Downtown Manteca has big potential with the Wall plus $80000 AND thinking big
Downtown Manteca has big potential with the Wall plus $80000 AND thinking big
Downtown Manteca has great potential thanks to the wall plus $80000 and thinking big
The Wall was bought by the City of Manteca eleven months ago.
Located on West Yosemite Avenue in downtown Manteca, it has stood for over 40 years.
A remnant of downtown's glory days, if you will, the Wall stands as a ruin.
It was during the Roaring 20s of a century ago that the city's downtown area had an out-of-proportion presence, given the city's population of 1286.
Back then, Sam Walton hadn't opened his first Walmart or Jeff Bezos hadn't conceived of selling books on the Internet via a company called Amazon.
Yet to come was the age of the super-commuter. Overnight trips to San Jose and San Francisco were required.
Hotel row was then located on Yosemite Avenue.
Other than the Waukeen Mantecas Hotel, all were on the second floor. As efficiency apartments, some of them still exist today.
Ground and third floors were all hotels at the Waukeen Hotel.
Standing at the northwest corner of Yosemite and Sycamore avenues, it bordered the Wall.
There was a deadly fire in the 1970s that destroyed the Waukeen and adjacent building. It was just The Wall left.
As of June 2022, the City Council approved the purchase of The Wall and the two parcels on either side for an approximate sum of $80000.
In the case of the 6500-square-foot property, Mantecas leaders did not have any specific plans.
Although they knew it could become a catalyst project for downtown development and provide a boost to the central district, they didn't know how to use it.
Several other California cities have purchased blighted properties in downtown areas and made silk purses out of them.
The city and private sector investors are discussing a catalyst for growth.
There is a possibility of building a four-story structure with retail and parking on the ground floor, and apartments above.
Workforce housing, known as Juniper Apartments on Atherton Drive, could include both at-market and affordable housing.
Housing and more commercial space may come downtown if a particular project materializes. Discussions and addresses are needed on a number of issues. Numbers crunched. That type of thing.
But if the city weren't doing a lot of things right, none of this would even be a serious discussion.
There is a tradition in Manteca of trashing downtown as part of political discourse.
You know the drill. Homeless overrun the place. Its a drug haven. Its unsafe. The place is trashy. There is nothing there. Nobody goes downtown.
Downtown has been declared on its deathbed regularly since the 1960s.
Bringing in consultants selling elixirs channeling the Flimflam Man has become a yearly ritual. Miracles are in the making. Three years later, $250000 has been spent and the revival has finally ended. There are times when something comes out of it, but not many.
Then a couple years pass. A new report declares that downtown is dying. Once again, the process begins.
Meanwhile, two things have happened,
Business investments and such are being made at a small scale in Pleasanton that gets ignored because it isn't part of the grand plan.
It's also not followed through with the city's grunt work that goes unappreciated.
Guess what.
It's paying dividends to make those small investments bigger.
In terms of the city doing the grunt work, it is happening.
Analyze the last several years. The Spin Cycle. Rice N Rolld. A new Mexican market is under construction across the railroad tracks from downtown. The new tile showroom.
Also notable is the $42 million Veranda Events Center in Manteca.
In addition, annual ventures continue to thrive.
It seems that someone forgot to read the memo that dying does not mean healthy businesses or robust investment.
In terms of grunt work, compare it to four years ago.
Social Cali
Address: 2138 Pear Blossom Pl, Manteca, CA 95337
Phone: (415) 888-9561
Website: https://www.socialcali.com/