📘 THE FULL GOVERNMENT-FORMAT CEDS DOCUMENT
(This is the format required by the U.S. Economic Development Administration, adapted for Merced.)
CEDS 2025–2030 — Merced County
A Distributed, Dual-Engine Rural Development Strategy
1. SUMMARY BACKGROUND
Merced County is a rural, majority working-class, majority Latino county composed of distinct communities:
Merced
Los Banos
Livingston
Delhi
Winton
Atwater
Dos Palos
Planada
Le Grand
Franklin–Beachwood
The county contains two major economic assets:
1. UC Merced — a federally funded research university with high R&D potential
2. Castle Commerce Center — a major logistics and advanced manufacturing hub
Yet the county faces:
severe housing affordability mismatch
limited behavioral-health capacity
workforce shortages
small-business fragility
internal displacement pressures
inequitable infrastructure distribution in rural towns
low-wage employment patterns
A new CEDS must balance economic growth with community stabilization.
2. SWOT ANALYSIS
Strengths
UC Merced research & talent
Castle’s airfield and industrial zones
Agricultural heritage & supply chains
Diverse working-class labor force
Strategic location between Bay Area & Central Valley
Weaknesses
BHRS instability
Underinvestment in rural towns
Inadequate transit
Housing mismatched to local wages
Workforce gaps in trades and logistics
Opportunities
Water/Ag-climate innovation
UC Merced tech transfer
Advanced manufacturing at Castle
Renewable energy systems
Countywide apprenticeship programs
Threats
Outside displacement pressures
Bay Area income spillover
Climate/flood impacts on Eastside towns
Behavioral-health crisis
Small business closures during development
3. GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Goal 1: Community Stabilization Precedes Growth
Expand behavioral-health services countywide
Build stabilization facilities
Tie housing affordability to local wages
Improve rural infrastructure
Protect small businesses
Goal 2: UC Merced as a Countywide Innovation Engine
Create research-to-career pipelines
Expand community-based education
Integrate UC Merced with all towns
Create countywide tech-transfer benefits
Goal 3: Castle as an Industrial & Logistics Engine
Attract advanced manufacturing
Local hiring requirements
Create rural workforce ladders
Build trades & aviation tech programs
Goal 4: Agriculture + Science Integration
Ag-tech innovation in Los Banos, Delhi, Livingston, Dos Palos
Water-tech pilots
Climate & flood resilience
Strengthen small farms
Goal 5: Countywide Labor Partnerships (AFSCME + employers)
Create a Stability Compact
Expand apprenticeships
Establish wage floors tied to cost of living
Improve community-worker pathways
4. STRATEGIC PROJECTS
Project A: Rural Corridor Workforce Centers
(Los Banos, Winton, Livingston, Delhi)
Project B: Behavioral Health Expansion
Stabilization site + mobile crisis units
Project C: UC Merced–Castle Innovation District
Project D: Local-Hire Manufacturing Zoning at Castle
Project E: Eastside Resilience Infrastructure
(Planada, Le Grand)
Project F: Small Business Preservation Fund
5. IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
Year 1–2
BHRS audit
Housing ordinance reform
Create Rural Corridor Workforce Centers
Launch UC + AFSCME + Merced College workforce council
Begin UC–Castle Innovation Council
Year 3–5
Operationalize stabilization facilities
Expand Castle manufacturing zone
Begin Ag-Tech clusters in Los Banos and Livingston
Launch countywide digital apprenticeship platform
6. EVALUATION METRICS
Local hiring % increases
BHRS wait times decrease
Housing affordability index
Small business retention rate
R&D dollars secured
Eastside flood resilience upgrades
Workforce certification completions
7. ECONOMIC RESILIENCE
Disaster planning for Eastside
Water and climate innovation sector
Sustainable agriculture industry
Long-term funding for behavioral health
Anti-displacement housing policies