William Saroyan house at 2729 W. Griffith Way. (Source: Fresno Bee)
FRESNO (The Fresno Bee) — The central Fresno house where famed Armenian-American author William Saroyan spent the last 17 years of his life may soon be turned into a museum to host literary and cultural events.
The simple stucco tract house at 2729 W. Griffith Way, just west of Cooper Middle School, was purchased last summer by the Intellectual Renaissance Foundation based in Studio City, according to Fresno County public records.
Armenian news agencies on Monday reported early plans from the foundation to renovate the 1,228-square-foot house built in 1964. The organization belongs to Artur Janibekyan, a Moscow-based media mogul born in Armenia who is a big supporter of Armenian arts and culture.
The house, which has had three different owners since Saroyan’s death in 1981, was a rental home for years and attracted squatters. Last summer, the boarded, vacant house fell into foreclosure and was scheduled to be sold at auction, but it was purchased before the public sale, said Berj Apkarian, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Armenia in Fresno.
Public records show Brian J. and Fatima B. Mosby of Fresno bought the property in May and sold it to the foundation in August.
The Fresno consulate has been collaborating with the foundation since last year to create a new museum and cultural center for “people to truly enjoy what William Saroyan represented as an author, as a writer and as an artist,â€
