Quick Take
Scotts Valley’s decadeslong quest for a vibrant downtown hub could move closer to reality this week, as city leaders are set to decide on a pivotal land purchase and affirm residents’ vision for a community-centered Town Center, featuring housing, retail and gathering spaces.
For decades, Scotts Valley’s aspiration for its own downtown has evaded the many elected officials, city executives and residents who have named it as a top priority.
Now, that elusive dream appears within reach. On Wednesday, the Scotts Valley City Council is scheduled to vote on a deal to finally purchase from the City of Santa Cruz the rest of the vacant, 14-acre lot designated for the redevelopment between Skypark and Mount Hermon Road and the Kings Village Shopping Center. The elected decision-makers will also vote to affirm city residents’ chosen vision for the Town Center’s layout.
The vote to purchase the property comes months after a $1 million federal grant to assist the real estate transaction injected new life into the Town Center project. Federal cash comes with a bevy of its own requirements, and the city had to conduct an environmental analysis that wrapped up on Nov. 20, according to a staff report on the purchase.
The city has agreed to buy the remaining 8 acres of the 14-acre lot for roughly $7.8 million, with the federal grant serving as the down payment in a longer, eight-year financing plan with the City of Santa Cruz. According to the staff report, Scotts Valley expects to eventually sell the property to a private developer, which would help mitigate the land cost.
The city council will also advance a broad-stroked vision for the development of the Town Center property. Over the past year, residents have weighed in on their preferred layout of the Town Center, zeroing in on questions of parking and housing density, community gathering spaces and the amount of square footage dedicated to retail and restaurant spaces.
The most popular vision with residents included, at minimum, 300 housing units with at least 25% reserved for income-restricted tenants. Two new streets will be built to host businesses with on- and off-street parking “for that Downtown feel” according to the staff report. It will also include two large “flexible parcels” for housing or mixed-use developments, as well as two new plazas meant to welcome outdoor dining and community gatherings. The Town Center’s main street will feature a new, permanent amphitheater for events.
“This preferred vision is not a plan,” the staff report said. “It is not set in stone. Rather, it is a tool to guide interested developers, letting them know what the community is looking for,” and to streamline the process to design and begin building the project.
If the city council approves, staff expects to begin requesting development proposals sometime in 2025. The chosen developer would then present a more tailored design and purchase the property. The project’s groundbreaking could still be years away.
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