The trend toward smaller subdivision lots is picking up momentum.

The latest example is a proposed 34.6-acre neighborhood that will feature 197 homes on 4,000 square-foot lots typically 50 feet wide and 80 feet deep.

It is part of a proposed annexation of almost 40 acres on the northwest corner of Oleander Avenue and Peach Avenue in South Manteca. The remaining land consists of existing homes that will remain in place.

It is the latest in proposed projects that are no longer exclusively subdivisions of 7,000 to 14,000 square foot lots.

But instead of others south of the 120 Bypass either advancing through the planning process or recently approved that feature a mixture of lot sizes ranging from 3,500 to 8,000 square feet, this is the first development where the lots are all 4,000 square feet.

The project is among those slowly chipping away at the remaining developable land that will be protected by a proposed dry levee to assure protection against flood events of a 200-year magnitude to the south of the existing city limits.

The odds are more land deals are in the works that will see not just larger undertakings such as the recently approved 827-home Lumina at Machado Ranch project on the southwest corner of Airport Way and Woodward Avenue that will move forward when land is annexed to the city, but also medium sized subdivision such as the one proposed at Peach and Oleander as well as those smaller projects of 50 lots or less.

That’s due to demand that continues to grow for single family homes as available space for such projects rapidly disappears in the Bay Area.

Last year, Manteca started 849 new housing units including 695 single family homes.

Builders are on pace to top that mark this year inching Manteca closer to 1,000 new home starts on an annual basis.

As of July 1, the City of Manteca had 8,670 housing units in various stages of approval in the development pipeline.

That includes:

*2,000 housing units that are either under construction or else ready to build.

*1,693 housing units entitled but not yet under construction.

*3,216 housing units in application under review.

If all of the units are built, it would take the city’s current population from 88,000 to more than 112,000. That’s based on current yields of 3.11 people with each additional housing unit built.

The Manteca tally includes finalized subdivisions and apartments with approved maps and site plans that are either ready for permitting or are going through the final plot plan approval. It also includes entitled subdivisions with approved tentative maps meaning if they meet conditions they will be granted final maps needed to start building.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com