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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Merced City Council Special Meeting: District Two Appointment, December 2, 2025

City Council & Commissions — Tuesday, December 2, 2025

BodyMerced, California

SessionCity Council & Commissions

DateTuesday, December 2, 2025

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:37:49

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:00

We're going to call our special uh December 2nd of 2025 meeting of the Merced City Council to order.

0:07

We're going to begin with a the Pledge of Allegiance.

0:09

Everybody could please stand.

0:10

Our city engineer Darrell Jordan is going to lead us all on the pledge.

0:13

If you guys could face the flag.

0:14

And uh Mr.

0:15

Jordan, turn it over to you, sir.

0:23

And to the Republic for which it stands.

0:35

Thank you, sir.

0:37

Okay, gender item B roll call.

0:39

Councilmember DuPont.

0:41

Present.

0:42

Harris?

0:43

Present.

0:43

Smith.

0:44

Present.

0:45

Jean?

0:45

Here.

0:46

Mayor Pro Tem Boyle?

0:47

Here.

0:47

And Mayor Serrado.

0:48

Here.

0:48

Hey, Mayor, I'd like to remind the audience that if they wish to address the city council, they must submit a green requested speech form located at the podium in the back of the chamber.

0:56

Additionally, citizens can submit public comment to the city council electronically no later than 1 p.m.

1:01

on the day of the meeting.

1:02

Comments received before the deadline will be sent to the city council and will be part of the record and will be mentioned as part of the written petitions and communications portion of the agenda and will be posted on the city's website.

1:11

Material may be emailed to City Clerk at City of Merced.gov and any correspondence received after the 1 p.m.

1:18

deadline will be distributed to the city council and retained for the official record.

1:22

Agenda item C public comments.

1:26

Okay, thank you, Jennifer.

1:27

So uh now at this time uh we're gonna have public comments.

1:30

So if anybody would like to comment on the item that's on the agenda tonight, which is uh the district two appointment, uh you're welcome to submit a green request to speak form, as I think some people have already.

1:42

Um and if you'd like to, please feel free to do so, and we'll call the speakers.

1:45

Okay, Mayor, we do have six requests to speak forms.

1:48

So we'll have um let's do two minutes each.

1:51

Okay.

1:54

Okay, if I can get the first three speakers to the podium to my left.

1:58

Um Felipe Rojas Flores, Isabel Sanchez, and Maria Vargas.

2:04

Thank you, Jen.

2:13

All right, Felipe, welcome, sir.

2:14

Good to see you.

2:18

Good evening, everyone.

2:19

Um just make this as quick as possible, and that's a long night.

2:22

Uh my name is Felipe Rojas Flores.

2:24

I'm a resident at District 2.

2:26

Um, I just kind of want to share some of the history as how we ended up with the district system that we have in place back in 2014.

2:32

MAODEF sent and if I remember correctly, a letter to the council um legal action if they did not transition over to a at district system.

2:42

And in response to that letter, Merced voters pass measure T.

2:47

The reason I share this is because while it's not required that you guys appoint um someone living in District 2 today, I really suggest you do.

2:56

Um I understand there's policy arguments as to appointing a caretaker caretaker appointment, but that caretaker can also be from district two.

3:05

So I highly encourage the council today to appoint someone from district two.

3:11

Thank you.

3:11

Thank you, sir.

3:12

Appreciate your comments.

3:15

Next speaker.

3:21

Isabel Sanchez.

3:23

And then Maria Vargas.

3:28

When your name's called, if you could please come up uh and wait in line.

3:31

So you're no, you're okay.

3:38

Uh the last thing.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Community Engagement██████████████████████████████████████38%

Procedural████████████████16%

Personnel Matters████████████12%

Urban Planning██████████10%

Engineering And Infrastructure██████6%

Transportation Safety█████5%

Parks and Recreation████4%

Water And Wastewater Management██2%

Planning Commission Operations██2%

Summary of Proceedings

Merced City Council Special Meeting: District Two Appointment, December 2, 2025

The Merced City Council held a special meeting on December 2, 2025, beginning at 6:10 PM and adjourning at 7:48 PM, to interview five qualified candidates and appoint a representative to fill the District Two council seat vacancy until the next general municipal election. The meeting featured public comments, candidate presentations and Q&A, council deliberation, and a final vote.

