Rest assured it’s already the most photographed chair in Manteca and it hasn’t even been in place 24 hours.

It’s a giant, whimsical, teal, photo op Adirondack chair on the corner of Manteca Avenue and Center Street where the library sits in downtown Manteca.

It’s adding a new flavor to the downtown landscape.

Just like the sweet shop on Maple Avenue and a coffee shop/bakery in the Old City Hall building across the street from the chair that are opening in the coming months.

That goes for the plant baskets attached to the old-fashioned street light poles that will start popping up in the near future courtesy of the just minted Downtown Manteca Business Association.

“People will be able to take their kids to the sweet shop and walk down the street and snap some photos in the chair,” noted City Manager Toni Lundgren.

Lundgren said the chair is part of an effort to instill community pride.

And the city is just getting started.

They are teaming up with the United Way to stage Manteca’s First Farm-to-Table event under the strings of lights in the 100 block of Maple Avenue on Saturday, Oct. 11.

Besides al fresco dining on the best the Northern San Joaquin Valley has to offer, there will be a band and dancing along with other activities.

Lundgren is also looking at ways to utilize the infamous Tidewater Bikeway kiosk at Yosemite Avenue and Main Street that the city paid $10,000 for 20 years ago with the intent to have a map board of the bikeway and directions to nearby attractions.

Instead, the steel framework and roof — save for signage announcing the Tidewater Bikeway — has been bare for two decades.

The City of Manteca, for want of a better phrase, is trying to create a sense of being for Manteca residents when it comes to downtown.

It is something a dozen consultants and studies have inferred needed to be done but has never happened.

And for visitors — especially those filling the 500 rooms at the Great Wolf indoor water park or filling the stands during weekend tournaments at the Big League Dreams sports complex — it is to make it clear “there is a there” when it comes to downtown Manteca.

It helps, of course, that new ventures aimed at dining and entertainment are joining those already in downtown such as the comedy club, a popular deli/coffee shop hangout next door, a wine bar, and brewery all in the 100 and 200 blocks of North Main Street.

Right now, as Lundgren points out, the only landmark that people identify with is the non-functional water tower on the skyline south of downtown with “MANTECA” stenciled on the side in plain black lettering.

As such, the proposed arch just south of the tracks by the animal shelter has the ability to be both a landmark, something to identify downtown with, and a source of pride.

That is especially true given  the proposed lighting system that can display numerous colors.

Lundgren, as an example, noted the arch with red, white, and blue would build on the patriotic feel that is created the 11 times a year the Manteca Chamber of Commerce lines Main Street and Yosemite Avenue with 2,400 flags.

There are plans for several other Adirondack chairs to be placed throughout downtown but in different shapes. Just like the chair in place, they will be ADA compliant.

The city spent $7,000 on the chair.

Lundgren notes the chairs are among little things that can be done such as the nearby crosswalk and concrete picnic tables along the Center Street tennis courts that have been painted in multiple colors to create a different feel that is not ho-hum.

“It helps create a vibe,” she said.

The vibe?

Downtown Manteca is a fun place to be.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com