Copper River Ranch a golf community still growing

Copper River Ranch today

Where people go nearby

• Woodward Park

  Friant Rd at Highway 41, about 2 to 3 miles south

  A 300-acre City park with the Shinzen Friendship Garden, a lake and disc golf, linked to Copper River by the Eaton Trail. It has hosted the CIF state cross country championships since 1987. See our Woodward Park guide.

• Lewis S. Eaton Trail

  Trailhead on E. Copper Ave.

  The parkway's main paved trail runs between Highway 41 and the River Center. It is open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. April through October, and until 7 p.m. November through March.

• Copper River Country Club

  2140 E. Clubhouse Dr.

  The clubhouse, tennis and pickleball courts and 25-meter pool are for members, but the club also books weddings and private events on its lawns and in its banquet rooms.

• Copper River Marketplace

  Maple Ave and Copper Ave

  Dining and a brewpub on the community's south edge.

• Coke Hallowell Center for River Studies

  11605 Old Friant Rd

  The River Center at the trail's north end has exhibits, a nature trail, canoe trips and a historic ranch house.

• Clovis Community College

  10309 N. Willow Ave., across Willow

  The 110-acre campus opened in 2007 as Willow International and became California's 113th community college in 2015.

• Ball Ranch

  Friant Rd north of Willow Ave

  358 acres of river habitat, open to the public since 2024 with seasonal hours.

What the homes are like

Lots

Mostly detached single-family homes, plus homesites along the golf course. Gated sections named in listings include Tuscan Bluffs, Monte Verdi Estates, Club View Collection, Willow Heights, Villa Palazzo and Modena.

Age and style

Home building began in 2004, so most houses date from 2004 or later. Builder styles include modern, farmhouse and Spanish at Trumark and Modern Spanish, Formal Italian, Modern Farmhouse and Modern Prairie at Granville's Villa Palazzo. Custom homes also appear in listings.

Builders

Trumark Homes is selling Ariette (1,553 to 2,072 sq ft) and Madison (1,684 to 3,152 sq ft, with quick move-ins) from a 272-home plan announced in 2024. Granville Homes lists Modena, Canvas on the Bluffs, Villa Palazzo and Villa Alicante (Estates); Villa Palazzo is a gated enclave along the 6th hole with plans from about 2,650 to 4,840 sq ft.

HOA and taxes

HOA dues and any Mello-Roos or CFD assessments vary by tract and are not posted on the builder pages. Check each listing.

City or county

The community is inside the City of Fresno, which annexed it after the 2003 approval and took over its wastewater plant in 2008. Some listings still carry Clovis addresses, so the address line is not a guide to the city limit.

Fire hazard zone

CAL FIRE's April 2025 maps placed parts of the neighborhoods near Friant Road and Willow Avenue, including Monte Verdi Estates, in a new moderate Fire Hazard Severity Zone, and the City of Fresno adopted that map on Aug. 13, 2026. Sellers in the zone must disclose it to buyers. Check any address on CAL FIRE's map.

Getting around, and schools

Freeways

Friant Road runs along the west edge and south to the Highway 41 interchange at Blackstone (exit 135). Highway 41 north leads through Coarsegold and Oakhurst to Yosemite's South Entrance, and Millerton Lake is farther up Friant Road.

Distances

In a straight line from the golf course: about 5.8 miles to Old Town Clovis, 8.8 miles to Fresno Yosemite International Airport and 11.6 miles to downtown Fresno. Driving distances are longer.

Shopping

Copper River Marketplace sits at Maple and Copper on the community's south edge, and the plan keeps 60 acres for commercial space. For the wider area, see our Clovis area guide.

Schools

Clovis Unified serves the community. Schools include James S. Fugman Elementary (K-6), 10825 N. Cedar Ave., and the Clovis North Educational Center at Willow and International avenues, home to Granite Ridge Intermediate (7-8) and Clovis North High (9-12). See our Clovis Unified guide. Boundaries change, so confirm any address with the district.

Copper River Ranch Copper Ave Friant Rd Willow Ave 1Copper River Country Club 2Copper River Marketplace

1. 1Copper River Country Club
2. 2Copper River Marketplace

From vineyard to fairways to a planned community

1. 1850A Fort Washington ferry base is set up near the river; the 1852 flood washes it away.
2. 1890The Williams-Phillips House, Riverview Ranch, is built on Old Friant Road.
3. 1995The 18-hole golf course opens in the spring.
4. 2003The City Council approves the project and certifies its environmental report.
5. 2004Home construction begins, and Fugman Elementary opens in August.
6. 2007The Clovis North Educational Center and the Willow International campus open.
7. 2008The City takes over the North Fresno Wastewater Reclamation Facility on Nov. 25.
8. 2021The City certifies the updated 815.5-acre plan on Dec. 9.
9. 2023Copper River Marketplace holds its ribbon cutting on March 3.
10. 2024Trumark Homes announces 272 homes in January, and the club's operators buy it late in the year.

Copper River Ranch, by the numbers

Stories from the neighborhood

• The developer was a football All-American

  Bill Tatham Sr. was an All-American at San Jose State in 1951. He later built a large private nursing-home business, owned part of the Utah Jazz, and owned the WFL's Portland Thunder and the USFL Outlaws, who played their last season as the Arizona Outlaws in 1985.

• It came with its own sewer plant

  The developer had to build the North Fresno Wastewater Reclamation Facility as a condition of approval. The City of Fresno took it over on Nov. 25, 2008.

• The copper behind the street name

  Copper Avenue leads east to the old Fresno Copper Mine. A Glasgow-based company once owned it, and in 1906 news that the mine was worthless caused a stir on the Glasgow Stock Exchange. The ore ran only about 2% copper.

• Friant Road was once Highway 41

  From 1934 to 1941, Friant Road south of here, from Herndon Avenue to Lanes Road, carried State Route 41. The stretch past Copper River, now the community's west edge, served as its detour in 1940–41 after the Lanes Bridge deck failed.