A 24,800-square-foot building housing a furniture store that is currently conducting a going out of business sale on Moffat Boulevard may be converted into a banquet hall and events center.
Plans for the conversion are being considered Thursday at 6 p.m. when the Planning Commission meets at the Civic Center council chambers at 1001 W. Center St.
Remodeling will allow the structure facing Moffat where it T-intersects with Woodward Avenue to accommodate up to 300 people.
It will be known as the Veranda Banquet Hall. It will be operated by the same people that converted the former El Rey Theatre turned Kelly Brothers Brewing Co. & Brickyard Oven Restaurant in downtown Manteca into the Veranda Events Center.
Since opening over a year ago, the events center has conducted a brisk business with bookings of events that have attracted guests from throughout the Northern San Joaquín Valley, the Bay Area, and Sacramento.
They have also staged several concerts that have been attended by guests from throughout the state and even outside of California.
Mayor Gary Singh lauded the move by the Veranda investors.
He noted it fits into the city’s game plan to take advantage of Manteca’s central location not just to Stockton, Modesto and Tracy but also Sacramento, San Jose, and San Francisco to develop an employment sector that can’t be eroded by Internet commerce.
It is why the 500-room Great Wolf Lodge & Indoor Water Park Resort that also has a large conference center complex that has robust bookings chose to locate in Manteca.
Ventures such as the Big League Dreams sports complex with weekend tournament bookings and Bass Pro Shops have helped make Manteca a regional draw.
The city is working to build on the Great Wolf-BLD pull by developing a 100-acre family entertainment zone book-ended by the two concerns. They are currently working with investors that want to open a brew pub along Daniels Street on the BLD site.
Manteca’s location and growing attractions is why the four-story, 101 room Staybridge Suites interchange is now under construction on the southeast corner of Daniels Street and Fishback Road near the 120 Bypass and Airport Way.
Plans have also been approved for a four-story, 117-room Courtyard by Marriott on the southwest of the Airport Way and 120 Bypass interchange.
To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com
