The Merced City Council unanimously approved an emergency ordinance Monday that halts the city’s use of street-closure permits for 45 days.
The move will allow city officials time to rewrite an ordinance that officials said has not been enforced for more than a decade, until recently. The ordinance mandated a 60-day gap between overlapping events that require street closures within 800 feet of a recent closure.
City Attorney Craig J. Cornwell said the urgent temporary ordinance followed the city’s enforcement of its existing rules earlier this month, which exposed “gaps and inconsistencies” in the policy’s framework.
Enforcement of the ordinance drew backlash when popular events like the Noche de Mercado, organized by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, were unable to secure permits. The event has since been moved to Bob Hart Square and is scheduled for May 7 from 6-9 p.m.
City Manager Scott McBride said the city’s current ordinance has failed in real life, not just on paper.
“There’s a reason why no one followed the ordinance for a decade,” McBride said. “It was just too hard.”
Staff ran into the same problem when they tried to enforce it, he said, since there are new residents downtown that were not there a decade ago, and many businesses complained about closures last year.
McBride said the city now has to deal with competing pressures downtown, including businesses, residents and event organizers.
“We’ve got to make sure our business clientele is served,” he said. “We also have residents downtown now that we didn’t have years ago, so it’s a difficult situation.”
He called the emergency ordinance a practical step that gives the city breathing room while it works on a replacement.
What the emergency ordinance does
The emergency ordinance pauses new approvals but leaves a narrow path for some events to move forward if they meet safety and staffing requirements.
“The proposed 45-day moratorium pauses new approvals while allowing limited safety-based administrative exceptions that give staff time to return with a clear, consistent structure for parades, community events, and other uses of public spaces,” Cornwell said.
The emergency ordinance took effect immediately following the council’s vote, Cornwell said. He also said state law allows the city to extend the moratorium for a year if needed.
During the 45-day pause, city staff can still approve some street closures.
Cornwell said those approvals are supposed to be limited. They must not create a material impact on traffic, emergency access, or public safety. They also cannot happen within 30 days of another closure in the same or adjacent area unless the city manager makes a written finding that enough spacing exists.
Any proposal must also fit within the city’s current staffing and public safety capacity and must be reviewed by planning, police, fire, engineering and public works, Cornwell said.
Effects on businesses, events
Downtown businesses want access and parking protected. Event organizers want rules that do not choke off community gatherings.
Patricia Pratt, a Merced resident and downtown business owner who said she helps coordinate street closures, told the council she supports changing the ordinance.
“I am in support of changing the ordinance to make it easier and more accessible to community groups that are trying to do wonderful things in Merced,” Pratt said. “With this new proposed 30 days, I think that’s a step in the right direction.”
Still, Pratt said the city has to be clear and fair about how it handles exceptions.
“What concerns me is that the exceptions are being determined by city staff and managers, and I don’t understand the criteria for that,” she said.
She pointed to recent Canal Street closures that she said were not spaced 30 days apart.
“I would like to note that the street was closed on Canal on March 21, April 18, and now May 16,” Pratt said. “None of those are 30 days apart.”
Pratt also said that one recent event tied up the street too early and hurt nearby businesses before it even began.
“The street was closed at 10 a.m. for an event that started at 6 p.m.,” she said.
She said downtown events are supposed to help businesses, not block them off.
“If people cannot access our businesses for the general public, we’re hurting downtown,” Pratt said.
Earvin Mendoza, who also spoke during public comment, pushed the city to make room for cultural events downtown. He said it has become more important since the area was recognized as a multicultural arts district.
“It’s very important for us to be able to continue to establish that we are very much trying to create cultural events,” Mendoza said.
The ordinance the city has been trying to enforce in recent months has done the opposite, he said, adding that he sees the emergency change as progress.
“I think we’re making a move in the right direction,” he said.
Mayor Matt Serratto said the city is trying to protect and support downtown businesses and community events.
Questions also came up about the newly renovated Bob Hart Square and whether it falls under the same rules. Cornwell said the city plans to work through those questions, too, as it updates how it handles events and public space rentals more broadly.
“We need to work in that area to make them all easy to understand, up-to-date, and also in the interest of public safety,” Cornwell said.
But Christopher Jensen, the city’s director of parks and community services, said the street closure ordinance does not control whether Bob Hart Square can be rented.
Councilmember Darin DuPont said the city should use this stretch to better coordinate with the public and make better use of the square.
“We’ve spent a lot of money updating Bob Hart Square and moving some of these events from our public right away and hopefully utilizing Bob Hart Square,” Dupont said.