As Santa Cruz weighs a major downtown expansion and a new housing measure, Mayor Fred Keeley faces a defining week. Years of planning come to a head as the city debates growth, change and what kind of future it wants to build.
Changing Santa Cruz
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Why Santa Cruz needs a vampire bar: Could ‘Lost Boys’ tourism be our secret weapon?
The 1987 cult classic “The Lost Boys” has developed a deep association with the city in which it was shot, Santa Cruz. As downtown struggles to build toward a new future, wouldn’t a “Lost Boys” bar or cafe be just the thing to jumpstart interest in visiting Santa Cruz again?
Posted inBusiness & Technology
Anthropologie store slated for former New Leaf space on Pacific Avenue
In a recent meeting with Downtown Association of Santa Cruz members, the business organization’s director said it was “a verified rumor” and “good news” that home decor and clothing retail chain Anthropologie will move into the spot at Pacific and Soquel avenues in downtown Santa Cruz vacated last fall by New Leaf Community Markets.
Posted inBusiness & Technology
Empty space: Why some downtown Santa Cruz storefronts stay dark for years
Despite new business openings in downtown Santa Cruz, several high-profile storefronts on Pacific Avenue — including the former homes of Palace Art and Peet’s Coffee — have sat vacant for years, raising questions about barriers to revitalization. City leaders hope a proposed “vibrancy ordinance” will push property owners to lease long-empty spaces, but high renovation costs, permitting delays and market mismatches continue to stall progress.
Posted inHousing & Development
Grocery store, parking, a pedestrian mall — questions, answers and how the soda tax figures into downtown Santa Cruz’s makeover
Nationally recognized urban designer and consultant Robert Gibbs worked closely on downtown Santa Cruz a decade ago. We asked him about some of the issues facing downtown today.
Posted inWestside / Downtown
Downtown Santa Cruz is ‘safer than it’s ever been,’ police say, even as fears persist
In Santa Cruz, police say there hasn’t been any dramatic rise in downtown crime, even as some merchants report more aggressive confrontations since the pandemic. Business owners point to more visible mental health crises and drug use on the streets, while safety incidents that spread quickly on social media, for fueling public fears about downtown safety.
Posted inHousing & Development
Renewal or decline: Where is downtown Santa Cruz going?
When four prominent retailers all abandoned downtown Santa Cruz within the space of a few weeks, chatter about a downtown in decline began to grow louder. Lookout will be turning our eye to the rapid changes happening downtown, the economic ups and downs, and the profound transformation that could shift the area from a mainly commercial district to a residential neighborhood.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Santa Cruz officials get tough on downtown vacancies, approve a stimulus measure
The Santa Cruz City Council is taking action to address long-vacant downtown storefronts with the proposed Downtown Vibrancy Ordinance requiring upkeep plans, local management and city coordination. The broader resolution aims to boost downtown vitality through alleyway activation and business support.
Posted inHousing & Development
Texas-based developer’s eight-story proposal could kick off Santa Cruz’s downtown expansion
Downtown Santa Cruz is set for big changes in the coming years with a new, expanded downtown envisioned south of Laurel Street. A Texas-based developer wants to be the first one in the new neighborhood.
Posted inHousing & Development
Santa Cruz planning commission advances ambitious plan to reshape downtown with taller, denser buildings
More than four years in the making, Santa Cruz’s planning commission has advanced a sweeping proposal to extend the city’s downtown south of Laurel Street toward the coastline, an effort that aims to reshape the city’s urban core with new housing, taller buildings and walkable infrastructure. The proposal now heads to the city council.