Please note that as of January 3, 2012, the Merced Vision 2015 General Plan (adopted in 1997) has been replaced by the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan, which was adopted by the City Council on January 3, 2012. Please see the page entitled Merced Vision 2030 General Plan for the final adopted document. Below for information on the General Plan adoption process which ran from 2005 to 2012, the Environmental Impact Report for the General Plan, and other documents available for download. (The latest information is at the top of the page and the documents for download are at the bottom, arranged in folders according to topic.)

Merced Vision 2030 General Plan (Adopted by the City Council)

(January 3, 2012)

After a continued public hearing on January 3, 2012, the Merced City Council adopted the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan in accordance with Option 2. Option 2 involves a growth boundary of 28,576 acres. Details on the Options can be seen in the administrative report prepared for the January 3, 2012, City Council meeting in the folder for the Jan 3 meeting below. The adopted resolutions, which contain information about the latest changes to the General Plan text from the August 2010 draft available below, Land Use Diagram, and EIR, are available for download on this page in the first folder below. A final version of the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan (with all the revisions) is available on the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan page. As of June 2012, printed copies and CD-ROMs are not yet available but will become available (price to be determined) in the coming months. If you have any questions about the General Plan, please feel free to call the City Planning Division at 209-385-6858.

City Council Public Hearing

(Sept. 19, Oct. 17, & Nov. 7, 2011, and January 3, 2012)

A public hearing before the Merced City Council was held on Monday, September 19, 2011 to consider a recommendation by the Planning Commission on the certification of the Final EIR and adoption of the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan. The City Council asked for staff to prepare two additional options for them to consider--one would remove from the growth boundary the Community Plan Area known as "Mission Lakes" in southwest Merced and another would remove both Mission Lakes and another Community Plan Area known as "Castle Farms" in northwest Merced. The item was then continued to October 17, 2011.

All three options (including the original recommendation from the Planning Commission) were considered by the City Council at their continued public hearing on October 17, 2011. After the public hearing, the City Council adopted the Final Environmental Impact Report in accordance with Option 2 (removing both Castle Farms and Mission Lakes) by a 4-3 vote. The City Council then took several votes on adoption of the General Plan and Land Use Diagram but were unable to achieve a majority vote. The City Council then voted to continue the item to the City Council meeting of November 7, 2011.

On November 7, 2011, the City Council held a continued public hearing on the General Plan. By a 4-3 vote, the City Council directed staff to prepare a modified Option 2, which would remove the rural residential neighborhoods outside the current City Limits, east of McKee (south of Black Rascal Creek and north of Stretch Road) from the Sphere of Influence boundary. (These areas had been included in the Sphere of Influence since the 1997 adoption of the current General Plan.) The public hearing was then continued to Tuesday, January 3, 2012.

The City Council agendas and administrative reports are available on the City Council's agenda page. Copies of the administrative reports (one each for Sept 19, Oct 17, Nov 7, and Jan 3) are also available for download below. Because of the size of the documents, it is recommended that you download the report itself and then the individual attachments of the report, which are also available below, if needed. Please refer to the January 3, 2012 administrative report (the first folder below) for the latest information and the most up-to-date attachments. (The previous reports and their original attachments are still available below for historic purposes, but the latest information is contained in the Jan 3 report.)

Planning Commission Recommends Adoption of the General Plan

(July 20, 2011)

A public hearing before the Merced Planning Commission was held on July 20, 2011 to consider a recommendation to the City Council on the certification of the Final EIR and adoption of the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan. After the Planning Commission public hearing, the Planning Commission made a recommendation on the certification of the EIR by a 5-0-2 vote (5 ayes, 2 absent); adoption of the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan by a 5-0-2 vote (5 ayes, 2 absent); and adoption of 5 different sectors of the Land Use Diagram by 5 separate votes of 4-0-1-2 (4 ayes, 1 abstain, 2 absent). The Planning Commission staff report, staff presentation, and adopted Resolutions can be downloaded below.

