Park growth fees paid by new home buyers are paying for a new Manteca amenity — an outdoor fitness court at Woodward Park.
The Manteca City Council on Tuesday approved the $500,000 expenditure of growth fees that can only be used for community park land acquisition and improvements. There are no other funds involved.
Manteca will have the fourth outdoor fitness court in the Northern San Joaquin Valley.
The others are at the University of California campus in Merced, Delta College in Stockton, and at Tilton Park in Patterson.
While Manteca may be somewhat of a Johnny-Come-Lately when it comes to fitness courts in the three-county area, the one going at Woodward Park will be a two-sided outdoor fitness center plus while have shade structures. The other three just have the outdoor fitness court.
The basic fitness court fitness court is designed to provide a full body workout in only seven minutes, all for free.
Users rotate through all seven zones: Core, squat, push, lunge, pull, agility and bend on the fitness court for a circuit training workout.
Each of the seven stations can be used for hundreds of exercise variations, providing opportunities for those beginning their fitness journey to elite athletes, and for every user in between.
The other side is an outdoor fitness studio.
In cities that have added that option, recreation departments have programmed everything from group exercise classes ranging from aerobics and Pilates to tai chi and yoga. They also conduct dance classes and such.
Mayor Gary Singh noted it would serve as one of the functions a community center might have that Manteca is working toward. As such, it could be used to expand group exercise offerings in addition to existing indoor space being used now instead of waiting for a community center to be built.
There is an app you can download providing step-by-step exercises for using the fitness court side of court.
Each side of the outdoor fitness complex will be 38 by 38 feet.
The “wall” between the two sides is designed to allow the display of art or murals.
It will be installed to the east of where the $3.8 million interactive water play feature and new restroom project is now underway.
That project is being funded as well primarily with park growth fees with a small part being covered with pass-through federal COVID relief fees after the city covered its pandemic related expenses and revenue lost by the state ordered shutdown of retail businesses.
The waterplay feature will be completed in the coming months.
The city is targeting a late 2027 date for the outdoor fitness complex.
To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com