Public Comments & Testimony

Felipe Rojas-Flores, a District Two resident, urged the council to appoint someone who lives in District Two, citing the history of the district system and Measure T.
Isabel Sanchez, a long-time Merced resident, requested that the appointee live in the community and prioritize south side needs, including a grocery store, youth and elderly resources, and pedestrian safety.
Maria Vargas asked for a council member who lives in South Merced and understands local housing, homelessness, lighting, school crosswalks, and other community needs.
Ana Cintron expressed a desire for a representative who will advocate for the south side of Merced.
Maria Calderon, a 40-year resident of South Merced, noted persistent infrastructure issues (water, sewer, narrow roads) and asked that the appointee live in the area to understand these needs.
Ashley Marie Suarez, a policy advocate with Leadership Council, emphasized the importance of public input and urged the council to consider resident comments when making their appointment.

Discussion Items

Candidate Presentations & Q&A: Five candidates—Jody George, Dina Gonzalez, Gloria Keene, Yang Thao, and Tommy Tran—answered questions from the council on their motivations, qualifications, vision for District Two, infrastructure needs, favorite aspects of the district, and closing statements. Candidates highlighted issues such as road repairs, traffic signals, lighting, drainage, parks, public safety, and the need for greater investment in South Merced.
Council Deliberation: Following a recess, council members discussed the candidates. Key points included the importance of appointing someone who lives in District Two (emphasized by Councilmembers Harris, DuPont, Smith, Xiong, Boyle, and Mayor Serratto), the value of experience (especially Planning Commission service), and the ability to hit the ground running. Councilmember Smith strongly supported Yang Thao, citing his detailed knowledge of District Two, Planning Commission background, and endorsement by former council member Deanda. Councilmember Xiong expressed a preference for Dina Gonzalez for her community engagement approach. Mayor Pro Tem Boyle and others leaned toward Yang Thao.

Key Outcomes

Appointment: The council adopted a motion (5-1) to appoint Yang Thao as the District Two council representative, effective until the first Tuesday following the next general municipal election. Councilmember Xiong voted no.
Next Steps: The appointee will be sworn in at a future council meeting or special session (likely before the December 15 regular meeting). The vacancy on the Planning Commission created by Thao’s appointment will need to be filled.
Council Comments: No additional comments were made before adjournment.

Meeting Transcript

We're going to call our special uh December 2nd of 2025 meeting of the Merced City Council to order. We're going to begin with a the Pledge of Allegiance. Everybody could please stand. Our city engineer Darrell Jordan is going to lead us all on the pledge. If you guys could face the flag. And uh Mr. Jordan, turn it over to you, sir. And to the Republic for which it stands. Thank you, sir. Okay, gender item B roll call. Councilmember DuPont. Present. Harris? Present. Smith. Present. Jean? Here. Mayor Pro Tem Boyle? Here. And Mayor Serrado. Here. Hey, Mayor, I'd like to remind the audience that if they wish to address the city council, they must submit a green requested speech form located at the podium in the back of the chamber. Additionally, citizens can submit public comment to the city council electronically no later than 1 p.m. on the day of the meeting. Comments received before the deadline will be sent to the city council and will be part of the record and will be mentioned as part of the written petitions and communications portion of the agenda and will be posted on the city's website. Material may be emailed to City Clerk at City of Merced.gov and any correspondence received after the 1 p.m. deadline will be distributed to the city council and retained for the official record. Agenda item C public comments. Okay, thank you, Jennifer. So uh now at this time uh we're gonna have public comments. So if anybody would like to comment on the item that's on the agenda tonight, which is uh the district two appointment, uh you're welcome to submit a green request to speak form, as I think some people have already. Um and if you'd like to, please feel free to do so, and we'll call the speakers. Okay, Mayor, we do have six requests to speak forms. So we'll have um let's do two minutes each. Okay. Okay, if I can get the first three speakers to the podium to my left. Um Felipe Rojas Flores, Isabel Sanchez, and Maria Vargas. Thank you, Jen. All right, Felipe, welcome, sir. Good to see you. Good evening, everyone. Um just make this as quick as possible, and that's a long night. Uh my name is Felipe Rojas Flores. I'm a resident at District 2. Um, I just kind of want to share some of the history as how we ended up with the district system that we have in place back in 2014. MAODEF sent and if I remember correctly, a letter to the council um legal action if they did not transition over to a at district system. And in response to that letter, Merced voters pass measure T. The reason I share this is because while it's not required that you guys appoint um someone living in District 2 today, I really suggest you do. Um I understand there's policy arguments as to appointing a caretaker caretaker appointment, but that caretaker can also be from district two.

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