CITY OF MANTECA
GARY SINGH, MAYOR
CHARLIE HALFORD, VICE MAYOR DISTRICT 1
REGINA LACKEY, COUNCILMEMBER DISTRICT 2
DAVID BREITENBUCHER, COUNCILMEMBER DISTRICT 3
MIKE MOROWIT, COUNCILMEMBER DISTRICT 4
October 23, 2026
President and Members
California State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Suite 5111
Sacramento, CA 95814
RE: Letter of Support, Manteca Unified School District Waiver Request No. [__________], Education Code Section 17388 Dear President and Members of the Board,
On behalf of the Manteca City Council, I write in support of the Manteca Unified School District's request for a waiver of Education Code section 17388 for the conveyance of approximately one acre of its Tara Park school site to the City of Manteca. The City Council authorized this letter by Resolution No. R2026-XX, adopted at a public meeting on October 20, 2026.
The property is a strip about 58 feet wide along the western edge of the Tara Park site. The school has not yet been built. The District has determined that the strip is not needed for school purposes and that its conveyance will not reduce the school's planned capacity of up to 1,300 students.
The City will build Fire Station No. 6 next to the future Tara Park school. Approximately 0.18 acre of the strip will be part of the station site. The City intends to exchange the remaining approximately 0.82 acre, together with other City land, for approximately 1.82 acres of adjoining private land, forming a 2.00-acre station site. We describe that exchange because we want the Board to have the complete picture. It allows the City to assemble the site without spending public funds to buy land.
The station will place fire and emergency medical response next door to the future school and its students and staff. The City and the District have discussed a fire safety and career education program for students at the adjoining school.
The conveyance carries out a 2025 settlement approved by both agencies at public meetings. The City Council considered the request in open session with public comment on January 20, 2026, and also on September 15, 2026. Further, the District's Board of Education held a public hearing on this request at a noticed meeting on October 22, 2026, at which parents, employees, and members of the public could comment. Because no students are yet enrolled at the site, there is no existing parent group or school site council whose role would be affected.
We respectfully ask the Board to approve the waiver. City representatives will attend the Board's meeting and are available to answer questions.
Sincerely,
Mayor Gary Singh
1001 W. Center Street, Manteca, CA 95337 | (209) 456-8017 | www.manteca.gov