Growth could be the marquee issue in the Nov. 5 municipal election in Manteca.

It is the first time Area 1 and Area 2 council elections will be conducted.

Area 1— that includes the Airport Way corridor up to Louise Avenue and the southwestern portion of the city – is by far the fastest growing area in Manteca with no less than seven new neighborhoods under construction.

Right behind it, is Area 2, primarily south of the 120 Bypass east of Union Road and most of the city east of Highway 99, is Area 1 with work on three subdivisions underway.

Then there is the initiative overshadowing Manteca.

Delicato Family Wines collected enough signatures of registered voters to qualify a referendum on the general plan update adopted last July for the Nov. 5 ballot.

They have made it clear they will yank the initiative if the city follows through on planning changes the winery wants implemented near its facility in north Manteca.

And while the city is in the process of making it happen after the council officially agreed to the terms designed to buffer the winery from future growth, the initiative still can go on the ballot.

It won’t, though, if the winery pulls it by Aug. 9, the last day for measures for the November ballot to be filed.

Currently, two people have summited forms of their intent to run for the council as required by state law before they can start raising money to campaign. They are incumbent Charlie Halford in Area 1 and planning commission member Judith Blumhorst in Area 2.

A third, former councilman Richard Silverman, has filed paperwork that he is exploring a potential run for the Area 1 seat as required by state law. That is the precursor to where Halford and Blumhorst are at.

Halford was elected to the council in a citywide election in 2020 during a campaign where the pandemic constrained much person-to-person campaigning.

When the council opted to go to area elections — meaning candidates and those voting for them had to live within a defined area of the city — Halford was assigned Area 1, which is where he resides.

The elevation of Gary Singh to mayor in the 2022 election along with Mike Morowit’s election to the Area 4 seat north of Louise Avenue with the exception of the Diamond Oaks neighborhood east of Highway 99 created a council vacancy.

Given there was no applicants to be appointed to the Area 1 seat that resided in the area, the council appointed Jose Nuno who had opted not to seek re-election in 2022 to the seat now held by Morowit to fill the vacancy in southeast Manteca.

Nuno’s appointed term expires in December. He is ineligible to run for the seat because he does not reside in Area 2.

The actual filing period for council seats takes place from July 15 through Aug. 19.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com