Editor, Manteca Bulletin,

It seems as though soccer and baseball is considered as entertainment for everyone. The two sports pushers are Councilman Vince Hernandez and Mayor Willie Weatherford. Since the RDA money was returned to the city, it’s burning a hole in the pockets of councilmen to spend it as quickly as possible.

My question is how many soccer fields and baseball fields is enough? 

It’s past time to think in terms of people who don’t eat, sleep and drink soccer and baseball. I think it’s time to get serious about projects that don’t involve predominate sports. 

I am a firm believer that all priority projects should receive this money. Do we still have bad streets to refinish and expensive water tanks to install to boost our water pressure? The Bulletin disclosed that we have just scratched the surface in installing pipes for using reclaimed water for irrigation. Over $1 million is already being considered for nothing less than an incentive to base Great Wolf in Manteca.

This city pushes water conservation, but relies on the residents entirely for the conservation effort.

This city and council is working in the opposite direction by continuing to negotiate with a resort that will waste tens of thousands of gallons of water in Manteca. The water feature is the heart of this expensive $300 a night per room plus hotel tax venture.

I see this valley being depleted of its water supply in the not too distant future. If the water table is receding now, what will happen after thousands of more homes are added to this valley? Salt intrusion into the water table will render our water supply as unfit to drink. Surface water will be restricted this year by the SSJID. This means we will have less surface water to dilute the effects of poisonous arsenic, that exceeds the allowable parts per million the federal government mandates. A periodic moratorium declared on new home development should be considered in order to conserve the water we still have. Sooner or later, this council and others will have to consider an alternative to well water.  Manteca is throwing caution to the wind in developing homes that pull more on our limited water supply. I think it’s time for this council and city to practice what they preach, in water conservation. Excessive development and supporting a water wasting resort, isn’t my idea of addressing water conservation. It’s as if we are compelled to save water while businesses are exempt. 

Richard Fleener

Manteca

March 17, 2014