New Leaf Community Markets brand manager Lindsay Gizdich said the store is moving from Pacific Avenue in order to have…
Development
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Anti-density stances are bad for Santa Cruz — so are ballot initiatives on building heights
Economist Richard McGahey responds to Housing for People activist Susan Monheit’s Sept. 15 Lookout piece. The two have been engaged in a lively public debate about changes to downtown Santa Cruz and the usefulness of a ballot initiative on tall buildings Housing for People is trying to get on the March ballot. McGahey, whose 2023 book on inequitable cities was nominated for a National Book Award, is against the initiative. “Not only do we voters not know enough, but such voting actually is anti-democratic, favoring wealthier people and homeowners,” he says.
Posted inHousing & Development
What’s our vibe? Can Santa Cruz learn from Miami Beach?
Urban muraling, colorful and unique lifeguard towers and more. Santa Cruz finds itself in the throes of some big changes brought about by the ambitious plans for development, ones that could make the city look and feel radically different in just a few years. So it’s time to ask: What can or should the city or its residents do to assert its personality in the public sphere? We want your ideas — drawn from your travels and experiences.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Santa Cruz needs to stay a beach town: Let the people vote on high rises
Santa Cruz housing activist Susan Monheit believes Santa Cruz’s iconic status as a beloved beach town is endangered by planned development. Here, she responds to critiques by economist Richard McGahey, who, in a recent Lookout piece, called her advocacy and a petition by Housing for People circulating for the March 2024 ballot “misguided.” Below, she unpacks what Housing for People does and does not do.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Santa Cruz needs more housing density; misguided advocates are making our housing problems worse
Economist Richard McGahey, who has held federal, state and local leadership roles and is regarded as a national expert on urban and regional economic development, has a message for Santa Cruz: Stop supporting misguided housing petitions and policies aimed at curtailing growth. The only way to move Santa Cruz off the list of the nation’s most expensive cities, he says, is to build. He lives part-time in Santa Cruz and points to the petition by the group Housing for People as an example of ill-considered advocacy.
Posted inHousing & Development
Shiny facades herald emergence of new-look downtown Santa Cruz, with housing coming in 2024
Now built out and putting on their public faces, the Anton Pacific Apartments and Center/Cedar developments are approaching their final shapes. New housing units will be available next year as other projects — including the new downtown library — aim for 2025.
Posted inUncategorized
West Cliff condo project can move forward after Coastal Commission denies appeal
Resident group Save Santa Cruz Westside had long lobbied against the proposed four-story, 47-foot tall mixed-use development with 89 residential units adjacent to the Dream Inn at 190 West Cliff Dr., arguing that it was inconsistent with the city’s land-use plan for the local coastal zone.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
We need wider sidewalks and protected bike lanes in Santa Cruz: Let’s rethink our rights-of-way
We should be using 20 to 30% of our city land better, write urban planner Stephen Svete and Strong Towns advocate John Mulry. They believe in prioritizing bikes over cars, walking over parking and creating communities rather than transport corridors. Locally, that would mean narrowing our roads and adopting protected bike lanes, investing in more tree planters, curb extensions and more. “As Santa Cruz undergoes its biggest facelift since the 1989 earthquake, this is an ideal time to be talking about this,” they say.
Posted inHousing & Development
Civil grand jury dings Scotts Valley, Capitola over affordable housing — and exponential increases are still ahead
By 2031, under state mandates, Capitola will need to boost its affordable housing permitting by roughly 9,000% over what it permitted between 2015 and 2022; Scotts Valley will need to permit 803 new income-restricted units, a more than 4,000% increase. That comes after both jurisdictions struggled to meet state goals from 2015 through 2022, and both come in for criticism in a recent report by Santa Cruz County’s civil grand jury.
Posted inUncategorized
State commission poised to reject $25 million funding request for future Highway 1 upgrade
Last week, California transportation officials recommended against $25 million in funding for Phase 3 of the Highway 1 expansion project that was expected to break ground in 2025, part of the $83 million still needed for the project. The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission is moving forward with the environmental review and design phase, and the California Transportation Commission will meet again at the end of June to make a final decision.