Questions arise over Merced HSR committee

Plans to design a stop for California high-speed rail are expected to ramp up in the coming months, and elected officials and residents are questioning whether the city has done enough to put together a complete steering committee.

The Ad Hoc High-Speed Rail Citizens Advisory Committee has been meeting about once a month since December. The seven members are a combination of city employees and local residents, according to city staff.

The Merced City Council got an update from city staff this week about the plan, and could be asked to approve a consultant for planning at the next council meeting. The committee interviewed the potential consultants.

But questions have arisen about whether the committee had enough technical expertise to make that call. The committee included administrators, insurance agents and city staff, but no one from the Development Services Department.

Mayor Pro Tem Josh Pedrozo said the group that did the interviews was accomplished and intelligent, but none of them had experience in city planning. “I think that the committee was lacking a strong technical (expertise),” he said.

He also noted that no representative from UC Merced was part of the interview process.

The city’s Principal Planner Bill King said he looked over the applications of the potential consultants, but was not part of the interview process.

Development Services Director David Gonzalves said he was not involved either. “I haven’t seen the proposals personally,” he said.

Daniel Kazakos, president of the Merced Main Street Association, called it “absurd” that his group of downtown merchants was not invited to the table. After all, the stop is proposed near 16th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way.

“I was very upset that they did not include us in those conversations,” he said.

Frank Quintero, Merced’s director of economic development, denied that the committee lacked expertise, saying this consultant will be in charge of community outreach, economic development and land use.

Quintero said the High-Speed Rail Authority is looking for a separate firm for designing, building and construction of the rail and related structures.

The council voted last fall to accept a $600,000 grant to create studies and plans regarding transportation, financial and land-use issues that come with Merced’s proposed downtown station. The city’s contribution includes $200,000 in matching funds, and an estimated $50,000 in staff time.

Quintero went on to say the committee has made an effort to include the Main Street Association and Downtown Neighborhood Association, a group of homeowners, in future meetings. Staff also said they expect UC Merced to be more involved in the coming months.

Mayor Stan Thurston said he didn’t think it was unusual for the city’s principal planner or director of development to be left out of the interviews. Their part of the planning will come after the consultant is picked, he said.

“As far as who was on the committee, I think it was an educated, well-rounded committee,” he said.

Thurston said he’s skeptical of the state’s plans, calling high-speed rail a “boondoggle.” But, he said, the city needs to move forward with planning.

“If by some miracle it does happen, Merced has to be ready for it,” he said.

This story was originally published August 21, 2015 at 7:37 PM with the headline "Questions arise over Merced HSR committee."