Santa Cruz Changes 66 - When the Levee Breaks

The title of my favorite Led Zeppelin song (yes, I'm old) leads in to a discussion of something we never think much about - until they break: the flood-protection levees lining the lower stretches of the San Lorenzo River and Pajaro River. 

This past January we saw the Pajaro levee fail on the Monterey County side, flooding the town named for the river - Pajaro. Investigation of the causes pointed to, among other things, a failure to maintain the levee.

Santa Cruz took notice of that failure, and is also facing the need to re-certify the ability of the San Lorenzo levees to protect nearby residents from similar failures. That need led to the odd sight users of the Riverwalk have noticed: numerous small puddles of concrete grout scattered along the levee top.

The photo above-right is from a good article published recently by Lookout Santa Cruz. It explains that the purpose of the grouting is to fill ground squirrel burrows that reduce the structural integrity and water-retaining ability of the levees, which are really nothing more than two long piles of rocks. The article goes on to look at contractor errors in distinguishing rodent burrows from native-plant restoration diggings, but that's another story.

Local history buffs will know that the levees (along with the concrete Branciforte Creek channel) were designed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) in response to the major flooding of December 1955. Part of the deal was that ACE would maintain the levees at first, gradually handing over responsibilities to the city/county. As the Lookout article explains:

The city took over management of the levee from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in July 2020 following the completion of the levee construction, which began in 1955. The management changeover started a three-year clock, which runs out this month, for the city to get accreditation for the levee from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). If received, this would allow residents living near the river to maintain their discounted flood insurance.

Another thing highlighted in the Lookout article is how the local nonprofit Coastal Watershed Council has been very active in all matters relating to the health of the San Lorenzo River. Two thumbs up to Executive Director Laurie Egan, CWC staff, and the many volunteers who assist in these efforts. 

Santa Cruz Changes 65 - 190 West Cliff

This big multi-use project got design approval from the city way back in 2019. That approval was appealed to the Coastal Commission, which is finally going to hear the appeal this month. 

The site has been, for many years, the Dream Inn parking lot. In this design, the hotel parking will remain, but underground.

The rendering above-right is a view from across West Cliff Drive, at the Dream Inn entrance. The central space is a recessed courtyard, surrounded by retail/public uses. Above the street level on this side are apartments. The top-floor units will each have a private rooftop deck.

The view at left is another rendering by the project architect, looking toward the Dream Inn tower from Bay Street. The brown fence at left is the one surrounding the existing mobile home park. 

As can be seen in the rendering, the new buildings are separated from existing ones by a wide driveway with entrances on both streets, similar to the existing parking lot design. 

Also in this rendering, the existing condos can be seen on the right side of Bay Street. I don't know if the city plans to do away with the existing metered street parking there, which is not shown in this rendering.

While it's not hard to imagine a project design that would be more appealing to existing residents, it's also hard to argue that this project won't be better looking than the existing parking lot. Of course, a blessing by the Coastal Commission doesn't tell us when/if this will actually be built; or, if it is, whether it will look anything like these renderings. We'll have to watch what happens in coming years.