Final EIR Released

(July 8, 2011)

The Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) for the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan will be available starting on July 8, 2011. The FEIR provides a specific response to each comment received during the comment period for the Draft EIR (DEIR), which was from August 24, 2010 to October 22, 2010 (60 days), along with changes to the DEIR based on the comments and the mitigation monitoring program. The FEIR is available for download below either as a complete document or by individual sections. Please note that these are large files and may take a long time to download depending on the speed of your internet connection--we appreciate your patience.

The FEIR may also be reviewed at the City Clerk’s office and the Planning Division office at 678 West 18th Street, Merced during normal business hours, generally Monday through Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., as well as at the Merced County Library—Main Branch at 2100 O Street, during their normal operating hours. All persons interested in obtaining printed copies of the DEIR for a $51 reproduction cost, the Technical Appendices for an additional cost of $48, and/or the FEIR for a $60 reproduction cost are invited to contact the Merced City Planning Division at the address indicated above. Copies are also available of the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan for a reproduction cost of $60. The first copy of the General Plan, DEIR, FEIR, and Technical Appendices on CD-ROM is available free of charge to any individual or group (there will be a $5 reproduction cost for each additional CD). In order to encourage “green” practices, the public is strongly encouraged to obtain a CD of the above documents instead of printed copies. Please feel free to call the Planning Department at (209) 385-6858 for additional information.

Draft General Plan Document and Draft EIR Released for Public Review

(August 24, 2010)

Quad-Knopf, under contract with the City of Merced, has recently completed the Public Review Draft of the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan along with a Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan. The project involves an update of the City of Merced’s General Plan. California state law requires each city and county to adopt a general plan for all the physical development of the county or city, and any land outside its boundaries which bears relation to its planning. The General Plan will include Urban Expansion, Land Use, Transportation & Circulation, Public Facilities & Services, Urban Design, Open Space, Conservation & Recreation, Sustainable Development, Housing (being updated as a separate process), Noise and Safety Elements. The expansion of the City’s growth boundary will define the limits for extending City services and infrastructure so as to accommodate new development anticipated within the 20 year time-frame of the General Plan. The current growth boundary or Specific Urban Development Plan (SUDP) contains approximately 20,000 acres and the current Sphere of Influence (SOI) contains approximately 33,700 acres. The proposed SUDP/SOI (now combined into one) contains 33,463 acres. Policies in the proposed General Plan limit leap-frog development and provide for an orderly transition from rural to urban land uses.

The General Plan, Draft EIR, and reference documents may be reviewed at the City Clerk’s office and the Planning Division office at 678 West 18th Street, Merced during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., as well as at the Merced County Library—Main Branch at 2100 O Street, during their normal operating hours.

All persons interested in obtaining printed copies of the Draft General Plan for a reproduction cost of $60, the DEIR for a $51 reproduction cost, and the Technical Appendices for an additional cost of $48 are invited to contact the Merced City Planning Division at the address indicated above. The first copy of the General Plan, DEIR, and Technical Appendices on CD-ROM is available free of charge to any individual or group (there will be a $5 reproduction cost for each additional CD) or the documents may be downloaded from the City’s website below. In order to encourage “green” practices, the public is strongly encouraged to obtain a CD of the above documents instead of printed copies or to download the documents below. Please be aware that the documents in their entirety are very large and may take a long time to download, so downloadable files of the individual chapters of each document are also available below.

60-Day Public Comment Period on Draft EIR--Closed

(August 24-October 22, 2010)

The City elected to have an extended comment period of 60 days, instead of the required 45 days. The 60-day public review period for the DEIR began on Tuesday, August 24, 2010 and ran through Friday, October 22, 2010. The comment period is now closed.

Additional Information

As more information on the General Plan Update process becomes available, it will be added to this webpage, so please check here for updates on any upcoming meetings or draft documents. Please see the General Plan Update--Historic Information page for information on the General Plan Update prior to August 2010. If you would like more information about the Update, please call the Planning Division at (209) 385-6858. If you would like to be added to the mailing list for General Plan meetings, please submit your name and physical mailing address (not an email address) to planningweb@cityofmerced.org.

View information on the City's current General Plan.

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