The decision to locate the new Manteca Police Department in the 600 block of South Main Street was weighted by location as much as cost.

And when it came to cost, the notoriously high water table that is often hit and miss in western Manteca as you move closer to the San Joaquin River was the deciding factor.

The South Main Street location pluses included:

*the city already owned the land.

*it is centrally located and within a block of downtown.

*being a high-profile location on what is arguably the highest profile north-south arterial.

Owning the land knocked of millions in the overall cost for a new police station.

It was one of city-owned several locations that met the 4 to 5 acre minimum parcel size needed for a new police station.

*Land in the 100-acre family entertainment zone. That was dropped from the list of possibilities due to the expected high commercial value the land is expected to have as the development moves forward which means more money for the city and economic benefits for the community includes jobs.

*Property east of the Sizzler restaurant along the 120 Bypass. The market value of the location is significant plus the site is high profile for commercial ventures.

*Land across the street from the Big League Dreams sports complex on the northeast of Daniels Street and Milo Candini Drive. Again, it has the same economic value of the site next to the Sizzler.

*Part of the wastewater treatment plant site on the northern border of the BLD.

The site north of the BLD site was the initially preferred location.

But two negatives popped up.

First, a development involving a proposed apartment complex that would have extended Wawona Street to Milo Candini Drive collapsed.

As a result, that shifted 100 percent of the cost to extending the street as well as sewer and water infrastructure onto the city.

That, in itself, wasn’t a cost killer.

But the high water table was.

A preliminary report detected a high water table that not only dewatering for the construction but the needed for a much more elaborate foundation that involved pylons to deal with the water issue.

Toss in the state mandate that buildings housing first responder operations must be constructed to withstand a 7.0 earthquake, and the foundation becomes significantly more elaborate than for typical construction.

And more elaborate means more expensive. One estimate indicated foundation work and other improvements not needed at the Main Street site would have cost an additional $10 million or more at the site north of BLD.

To be clear, the actual location of the police station wasn’t critical in terms of response times.

Police command noted the city’s beat system coupled with how the department deploys resources — freely translated, making sure frontline officers have maximum time on the streets— makes the station’s location less of a critical factor.

That said, the inclusion of a community room that will have support structure for a rapid conversion into an emergency operations center, also means the police can program outreach efforts to strengthen cooperative efforts with the community.

Physical ground work on the new station is expected to start in November and take up to 18 months to complete.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com