A nearby homeowner sees it as a beautification project.

Others view it as a great backdrop for taking photos.

Regardless of how they are perceived, the panel of 12 murals along Crestwood Avenue has made Security Public Storage arguably the highest profile of Manteca’s 10 mini-storage  complexes with another two on the way.

The series of 12 murals celebrating Manteca and nearby areas is being dedicated on Wednesday, May 31, between 9 a.m. and noon.

The 527-unit storage unit built in the 1970s faces Lathrop Road while the murals cover most of the exterior wall along Crestwood Avenue across from the ARCO station where Manteca’s seventh Starbucks location is preparing to open.

They depict everything from Manteca founder Joshua Cowell with his original house where Bank of America now stands in downtown to Caswell State Park where the valley’s largest natural stand of riparian oaks still exists.

 Among the other mural subjects are the bounty of the fields around Manteca, Knights Ferry, Yosemite Valley, and nearby gems such as the Haggin Museum in Stockton.

The May 31 celebration of the mural collected dubbed “Manteca’s Treasures” at 316 East Lathrop Road will include coffee, refreshments, music and mementoes.

A Manteca Chamber of Coffee is taking place beforehand from 8 to 9 a.m.

“People have been really appreciative of the murals,” said Penny Haskins, who has managed the storage facility for the past 17 years.

One neighbor on nearby Hickorywood Lane sent a letter to Security Public Storage saying they were thankful for the efforts to beautify the community.

Haskins said the firm that owns the Manteca mini-storage has also commissioned murals at facilities they own in other communities.

They’re doing so to help improve the looks of the areas their mini-storages are located as well as reduce the potential for graffiti.

Murals, as muralist Dave Gordon who has painted a number of murals downtown for the Manteca Mural Society has noted, are rarely the target of graffiti.

A day doesn’t go by that someone hasn’t parked their car — or posed in front of a mural — to take photos.

The murals also have had spawned calls regarding renting storage space from people that have stopped at the ARCO station  across the street.

Although there is no adverting per se in any of the murals, that do draw attention to what was otherwise a fairly non-descript ministorage complex.

When the mural Chris Teicheira commissioned for the Deaf Puppy Comedy Club opening in the 100 block of North Main Street is included, there have been 13 murals added to commercial walls in Manteca so far this year.

They join 25 outdoor murals gracing outdoor walls in downtown Manteca put in place so far by the Manteca Mural Society. A 26th outdoor mural is planned from the building Jeff Aksland owns on the southeast corner of Yosemite Avenue and Main  Street that houses his real estate firm and German Glas Weks.

There are now 38 outdoor murals in Manteca that are dedicated to showcasing Manteca, its history, its economy, its culture, and nearby attractions.

Those are in addition to more than 200 student murals that grace hallways and outdoor areas at Manteca High.

 It was 20 years ago this June the first mural — “Crossroads” — was completed in Manteca by the mural society on the Main Street wall of Century Furniture.

The bottom line when the society was founded in 2002  — and still is today — is instilling  pride in Manteca residents as well as give visitors a sense of the community.

 The work done so far that many consider as priceless, cost the non-profit mural society in excess of $750,000 collectively.

 To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com