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Oakwood Shores may annex to Manteca
Development must secure city sewer to keep building
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Oakwood Shores could become part of the City of Manteca. - photo by HIME ROMERO

Manteca Waterslides was never really part of Manteca.

Instead, it was just to the west of the city.

The development that replaced the iconic water park - the gated Oakwood Shores community - may soon become a part of the city.

The City Council on Tuesday may give staff authorization to negotiate a development agreement for the 480-lot project complete with two manmade lakes. The agreement is a precursor to annexation to Manteca.

The gated community is on the western end of Woodward Avenue and is visible from the 120 Bypass.

Oakwood Shores was approved for development on temporary basis by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board. That approval required it to ultimately connect to a municipal sewer service.

Oakwood Shores is within the city’s sphere of influence or areas identified for logical annexation. Also, Manteca has a policy in place that nixes extending sewer to developments unless they are part of the city.

Raymus Village just outside the city northeast of Lathrop Road and Highway 99 accessed sewer before that policy went into effect. The city has extended water service, though, outside the city in special cases with one being the Manteca Unified School District office and the other South San Joaquin Irrigation District headquarters.

The agreement has to be approved by Lafferty Communities, Oakwood Lake Water District, and Oakwood Shores Homeowners’ Association.

Proposed terms include:

• Owners of existing lots will be able to pay sewer and water connection fees over five years interest free.

• All connections for new construction will be paid at the time building permits are issued.

• A community facilities district - or some other financing mechanism - will be formed to include maintenance of all street landscaping, storm drain pump, filter discharge line, clubhouse pool and two lakes. If the project continues as a gated community, then the funding mechanism needs to include maintenance of all the streets as they would be considered private streets.

• The developer shall be entitled to receive treated wastewater from city to continue maintenance of landscaping along Woodward Avenue.

• Keys to community buildings and automatic access ability to entrance gates will be provided to the Manteca Fire Department.

• The developer will have to pay fire facility fees for all constructed units - approximately $80,000 - plus pay the fee when new homes are built.

• The builder will be required to pay the follow development fees when permits are issued by the city for future homes: $5,775 for sewer certainty (bonus bucks), $2,914 public facilities fee, $437 development services fee, $5,665 public safety endowment fee, and $3,999 for recreation amenities fee. The developer will be eligible for the same relief that other builders receive regarding development fees. Bonus bucks, for example, have been officially held in abeyance through June 2015.

Lafferty Communities will be allowed to build 50 homes a year starting in 2013 and ending in 2018.

The council meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Civic Center, 1001 W. Center St.