Council approves Trails of Manteca Unit 6 improvement agreement; resident urges city buy park parcels

The City Council on Sept. 16 adopted a resolution approving the improvement agreement and final map for Trails of Manteca Unit 6 and authorized the mayor and city manager to execute related documents. Engineering staff said the improvement agreement covers roads, utilities and other infrastructure with an estimated value of approximately $6,500,000.

Kevin Jorgensen, Director of Engineering, said the unit is the next phase of an already-entitled master project; the council was asked to approve infrastructure improvements for Unit 6. During public comment, resident Sudhakar raised concerns that remaining unbuilt parcels in the Trails master plan could be used for a community park and asked the council to delay approval until the city could negotiate purchase of six lots from the developer. Sudhakar said District 1 lacks a community park and asked the city to prioritize land acquisition before remaining homes are built.

Staff and the city’s project manager said Tony Grama of Ramis Homes (developer) responded by email that the parcels Sudhakar referenced were not for sale and that the development already includes 35 acres of parks and 15 acres of walking trails. City staff noted the city has no legal mechanism to force a developer to sell entitled lots covered by a development agreement.

Councilmember Morwitt moved approval; the motion carried 3-0. Staff stressed the action before the council concerned only infrastructure approval for Unit 6 and did not change the development’s entitled uses.