City offices returned downtown Wednesday for the first time in 45 years.

And it could usher in the start of a new era of stepped up activity in downtown.

Ribbon cutting ceremonies hosted by the Manteca Chamber of Commerce marked the opening of the public safety annex in the former county health office at 124 Sycamore Avenue.

It is across the street from the two-story brick structure that served as Manteca’s city hall from 1924 until 1976.

The owners of the old city hall — damaged by a fire in 2021 — have just received a city grant to help complete the restoration with the goal to have offices on the second floor and a restaurant on the ground level.

Just a half block to the south at Sycamore and Yosemite avenues, the city is working with a  private sector concern to possibly develop a multi-story mixed use project with commercial and housing on land the city owns.

Manteca officials are also working on a private partnership endeavor to possibly repurpose a part of Library Park in order to attract more people to downtown.

At the same time, the city is working with merchants and property owners to possibly form a business improvement district to give those vested in downtown a collectible voice and means in advancing downtown business.

That is in addition to The Deaf Puppy Comedy Club getting ready to open within the next month or so.

The public safety office will house the police departments community resource officers and code enforcement divisions. The Manteca Fire Department’s fire marshal/fire preventions services are also now located downtown.

“We are part of downtown and we have to deal with the same issues everyone in downtown has to deal with,” City Manager Toni Lundgren said in reference to the city’s library, two parks, transit center, Tidewater bikeway, and various public parking lots.

Police Chief Stephen Schluer believes having the two officers assigned to homeless outreach effort — Mike Kelly and Matt Smith — operating from a downtown location will help them be more effective.

Manteca two years ago bought the Sycamore Avenue building that was damaged in May of 2018 when a homeless cooking fire got out of control. The city paid San Joaquin County $390,000 for it after fire damage was addressed and the building remodeled.

The city in 2022 paid $80,000 for two parcels covering 6,500 square feet on the northwest corner of Sycamore and Yosemite avenues that is currently a parking lot and adjoining area that has simply a wall around it.

The parking lot has been closed off for years. The parcel with the wall has been that way since the 1980s when  the Waukeen Hotel was destroyed by fire.

The city has been working with a possible private sector developer to build ground-floor commercial and apartments on the second and third floors.

Historically, cities have had a much greater success rate to get development in place on seemingly odd or problematic parcels when they take ownership of them.

Such a process doesn’t mean immediate results either.

City ownership of property in the meanwhile means they can make sure it is properly maintained.

The city has a vested interest — motivation if you will — to continually keep the property in play for possible development.

Besides eliminating the potential for future blight or even homeless encampments, it is strategy that is deigned to convert vacant parcels into tax generating property that also pumps up the general Manteca  economy.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email wyatt@mantecabulletin.com