Editor, Manteca Bulletin,

City hall’s recent statement, “Manteca is doing a lot of things right…that is why people want to move here”, is less than transparent. People want to live here for a number of good reasons, but one is not because city hall is doing things right.  In fact, the examples given are far from illustrating “things done right.”

The new fire station on Lathrop Road was actually built several years after the needed protection.  The truth is a major portion of the Del Webb and neighboring developments were outside of the city’s emergency response time because city hall lacked funds to build the fire station, and because the developer was allowed to be build homes prior to the required fire protection.

As for the downtown transit station, it is under construction only because the majority of the costs are underwritten by State, Federal, and County funds.  Like other community amenities - a new library, a cultural center, maintenance of streets, adequate public safety personnel, and so on - the transit station would have lingered for decades waiting for city hall to fund the improvements.

I find it astonishing how city hall can boost of nonstop building of homes and a growing population, while it cannot repair streets or fund a police force large enough for a community of even 62,000 people. And, then boldly blame the current recession for the budget problems when that was the same excuse used during the 1980s and 1990s recessions.

The sad commentary is that people moving to Manteca do not realize the new home they purchased comes with reduced public service levels and a diminishing quality of life, because city hall does not have the fiscal wherewithal and the city council lacks the political priority to make it right.

Our municipal leadership is simply repeating decades of ineffective fiscal management.



Benjamin Cantu

Resident and Businessman