Quick Take
Crews have started demolishing the former Dolphin Restaurant as part of repairs to the Santa Cruz Wharf that are expected to be completed by March. The wharf suffered damage in storms in December 2023.
Construction crews have started to demolish the former Dolphin Restaurant at the south end of the Santa Cruz Wharf, part of broader repairs to the wharf that are expected to be finished by the end of March.
The total cost of repairs will be just over $3 million, said Norm Daly, project manager for the City of Santa Cruz. The project will replace over 60 pilings — making up about a fifth of the pilings at the end of the wharf — that were damaged during severe storms in 2023.
Repairs will also include installation and replacement of associated structural elements, mechanical connectors and decking.
“Once the building is removed, our engineering construction company will start the replacement of the piles,” said Daly. “In association with the pile replacement, a lot of the framework underneath the work itself needs to be repaired as well. So it’s all like a package deal.”
Construction crews will work their way to the end of the wharf as the most significant damage is at the very end, said David McCormic, asset manager for the city’s economic development department.
He said the city looked at alternatives to removing the Dolphin Restaurant building, but they weren’t cost-effective.
Once the repairs to the wharf are finished, the city plans to collaborate with residents on what features could be added to the wharf, said McCormic. The addition of educational facilities and commercial space are likely following repairs, he added.
Public engagement is anticipated to kick off before the holidays and last until early spring, said McCormic.
“Our hope is really to teach this time to try it and engage our locals. If we go too far into the summer, we might be more heavily skewed toward tourism,” said McCormic. “We really want to make sure that we’re getting our local feedback, most importantly, and then we’ll sort of make the call from there.”
The last significant investment in repairs to the wharf was in the 1980s, and over the past 20 years, only about $4 million has been invested in infrastructure in the wharf apart from ongoing maintenance, said McCormic.
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