Manteca will have 1,365 hotel rooms when two hotels breaking ground in the coming months on Atherton Drive at Airport Way are completed.

Apparently, city planners don’t think that is enough.

The Manteca Planning Commission when they meet Thursday, May 17, at 6 p.m. will consider amending the zoning rules for commercial neighborhood to allow hotels and motels to be built with a conditional use permit.

They are currently not an allowed use in the zone that typically is surrounded by residential uses.
The push, however, may not be to accommodate business travelers or those on vacation.

A growing trend in recent years has been extended stay accommodations.

Traditionally, they have been for specialty construction workers such as those needed to erect the steel superstructure at Great Wolf, nurses and other professionals on extended contract employment, or people who have moved into an area because of job relocation and are waiting for a residence to be built to buy the right home.

The rooms, that come with full kitchens, can often be booked for three months and longer at a time in some hotel websites. As such, it can drop the daily rate on a $189 room down to $159 a day.

The hotels designed for extended stays also capitalize on travelers who only are looking for an overnight stay or several days.

Commercial neighborhood zoning is found throughout the city

Areas that might appeal to an extended stay hotel developer that also would prefer close access to amenities and freeways include:

*Several parcels on North Main north of Northgate Drive and south of Lathrop Road.

*East Yosemite near Vasconcellos Avenue.

*Various parcels on the south side of West Yosemite flanking Union Road.

What is allowed in the downtown policy use zone — the heart of the central district — is also being proposed to be changed.

The area general covers Yosemite Avenue by the tracks to Powers Avenue, Oak Street south of the tracks, down to Moffat Boulevard on the south and Manteca High to the east and north to North Street as well as the two blocks between there are Alameda Street flanking Main Street.

The significant changes in what will no longer be allowed in the downtown area include:

*emergency shelters.

*vehicle training.

*medical services whether they are extended care, general, or hospital.

*mortuary or funeral homes.

A number of uses that were allowed outright are proposed to require minor or conditional use permits.

Examples include a convenience store, place of worship, theater, private school or academy, animal grooming, veterinary clinic, child day care center brew pub, neighborhood market, auto parts store,  mobile food vending, personal services, and a tasting room.

One use will be allowed outright instead of requiring a minor use permit are care homes bigger than 19 rooms.

Planners are also proposing allowing public-public quasi zoning to have zoning to accommodate hospitals or general medical services.

As such it would allow Kaiser to eventually expand their medical services office.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com