Santa Cruz City Council unanimously backs live music at Woodhouse Brewing

An appeal that would have limited Woodhouse Blending & Brewing’s ability to host outdoor entertainment was denied Tuesday afternoon by the Santa Cruz City Council, concluding a yearlong saga in which the craft brewery has sought permanent approval from the city to host its popular live music events. 

In September, city planning commissioners unanimously granted a change of use to Woodhouse that would allow it to host live entertainment outside at its brewery and taproom on Madrone Street in an industrial area near the Sash Mill, but the decision was appealed by a nearby business owner shortly after. 

In an appeal filed at the end of September, Guy Mitchell, the owner of Lighthouse Windows, which is adjacent to Woodhouse, and his wife, real estate agent Stacey Mitchell, said they plan to eventually build an apartment complex on their property, and worry that its proximity to a live music venue would reduce the property’s value. They also expressed concern over how the city’s noise limit of 79 decibels – about as loud as a busy city street – would be imposed. 

At the city council meeting, the Mitchells were represented by attorney Christopher Boscia, who said that his clients wished to withdraw the appeal, with the exception of two concerns related to the noise study conducted by Salter, Inc. of the area. They believed that the ambient noise level of the area was incorrect, and should be reevaluated, and that it had been measured in the wrong area, further skewing the results. 

During opening remarks, city senior planner Ryan Bane suggested revisiting the sound study in order to maintain Woodhouse’s compliance in the future. Boscia said he believed this action would be sufficient for the Mitchells. 

Ultimately, the Mitchells want to see all the businesses in the area succeed, said Boscia. “They’re happy to see the growth in business in the area. They want to allow their tenants to succeed. And so we want to find a happy middle ground where everybody can move past this,” he said. 

Jamie Collins, the owner of Santa Cruz Core Fitness & Rehab, which neighbors Woodhouse, was one of around 15 community members who spoke during public comment. She said that Woodhouse’s live music disrupted her ability to conduct massage, acupuncture and other services to her clients in a “calm and centered space.” Over the past year, the number of clients on Friday evenings has declined due to overlap with Woodhouse’s events. 

“I don’t think it’s right, nor fair that one business should have precedence over the other,” said Collins, who said she is also a Woodhouse customer. “Whether there’s a sound ordinance or a sound study, it doesn’t matter to people who are in the room unable to relax and are now having a stress response because of the heavy bass.” Collins and Woodhouse owner Will Moxham have discussed how to mitigate the sound coming into her business over the years, but neither party has taken any significant steps, she said. 

Other community members, including Jace Earl, aka DJ Monk Earl, a musician who leads Woodhouse’s popular Afrobeat events, and nonprofit leaders and representatives of local businesses that have benefited from events held at Woodhouse, spoke in favor of denying the appeal, and noted the inclusivity of Woodhouse’s free events. 

Ultimately, the city council unanimously denied the appeal. “This is a business that is operating within the city code, and they have made all efforts to address noise issues. I don’t anticipate that they’re going to just drop that neighborly approach with the ability to operate as they’re requesting,” said Councilmember Sandy Brown. “The bottom line is, for our purposes today, they are following the rules set forth by the city, and the conditions of approval demonstrate that there will be accountability if that were to not be the case.”

Before the meeting, Moxham and co-owner Tug Newett were concerned that even if the appeal was denied, the council would impose other compliance measures that could be costly, such as conducting quarterly audio reports, which cost around $8,000 each. Moxham said he was relieved when those concerns did not materialize. 

In the immediate future, Moxham said he plans to purchase his own monitoring devices and invest in audio technology for visiting bands to use, rather than their own audio equipment. “We’re controlling the sound now,” said Moxham. He’s also considering building fencing that would reduce the sound, and be attractive. 

Outside of the council chambers after the meeting, the Mitchells clarified that they don’t want to shut down live music at Woodhouse, but they do want the sound to reach a level that works with all the businesses in the area. “We’re more interested in the volume decreasing overall,” said Stacey Mitchell. She said she has registered more than 103 decibels at their property, “which is just too loud.”

Guy Mitchell said he was glad to see Collins, whose business is a tenant of his, express her concerns to the council. “She wasn’t willing to stand up even in the planning commission meeting [in September], because there’s so much blowback from social media these days,” he said. After requesting a record of the noise complaints made about Woodhouse, they discovered that there were 22 complaints over two years. Neither Collins nor the Mitchells are responsible for the anonymous complaint that shut down Woodhouse’s events in August 2023, they said. 

Moxham, Newett and the Mitchells met briefly after the meeting to discuss ways they could work together in the future. Guy Mitchell said he’s optimistic that, now that the two groups are talking to each other directly, there will be a good outcome. 

“That’s what we’re after: a level of compromise that doesn’t include suffering from, not just us and Core [Fitness], but the other 22 complaints from the neighborhood who aren’t happy,” he said. 

“We’re going to try to work with the city to come up with a realistic method to enforce and see what that bears,” Mitchell added, “and hopefully continue to work with these people collaboratively so that we don’t have to get the city involved.”

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