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Mayor Willie Weatherford believes it is time to rethink how Manteca is building homes to meet the changing housing market realities.
The mayor wants the city to sit down with developers and discuss market conditions, the real housing needs today, and if there are ways of modifying approved subdivisions so that they can meet the needs of more buyers and put those who depend on construction to support their families back to work.
“Before the crash, the largest industry in Manteca was the building trades,” Weatherford said during Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
The mayor noted that the city needs to find ways to work with developers to alter existing maps – specifically lot lines – to accommodate homes in the 1,500- to 1,800-square-foot range to coming up with designs that could allow four-plexes to be built on corners that have private entrances much like a highly successful project in Ripon off Milgeo Way that has the feel and appearance of a single family home.
Weatherford said the goal is to find out from developers how they can meet the new housing market demand and get a way of jump starting the new home construction market that the mayor believes is critical to start whittling away at Manteca’s near record 13.5 percent unemployment rate.
The mayor said the goal is two-fold – to get people back to work to improve the economy as well as make corrections to assure that housing can meet the needs of consumers. He also said if an option is to reduce lot sizes to accommodate smaller homes and less cost to build them and in turn to those buying them, that enhance landscaping strategies could be looked at as well.
Weatherford said he preferred not to get into specifics but emphasized the importance of sitting down with developers to see how the new market realities can be met so more people can get back to work.
Manteca is on target to build 300 homes over the next 11 months but they are mostly targeted to fairly well off buyers who are making a move up purchase and are averaging 2,700 square feet.
Manteca is already considering delaying the payment of growth-related fees until a new home closes escrow. The city doesn’t actually lose any money on the deal since the growth fees are directly related to the increased demands on municipal services created by new residents. Until there are residents, there is no increased demand.
By not having to pay the fees six months out, developers can commit more money to get other homes and neighborhoods going. In practicality what it means is a developer only have as much as $25,000 to $35,000 tied up for six months while a home is being built. That would allow them to start another home as spec home or else start work on new infrastructure.
There are more than 1,000 residential lots approved and ready to move to breaking ground.
The mayor wants the city to sit down with developers and discuss market conditions, the real housing needs today, and if there are ways of modifying approved subdivisions so that they can meet the needs of more buyers and put those who depend on construction to support their families back to work.
“Before the crash, the largest industry in Manteca was the building trades,” Weatherford said during Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
The mayor noted that the city needs to find ways to work with developers to alter existing maps – specifically lot lines – to accommodate homes in the 1,500- to 1,800-square-foot range to coming up with designs that could allow four-plexes to be built on corners that have private entrances much like a highly successful project in Ripon off Milgeo Way that has the feel and appearance of a single family home.
Weatherford said the goal is to find out from developers how they can meet the new housing market demand and get a way of jump starting the new home construction market that the mayor believes is critical to start whittling away at Manteca’s near record 13.5 percent unemployment rate.
The mayor said the goal is two-fold – to get people back to work to improve the economy as well as make corrections to assure that housing can meet the needs of consumers. He also said if an option is to reduce lot sizes to accommodate smaller homes and less cost to build them and in turn to those buying them, that enhance landscaping strategies could be looked at as well.
Weatherford said he preferred not to get into specifics but emphasized the importance of sitting down with developers to see how the new market realities can be met so more people can get back to work.
Manteca is on target to build 300 homes over the next 11 months but they are mostly targeted to fairly well off buyers who are making a move up purchase and are averaging 2,700 square feet.
Manteca is already considering delaying the payment of growth-related fees until a new home closes escrow. The city doesn’t actually lose any money on the deal since the growth fees are directly related to the increased demands on municipal services created by new residents. Until there are residents, there is no increased demand.
By not having to pay the fees six months out, developers can commit more money to get other homes and neighborhoods going. In practicality what it means is a developer only have as much as $25,000 to $35,000 tied up for six months while a home is being built. That would allow them to start another home as spec home or else start work on new infrastructure.
There are more than 1,000 residential lots approved and ready to move to breaking ground.
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