The COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t done anything to slow down development in Lathrop.

And things are moving at such a pace that the Lathrop City Council just approved a new contract extension with a professional engineering and project management company for nearly $200,000 to help supplement the city’s existing personnel to help ensure everything operates smoothly.

On Monday, the council approved a $193,600 extension with Condor Earth Technologies to help augment the city’s existing public works department at a time in which multiple construction projects are coming online.

The city had previously approved a $74,999 contract with Condor Earth and a $50,000 extension to help provide staffing services to move construction and development projects along.

According to the staff report prepared for the council, the company will provide oversight on both development and capital improvement projects in the community – which are expected to pick up speed as spring approaches and more projects come online.

Lathrop has relied on contractors in recent years to help supplement existing staffing levels just as growth in the city begins to take off – with thousands of homes waiting to be completed in both River Islands and Central Lathrop and millions of square feet of warehouse and light industrial buildings slated to be added to the city’s already impressive roster of industrial properties.

While the number of city employees has grown in recent years to keep up with the number of projects that are filtering through the city’s pipelines, Lathrop has been playing “catch up” for a number of years after the collapse of the housing market forced the city to make deep cuts to avoid burning through all of its reserves. Those cuts included personnel, and while growth rebounded rather quickly – with firms like Saybrook stepping in to pick up the remnants of the failed Richland project near Lathrop High School and investing into the community to get that project off the ground – it has taken some time to add personnel at the same pace.

Some of the tasks that Condor Earth will be responsible for will include project planning and plan check review, permit processing, construction management and inspection, public bids, and infrastructure planning and regulatory compliance – allowing for a wide range of uses for the services the company provides.

To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.