The Mered City Council met on Monday, August 3, 2026 at 6:00 PM in the City Council Chamber. The meeting included a closed session, a special presentation from the Fire Department on independence Day response, ceremonial matters, a consent calendar, multiple action items on a proposed sales tax measure, property tax sharing, grants, highway projects, traffic signals, and public art, as well as business items on board appointments. The council heard extensive public comments on high-speed rail, the proposed sales tax, and bike safety, among other topics. A brief technical disruption caused a recess from 8:01 PM to 8:17 PM, after which online access was restored and the meeting resumed.
And just for the record, there's no one in the audience, nor registered to speak on these items. We're going to begin today with an invitation from Debbie Croft from Alpha Pregnancy Center, Merced, and after that, uh Councilmember Harris will lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Ms. Croft. Good evening. Would you bow with me on prayer, please? Dear Lord God, we thank you for your great love, your wisdom, your grace, and for life and breath. We ask that you meet with us this evening to give guidance in the discussions that take place and in the decisions that are made. I thank you for the people of Merced who care and who serve who want to bring meaningful change to our city. And I ask for your help and direction as we work for good for our community, for the people of the city of Mercy. Father, thank you that you care about us and everything we do. Go before us now. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Please join me in the pledge. Ready, begin the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. Underground, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Okay, agenda item D roll call. Councilmember DuPont. Present. Tao. Present. Harris. Present. Smith? Present. Zhang. Here. Mayor Pro Tim Boyle. Here. And Mayor Serato. Present. Mayor, I'd like to remind the audience that if they wish to address the city council, they may submit a green request of speak form and request to speak in one of the following ways. Complete a green request to speak card available at the back of the council chamber and submit it to the deputy city clerk before the item is called, preferably before the meeting begins. Scan the QR code corresponding to your preferred language, English, Hmong, or Spanish, located behind the seats in the council chamber, and follow the instructions.gov. And individuals participating virtually by phone must provide a valid phone number so staff can identify the caller during the meeting. Please be patient as this is a new process and there may be some disruptions or issues. Staff will do their best to ensure everyone gets an opportunity to speak. Comments received before the deadline will be sent to 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 they will also be posted on the city's website. Material may be emailed to City Clerk at City of Merced.gov and any correspondence received after one PM will be distributed to the City Council and retained for the official record. Also for those audience members who wish to have Spanish among translation services, please let our interpreters know. If you are participating virtually by phone, please indicate that as you register to speak. Good evening, Mayor and Council. Casey Wilson, Fire Chief. Thank you for the opportunity to present about our Independence Day response and enforcement efforts. So we have a short presentation for you to outline how our day went. So coming up to the 4th of July, we did some education outreach efforts. We focused on social media posts via Facebook and Instagram. Most of those were static posts.