Take a guess: Duarte vs. Gray suddenly going down to the wire

While the local Registrar of Voters Mel Levey told local television news reporters that the utmost care is being taken in counting and reporting the remaining ballots from the Nov. 5 election, and that some patience is needed, attention turned to the latest results that were dropped on Tuesday night.

And it was a doozy for those watching the hotly contested race for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives between incumbent Republican Rep. John Duarte of Modesto and Democratic challenger Adam Gray of Merced. For the past week or so, Duarte had been leading Gray in the tally by some 2,000 votes, but on Tuesday that margin was cut to a mere 227 votes, according to the California Secretary of State website.

Duarte had a reported 50.1 percent of the vote, or 100,885 votes, compared to Gray’s 49.9 percent, or 100,658 votes.

The congressman has been leading in votes from nearby Madera and Fresno counties, but not as much in Merced, Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties. According to some media reports, Merced County’s remaining ballots could end up being the final deciding factor in the naming of a winner. On Election Night, several vote centers in the county were crowded with last-minute voters, especially in Merced and Atwater. There’s still an estimated 3,182 unprocessed votes left to count, according to the Registrar.

The next vote update — expected by 5 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 21 — will come after the Times press run this week.

County elections officials must certify the vote by Dec. 3.

City Council races

It still looks likely that Mike Harris (District 3) and Sarah Boyle (District 5) will win their races and seats on the Merced City Council. And, at this point, Darin DuPont leads Walter Smith in the District 1 race by 191 votes.

It’s closer in Atwater where Kalisa Rochester leads Adrian Lopez Juarez by only 87 votes in the District 2 City Council race.

And in Livingston, the race for mayor was extremely extra close. Just 18 votes separates the leader, incumbent Mayor Joe Moran, from Councilmember Jason Roth. 1,406 to 1,388 votes, respectively.

City Hall Update

Ahead of new leaders being sworn in later this year, the current makeup of the Merced City Council appears to be taking care of a lot of business.

On Monday night, city leaders approved a number of ordinances in their final versions, as well as moving forward on a noteworthy plan to create a “natural trail” in the western portion of Fahrens Park within the flood basin along Rascal Creek between Buena Vista and Yosemite Avenue.

According to Christopher Jensen, the city’s Parks and Recreation director, the natural trail will serve biking and running enthusiasts as opposed to already existing flat pedestrian routes at Fahrens. The plan is modeled after a similar trail in Modesto along the Tuolumne River near Highway 99. It was brought to the attention of city staff by the Exchequer Mountain Bike Club.

Jensen said the concept is to have the trail open to the community, but also available to reserve for special events, such as races and runs on natural terrain. In the future, there is also the possibility of developing a bike park in the area west of the basin, he said.

City voted 5-1 on Monday night to designate the area for planning and development. Councilman Fue Xiong voted NO.

The trail lines will be planned and all required work presented to the Council for consideration over the next several months. The natural trail system within the basin is the next chapter of development in Fahrens Park as a regional park within the city limits.

In other Council news:

• Leaders adopted an ordinance regarding “Camping and Storage of Personal Property” to create restrictions on camping in public spaces, including parks and near schools, within the City of Merced. Penalties would start at $50 for a first-time offense. Multiple offenses would enable higher fines, bans, and the possibility of up to 30 days in jail.
• Leaders adopted an ordinance on “Recreational Vehicle Parking Regulations” that prohibits on-street parking of RVs from all residential zones in the City of Merced. Penalties would apply, but owners could apply for temporary passes valid for 72 hours.
• Leaders adopted an ordinance to allow the City Council the ability to consider alternative sites for retail cannabis business applications that are under appeal, and to include a local ownership element for cannabis retail permits going forward.
• City leaders decided to slow down the adoption of, and send back to staff, a planned ordinance concerning “Vacant Building Limitations and Standards” in the Merced Municipal Code.

Councilman Shane Smith said he agreed that vacant buildings in the city are posing problems, but he had questions regarding the impact of the proposed ordinance on the city’s Code Enforcement arm, fines and fees listed in the document, and public safety concerns.

Local developer Robert Dylina, who spoke from the public podium, called for community feedback on the subject.

The ordinance is expected to come back to the Council within 60 days.