Editor, Manteca Bulletin, 

OMG! Here we go again, the new Public Facilities Implementation Plan (PFIP) is being negotiated with the home building industry and the proposed fees are about to be slashed because they are too high (as purported by the Delta Building Industry.) 

Council members let me remind you that you do not have enough money today to build the four interchanges along Highway 120 because the previous PFIP was negotiated with the home building industry and the fees were slashed because the Building Industry insisted it would put them out of business. Twenty years ago, the home building industry was able to convenience the department heads and the city council that the fees proposed by the then PFIP would severely hamper new home sales and result in the loss of hundreds of jobs. It’s the same old line I have heard for the past forty years for virtually every fee and regulation opposed by the building industry; yet, tens of thousands of new homes have been built during that time while the roadways remain unpaved, community amenities lost, fire stations are not built, and public service levels diminished each budget year.

Council, do not fall for the same old line and the friendly smile and pat on the back, for the future financial stability and viability of this community rests on your shoulders. By the way, the fees appear too high today because the proposed PFIP program is trying to make up for the huge revenue fund deficit created by the previously adopted cut-rate PFIP. Why pay a consultant hundreds of thousands of dollars developing a PFIP program that is based on the actual future infrastructure (water, sewer, drainage, and roadways) needs of our growing community, if you are simply going to second-guess infrastructure costs based on special interest influences.

Need I remind the Council that every new home built in this community comes with impacts to the existing (and future) infrastructure (roadways, water, sewer, and drainage, parks, public safety, etc.) In addition, it is important to keep in mind if new home developments do not cover those impact costs; it then falls on the existing community (the residents) to make up the revenue loss. This is the fundamental reason why Manteca does not have funds today to maintain present day infrastructure (roadways, water, sewer, and drainage, parks, public safety, etc.) in a timely manner.

Finally, if any adjustments to the fees structure of the proposed PFIP needs to occur, it should be in the area of commercial and industrial development (jobs centers), not new home developments. Based on the present level of traffic congestion all over town, we have plenty of homes. What is needed is good paying jobs.

Benjamin Cantu

Manteca