Future single family neighborhoods are evolving in Manteca.

And arguably the best example of how small changes can have big impacts will be seen in the 52-home Farmhouse subdivision approved by the Manteca Planning Commission for an existing 10-acre almond orchard southwest of the Union Road and Woodward Avenue intersection.

Lafferty Homes — developers of the Oakwood Shores gated neighborhood on the eastern end of Woodward Avenue where Manteca Waterslides once stood — secured variances to city minimum setbacks in order to evolve home floor plans, lot use, and visual lines from the street.

The city has allowed the minimum front yard setbacks to be shaved from 15 feet to 12.6 feet while the side yard setbacks from the property line are going for a minimum of 5 feet down to 4 feet.

This will allow:

*Larger rear yards for the recreational use of families.

*Smaller front yards when coupled with the city’s maximum percentage of coverage allowed for lawn areas for new homes will further reduce water use for ornamental grass. Lawns account for roughly 40 percent of a typical Northern San Joaquin Valley city’s urban water use.

*The elimination of a street view of what the developer’s representative called a “sea of garages” by allowing the front of homes to be more prominent than garage doors.

An increase from the maximum residential height limit from 30 to 35 feet will allow for steeper roofs. That, when coupled with facade design elements will help create a look reminiscent of farmhouses that will complement the 1918-era farmhouse and support structures that will remain adjacent to the new neighborhood.

The increase in heights will also translate into somewhat higher ceilings to provide a more open feel.

Lafferty Homes expects the bulk of the buyers to be families with older children. The homes are being designed to allow future buyers to “age in place” if they so desire. Design elements will run the gamut from small details such as zero threshold showers and grab bars that are standard in age-restricted communities such as Del Webb to wider hallways.

And while there are shorter front yard setbacks, driveways will still be 20 to 22 feet to allow longer vehicles such as crew cabs from intruding on sidewalks when they are parked in driveways,

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com