for their years of leadership and service, while saying the program was transitioning from major civil construction into track laying and rail system delivery.
That transition matters in Fresno County because the next phase of work is where the project’s impact becomes more visible to builders, property owners and city leaders. Decisions about track installation, station-area sequencing and system delivery will continue to affect how downtown Fresno develops around the rail corridor, and how Southwest Fresno absorbs the construction and long-term land-use changes tied to the line.
Gov. Gavin Newsom filled the board vacancies the same day, appointing Steve Kawa and Jason Elliott. Elliott, of San Francisco, has been president of Versus Solutions since 2024. He previously served as deputy chief of staff in Newsom’s office from 2022 to 2024 and as senior counselor from 2019 to 2022, and he also served as chief of staff to San Francisco mayors Ed Lee, London Breed and Mark Farrell.
The appointments signaled a board increasingly aligned with Newsom as the project enters a more technical and politically sensitive phase. For Fresno, Richards’ exit also closes a chapter for a local developer who had worked with city and county leaders on homelessness issues while remaining a prominent advocate for high-speed rail in the Central Valley.
As the authority shifts from concrete work to rail systems, Fresno’s role will depend on who now carries its interests at the table.
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