Quick Take
Santa Cruz Rehearsal Studios is for sale. Its longtime owner-operators, Jenn and Paul Gallacher, hope to sell to someone who wants to keep the music rehearsal spaces on Coral Street open and continue running the business.
With the Santa Cruz music scene currently focused on the proposed demolishing and rebuilding of the city’s most famous downtown club, The Catalyst, many have missed another change at a separate local music staple. On Dec. 11 via social media, Santa Cruz Rehearsal Studios (SCRS) co-owners Jennifer and Paul Gallacher announced that they’re “ready to retire from running the rehearsal studio full-time” so the couple are selling the business.
“It’s a lot of nights and weekends,” Paul said. “So we’re ready to pass that torch on to somebody who can give that energy.”
The Gallachers initially listed the business at the beginning of December at $80,000, but recently lowered their asking price to $55,000. They already own the building, so they could close the business and rent the space out to someone else. However, the couple hopes to entice the right buyer who understands the rehearsal studio’s significant role in keeping local music alive and well.
“We’re trying to make it more affordable for a musician to take it over,” said Jennifer.
Located at 118 Coral Street across from the Housing Matters campus, SCRS has been the place for local and traveling musicians to gather and practice. By keeping rental fees affordable ($18 to $23 per hour, depending on the room) and offering an array of gear and equipment to rent at minimal fees ($1 per hour for some pieces or a $5 flat rate for others), SCRS has kept the business singing for over a decade.
“We’ve been keeping residential neighbors happy for 15 years,” Paul said with a laugh. “Because — as much as I love it — I wouldn’t want people practicing next door to my house.”
SCRS has become more than just a rehearsal studio, and the Gallachers are pillars in the local scene.
“We call it ‘Church on Thursdays,’” said 3upFront singer Adam Pierce, referring to his band’s weekly rehearsals. The long-running punk band has been practicing at SCRS since it opened in 2010.
“It’s a sanctuary not only for our music, passions and dreams but it’s also provided so much mental health,” Pierce said. “Paul remembers your name because he’s a part of the community.”
Inciters drummer Matthew “Macabre” Valenzuela said if no one steps up to buy the business and SCRS were to close, its absence would resound throughout the local music community.
“It would be a huge loss,” he said. Valenzuela has practiced at SCRS with several local bands like the Inciters, the Fit and the Infamous Swanks. “It would be like losing another venue, you know? Where are people going to practice? Where are people going to go to learn their instruments?”
SCRS continually hosts a who’s-who of local musicians. Legacy bands like Good Riddance practice there along with newcomers that have taken the hardcore punk world by storm such as Scowl, Drain and the now-defunct Gulch. County Supervisor Justin Cummings’ old band, The Judas Goat, practiced there along with Seized Up and Arsonists Get All the Girls. Current groups A Band of Orcs, FUX, C.R.A.P., Stumpgrinder and so many more continue to call it home along with dozens of others on any given week. Gather the local bands together, point in a random direction and you’ll probably find someone who practices — or has practiced — at the studio off Coral Street.
But it’s not just locals who have enjoyed the serenity provided by SCRS. When passing through the area, international acts like Neko Case, President Brown and the Itals have all played within SCRS’ walls.
“Iggy Azalea was the funniest,” Paul Gallacher said. “She was not happy to be here because we didn’t have a cushioned chair for her to sit on. I even offered her a cup of coffee but got a real screw face from her.”
As the Gallachers also own the building, they are hoping to sell just the business to someone who wants to run it for the next 15 years and beyond. They say they are willing to teach the new owners how to do everything, from bookkeeping to day-to-day operations, in order to make sure the studio has a prosperous future.
Not that making a profit will be hard.
According to the Gallachers, the business has always been in the black. SCRS opened its doors in 2010 and the couple purchased the building three years later, then invested in renovations to make the space work as a full-time rehearsal studio.
According to a 2024 profit and loss statement, which the Gallachers shared, SCRS made a gross profit of $98,680 and a net income of $57,265. “We have never tried to make a bunch of money off of local music. It has always been about keeping it affordable,” Jenn said.
The decision to sell comes more than two years after the controversial Coral Street Visioning Report was released. The initial draft was drawn up without the Gallachers’ knowledge and included a proposal to use their building as part of the Housing Matters campus – which, understandably, came as a shock to the couple. The music community came together to plead the Gallachers’ case, and city staff drew up a new draft that excluded 118 Coral St. soon after.
The Gallachers said even before that report, there was never any animosity between the rehearsal studio and the shelter. Since then, they have worked even closer together.
“They worked with us to put in a new gate,” Jennifer said. “So now we have an electric gate that has really helped with the parking.”
Despite what some might think, Paul said he has always had open communication with the people encamped on Coral Street and there have never been serious issues.
“I know it may look scary to someone who’s driving in from a neighborhood where that’s not an issue,” he said. “But they’re just people. There’s always been people out there, and it’s ebbed and flowed the entire time I’ve been here. It really reached its peak before COVID.”
Jenn, 50, said she plans to continue to work her other job for health insurance coverage, while Paul, 53, plans to find another gig. “He is ready to have a more traditional lifestyle than the rock ‘n’ roll rehearsal studio life,” she said.
They are hoping to seal a deal sometime within the next year but don’t want to rush anything, saying they’ll take the time to find the perfect fit.
“All offers will be considered,” Paul said.
It’s a sentiment Jennifer wholeheartedly agrees with.
“Make us an offer!” she said. “We’re flexible and willing to work with people. This is a DIY operation and we don’t want to scare away any people if they have ideas. If you think it could be a thing, talk to us.”
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