Quick Take
Santa Cruz city officials approved a plan to explore multiple aid measures for businesses affected by the three-year Murray Street Bridge construction, from free parking and business loans to a new bus route and a possible bike path on the nearby rail line.
The Santa Cruz City Council approved plans Tuesday to explore a sweeping relief package to help Seabright and harbor businesses reeling from the Murray Street Bridge closure. The plans include 13 possible types of financial assistance and infrastructure improvements, from free parking to small business loans and opening the adjacent rail line to cyclists and pedestrians.
Councilmember Shebreh Kalantari-Johnson acknowledged that there will likely be costs and challenges associated with some of the plans but said they were necessary at the moment.
“We heard from the community members today and for the last several months,” she said. “Anything that we can do that is within our reach to support the Seabright neighborhood and businesses, I would say I’m in support of trying to run it to ground.”
Seabright and harbor businesses have been sounding the alarm over a sharp drop in customers during the three-year project, which is slated to wrap up in 2028, and especially during the full closure of the bridge that began in late June. Business owners demanded relief at a council meeting earlier this month, and continue to express frustration over the lengthy project.
Councilmembers approved a slate of options recommended by city staff, along with some that officials had warned would be difficult or costly, such as allowing two-way traffic on the bridge during construction and opening the adjacent rail bridge to cyclists and pedestrians.
The staff recommendations included modifying parking meters on Seabright Avenue to allow free two-hour parking, installing additional signage encouraging patronage of Seabright and harbor businesses, providing small business loans and business consulting, implementing marketing efforts and promotional events, and extending the outdoor dining permit for Seabright and harbor businesses.
Councilmembers also asked city staff to continue working with Santa Cruz Metro to reestablish service to lower Seabright without removing any street parking. The transit agency halted service to Seabright Avenue south of Broadway due to the bridge project. The council also directed staff to explore turning the rail bridge adjacent to the Murray Street Bridge into a temporary bicycle and pedestrian path and work to restore two-way traffic when one lane of the bridge reopens, which is expected in March 2026.
Only Councilmember Susie O’Hara voted against the plans, citing possible legal issues associated with a temporary path on the rail line. She said she believes that finding effective solutions would require deeper data analysis of the challenges facing local companies through things like surveys, revenue trends and interviews with businesses.
Some of the proposals could take months to implement, like a new Metro route, while others could be implemented immediately, like free two-hour parking on lower Seabright Avenue, city staff wrote in a report last week.
City transportation planner Matt Starkey said there are four main options for a trail along the rail bridge, which could include a narrow pedestrian path next to the tracks, a wider path next to the tracks to better accommodate cyclists, and a trail placed on top of the existing tracks. He said staff also looked at the “interim” trail option from the Coastal Rail Trail study, which involves removing the tracks. He said the options range in price from about $650,000 to $7.4 million, and would require the city to find additional funding.
Starkey said that in addition to financial questions, any project would still require environmental clearance and relevant permits before staff could design a project. The city would also need to work with the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission and Progressive Rail, the company that operates the rail line, in order to use the rail bridge.
Starkey said that staff also considered the idea of running a small light rail vehicle along the rail line, but said there are questions around how the train service would run and what kinds of stations would be required: “It would be a really challenging operation to pull off.”
Starkey said the city planned to reopen only the eastbound lane because of the high volume of commuters heading east each day and to allow emergency vehicles to access the harbor quickly from Santa Cruz. Allowing two-way traffic on the eastbound lanes likely wouldn’t improve traffic jams in the area, he said, since the timing on stoplights on either side of the bridge can’t be updated or changed to provide better traffic flow.
City of Santa Cruz Economic Development Manager Rebecca Unitt said potential low-interest business loans would reach up to $25,000 with a four-to-six-year term and 4% to 5% interest rate. Loans up to $50,000 at the same interest rate could be possible, too.
Many members of the public attended Tuesday’s meeting and expressed sympathy and support for the struggling businesses, with some advocating for a light rail vehicle along the rail bridge and others pushing for a temporary path on the rail line.
Business owners, including La Posta owner Patrice Boyle and Java Junction owner Michael Spadafora, expressed frustration with the project’s pace and the city’s communication with businesses, while Linda’s Seabreeze Cafe owner Mark Magdaleno said he’s “a little worried” about his five-year lease.
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