Get ready for what could become the first big issue of the November 2012 Manteca City Council election.

It involves a tower. No, it’s not the 50-year-old water tower. It’s coming down soon.

The issue will be over a tower that will be going up in the next year or so. And it’s not the oil-derrick style tri-pod tower behind the new municipal vehicle maintenance building now under construction at Wetmore and South Main streets.

The tower in question is the proposed 140-foot communications tower that is part of a site plan for the fourth fire station that will break ground sometime in 2013 on Lathrop Road just west of Union Road. The station is being built on land Pulte Homes - the developers of Del Webb at Woodbridge - donated to the city at the edge of the age-restricted neighborhood at the future intersection of Lathrop Road and Madison Grove.

It has caught the attention of several Del Webb at Woodbridge residents including Russ Fischer.

They note the 140-foot tower will be visible from virtually every home in the Del Webb community. They are concerned what it could do to their home values and those in nearby neighborhoods.

City Manager Karen McLaughlin during the debate over the Wetmore Street water tower and the replacement communication tower suggested that council may want staff to devise guidelines for their consideration about future towers proposed in Manteca. It is a policy that may now be done on the fly given the City Council’s commitment to move forward with improving fire and medical emergency response times in northwest Manteca.

The 140-foot tower is needed to have continuous communication signals for emergency vehicles such as fire engines throughout Manteca. A shorter tower apparently wouldn’t be 100 percent effective.

During the water tower/communication tower debate it was clearly established that disguising the tower at the new fire station as a giant flag pole or a giant fake palm tree such as is the case for a cell tower behind the Manteca Christian Worship Center on Button Avenue is not feasible. Such camouflaging doesn’t interfere with a cell signal but it does with emergency frequencies.

There might be a way to short circuit any controversy, keep everyone happy and not compromise emergency communications in Manteca.

A little over a quarter of a mile away is the South San Joaquin Irrigation District tower that is behind the million gallon water tank east of the retail center anchored by CVS Drug Store and McDonald’s.

If that tower is high enough and close enough to the fire station and SSJID is willing to work with the city, it could be a win-win-win situation.

It could eliminate potential visual “pollution”, it could enhance emergency communication, and it could save Manteca taxpayers money as piggy backing on an existing tower is less expensive than erecting a new one.

Such a solution would have to allow radio communications for emergency vehicles to be seamless and 100 percent effective.

The issue does underscore the need for Manteca to come up with a citywide strategy for communication towers. Had there been one when the SSJID enhanced its own communication system in a bid to improve water pipe security among the pipe that delivers water to Manteca, Tracy, and Lathrop residents perhaps the placement would have been given a bit more thought.

As it is, it seems to be in an ideal location next to the water tank. But if locating it in another spot could have effectively served the needs of both the SSJID and Manteca, it would have been even better.

With a little luck, the tower where it is can accommodate the fire department’s needs and whatever other communications the city has to assure they won’t be interrupted such as police channels, ambulance communication, and ham radio for disasters.



This column is the opinion of managing editor, Dennis Wyatt, and does not necessarily represent the opinion of The Bulletin or Morris Newspaper Corp. of CA.  He can be contacted at dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com or 209-249-3519.