Housing activist and emeritus UC Santa Cruz sociologist John Hall sees Santa Cruz’s choices about growth – particularly the placement of a new Warriors arena – as pivotal to the future. “Is our city to become a ‘San Jose-by-the-Sea’ with high-rise skyscrapers looming over Monterey Bay?” he asks, or a “gridlocked Saint-Tropez?” He thinks there is another way and looks to Santa Barbara as a model for building heights and human-scale architecture.
Changing Santa Cruz
Posted inHousing & Development
Facing significant rent hikes, some St. George Residences tenants feel hung out to dry
The St. George Residences along Pacific Avenue in downtown Santa Cruz will see rents rise substantially in 71 of its 122 units, due to an expiring 30-year agreement between the city and its owners. Although officials say the situation is unusual, the move comes at a time when homelessness among older adults is rising — and many of the 71 low-income studio apartments are occupied by seniors.
Posted inHousing & Development
Apple says it’s funding a housing project in Santa Cruz later this year — but local officials say ‘it’s news to us’
Apple’s newsroom announced an anticipated 2024 groundbreaking for a housing project in Santa Cruz that it is funding through its new Bay Area housing initiative, but details are few. The initiative’s goal is to help developers deliver “high-quality units faster and for significantly less” than current Santa Cruz costs.
Posted inHousing & Development
Parents, kids, and grandkids: How do we still live together in Santa Cruz?
The housing crisis in California is dividing families. We want to hear from homeowners with adult children not able to live locally, as well as from that younger generation itself, about the family dislocation brought on by the housing crunch.
Posted inHousing & Development
Workbench’s Clocktower Center finds pushback – and support – in second community meeting
At up to 16 stories and 260 units, the Clocktower Center proposed behind downtown Santa Cruz’s town clock is unlike anything seen in Santa Cruz County. However, the vision remains in the nascent stages, and developer Workbench has until September to submit a formal application.
Posted inHousing & Development
Downtown Santa Cruz’s 12-story, 1,600-unit SoLa vision around new Warriors arena aims to thread multiple needles
Both Mayor Fred Keeley and Santa Cruz Warriors President Chris Murphy reemphasized their support for the massive South of Laurel Area redevelopment plan at a Tuesday meeting. It aims to create a new neighborhood and entertainment district – one that bridges the space between downtown and the beach. Now, the plan moves from “study” to more planning staff work – and then on to public hearings next year.
Posted inLatest News
SoLa study session: City leaders, public get look at plan for downtown Santa Cruz’s arena/housing neighborhood south of Laurel
A joint city council/planning commission meeting Tuesday is the first step in moving forward with what is now a concrete plan for expanding downtown Santa Cruz into the area south of Laurel Street, with a new, permanent Warriors arena and up to 1,600 housing units.
Posted inHousing & Development
Clocktower developer: ‘It’s not possible’ for politics to stop housing project that could rise to nearly 200 feet
Local developer Workbench formally introduced its ambitious proposal for the Clocktower Center to the community in a virtual meeting Wednesday. The 16-story, 260-unit vision for the project would reset the potential development intensity in Santa Cruz County.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Motion Pacific dance studio struggles to find new home
Motion Pacific will have to be out of its Front Street studio space — its home since 2011 — by Sept. 30. The building’s owner is Santa Cruz Seaside Co., the parent company of the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Seaside spokesperson Kris Reyes said, “Our plan is to use the space to support Boardwalk operations.”
Posted inBusiness & Technology
After years of holdups, luxury La Bahia hotel project moves closer to spring 2025 debut
“We don’t just want to be another luxury hotel on the California coast; we want to be Santa Cruz’s luxury hotel,” says an exec at one of the companies spearheading the La Bahia Hotel & Spa along Beach Street on the Santa Cruz waterfront. La Bahia will include 155 guest rooms, as well as four restaurants and bars.