Dossetti will not run again for Merced City Council

Councilman Tony Dossetti announced Thursday he will not seek re-election in November.

The retired Merced police chief, who has been on the Merced City Council since 2011, said he made the decision “some time ago,” according to a statement issued to the Sun-Star.

“The goals I set during my campaign were achieved, but there are challenges ahead for my remaining time in office and for the future City Council,” the 66-year-old said in the statement.

Dossetti lives in the newly designed District 5, which is generally bounded by G Street and Highway 59 from Bear Creek to Yosemite Avenue.

Merced has moved to district elections for the first time this year, and Districts 1, 3 and 5 will be up this year. The other three will be up in 2018.

District 5 has drawn one candidate so far in Daniel Sabzehzar, 21, the director of marketing for the UC Merced Blum Center and a biochemistry and public health student.

The filing period to appear on the ballot ends Aug. 12, according to the Merced County Registrar of Voters Office.

Dossetti said his primary focus during his term on the council was to bring jobs to Merced, saying a family’s financial health has a direct effect on reducing crime and poverty rates, as well as people’s general health.

“I am happy to report that not one city employee has been laid off during my time in office,” he said. “Employees have received raises and we are now adding positions, especially in the police and fire departments.”

He noted UC Merced’s plan to pour $1 billion into the campus and a 77-acre shopping center in the works in the city. “There are many reasons to be optimistic about Merced’s future,” he said.

This story was originally published April 7, 2016 at 3:45 PM with the headline "Dossetti will not run again for Merced City Council."