The average household income in Menlo Park is $110,000.

That’s almost $50,000 higher than in Manteca.

The folks in Menlo Park - and the other fairly well-to-do middle class communities that circle San Francisco Bay - will one day be helping pay for Manteca police officers, firefighters, parks, and streets if Great Wolf Resorts locates in Manteca.

They fit the Great Wolf Resort demographics to a “T”. They have plenty of disposable income, tend to do a lot of things with their children, and are relatively unfazed by economic turmoil.

They will make up the bulk of the families that will plop down $300-plus a night to access a suite at the 600-room hotel proposed west of Costco that also includes two days use of a 75,000-square-foot indoor water park.

Great Wolf at its typical year-round occupancy rate in other markets would generate between $4 million and $6 million a year in room taxes that would flow directly into Manteca’s general fund.

That is essentially one entity - Great Wolf - increasing Manteca’s current municipal revenue by as much as 25 percent.

The bottom line for Manteca residents is more services without paying more taxes.

Great Wolf would give Manteca a bit of the Anaheim effect. Tourism taxes can be an effective way of keeping taxes down for the locals while improving public services.

Manteca’s leaders are still negotiating with Great Wolf investors.

Though details haven’t been made public, the Manteca “contribution” would be in the form of infrastructure - such as city streets plus sewer and water lines - that would not only allow Great Wolf Resort to build but would open up another 100 acres of city-owned land for commercial development.

Even if the state prevails in court, Manteca still has enough redevelopment agency resources to pull off what is needed to get Great Wolf Resort to build here.

Then there is the issue of 500 year-round jobs. Manteca - in case you haven’t noticed - has a 13.4 percent unemployment rate. The jobless rate for young adults is even higher.

So if you want to know what Manteca’s leaders are doing to increase services while not increasing taxes they are working on a strategy to have Bay Area wealth make it happen.

It’s only fair considering since for the past 30 years the fact that Manteca and the rest of the Northern San Joaquin Valley has been the Bay Area’s de facto answer to affordable housing which in turn has put a strain on local services in Manteca.

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.