The view from Manteca Golf Course’s back nine may soon include of condo.

The Community Development Department has received an application from a developer wanting to build a 184-unit condo complex. It would straddle the western extension of Center Street from Trevino Avenue to St. Dominic’s Drive.

The street will cut the project into two phases. Each cluster of condos north and south of the future extension of Center Street will have its own clubhouse/community center, swimming pool, tot lot, laundry and fitness facilities.

The project dubbed Alma Place will have 30 percent of the condos as one bedroom, 61 percent as two bedrooms, and 9 percent as three bedrooms.

The dirt on the dirt

The dirt movement on the city-owned parcel across from Big League Dreams and the Stadium Retail Center isn’t for a new retail complex or hotel although that is the city’s goal.

Instead it is dirt being moved in connection with a private sector project offsite that needed a place to take dirt to and from.

Public Works Director Mark Houghton said dust has been an issue at times prompting the city to require the dirt movers to use a water truck. Once, when the contactor involved wasn’t available, the city sent its own water truck to the site.

Almond trees

instead of homes

Here’s a switch. Land long designated for housing is being planted in almonds.

Martin Harris representing the owners of Terra Land Group spoke before the Manteca City Council Tuesday to make sure the correct land use designation was being associated with the property. The city is in the process of synching the municipal general plan- essentially a blueprint for city growth — with zoning.

The long-range plan is still to build houses. But given the multiple years it takes to bring an almond orchard to maturity for harvesting and then to recoup the investment, it is clear that the land is off the residential radar for at least 10 years.

The land is in the vicinity of McKinley Avenue and Woodward Avenue in southwest Manteca.

The landowners’ decision reflects the fact there are well over 8,000 proposed housing units in various stages of approval within the city.

Several council members expressed their appreciation of how smooth the general plan-zoning synching process has been. Four speakers got up Tuesday to simply go on the record, affirm they agreed with resolutions worked out with staff, and to add how impressed they were with staff’s attention and professionalism.

Council noted it is a far cry from a decade or so ago when a similar process turned into a verbal slugfest over a number of meetings in part to the communication — or lack of it — involving city planners.

The department is now being overseen by Frederic Clark whose roots are as an engineer originally assigned to the Public Works Department.



Parks & Rec director

stepping down

Manteca Parks and Recreation Director Mark Hall will be retiring in December.

Manteca Mayor Willie Weatherford lauded Hall “for the tremendous job” he has done leading the department especially in light of budget cutbacks.