Santa Cruz Changes 108: 831 Water Street - again

The first page of the submitted plan set is the image above, showing a current view of the project site, as seen from the Water street-Branciforte Ave. intersection. Below is one of the developer's renderings of the finished project from the same vantage, which includes some fanciful street changes that are not part of the proposal. 

This site was the subject of Changes 21, back in June of 2021. On the development proposal submitted at that time, that post opined: "It's not hard to envision a re-development that would improve on what's there now. The proposed structure, however, is a massive change that will be strenuously opposed by many of its residential neighbors. Several years of permit applications, presentations, and public meetings lie ahead, so we won't know for some time how this turns out."

That turned out to be true, and the original proposal was withdrawn. Now, developers are ready to try again, with a somewhat scaled-down version and even more help from state housing policies. According to a Santa Cruz Sentinel story: "The building would contain 800 square feet of retail space, 2,500 square feet of work/live units, a community room, shared spaces, on-site laundry and a manager’s office on the ground ground floor. In sum, the building would contain 140 housing units that are a mix of studios, one, two, three-bedroom and work/live apartments." Gone from the first proposal, among other non-housing elements, is the controversial rooftop restaurant/bar.

An online community meeting is planned. From the city's project page: 

"What: 831 Water St. mixed-use development online community meeting
When: 6 to 7:30 p.m., Nov. 20
Where: Online via Zoom at us06web.84416407747"

Santa Cruz Changes 107: Soquel Drive at 41st Avenue

This corner has been waiting a long time for Changes. A Nissan car-dealership proposal was approved by the County in 2018, but a lawsuit stopped completion of permitting. Then the end of the COVID recession brought inflation in construction costs, causing the owner to give up on the idea, and the eight adjoining parcels went back on the market. Fast forward to 2024 and new owners: housing developer Pacific West Companies/Linc Housing Corporation are proposing a 289-unit affordable housing development. Watch for the probable next step soon - a pre-application public presentation.

The image above is from a Lookout Santa Cruz article by Wallace Baine. More info is in a 2022 LSC article by Max Chun.

Santa Cruz Changes 106: Kresge College, UCSC

The photo above shows the new academic center building at Kresge College, on the UCSC campus, as approached from the end of the long elevated bridge spanning a deep ravine.

Unlike the new East Meadow housing (Changes 95), much of the built environment of UCSC is hidden in the redwoods. So, for those Santa Cruzans who don't have regular business on campus, it's easy to lose track of what's going on up there. Kresge College - one of the original five - is in the middle of a major expansion and, at the same time, a major renovation of the existing campus, whose early-1970s construction has not proven robust enough to survive the passing years.

The project continues, as seen in the photo below:

   

Santa Cruz Changes 105: Another week, another public meeting

This upcoming week's meeting is on Monday, and concerns a proposed mixed-use development project in the 900 block of Water Street, between Branciforte Avenue and across from Branciforte School. The proposal is similar to many others we've seen recently, with one exception - the 105 residential units are all single-room-occupancy (SRO). 

A similar project proposal for this site was approved in 2022, so this meeting will present modifications to that proposal. Here's an excerpt copied from the City project webpage:

Below is a Google Street View image of the 900 block, seen from the Branciforte Avenue intersection.

p.s. Follow-up to post 104, about the Silver Spur property: Lookout Santa Cruz has a report on the meeting.

Santa Cruz Changes 104: Public meeting at Silver Spur

A new development is proposed for several parcels on Soquel Drive between Santa Cruz and Capitola, including the site of the venerable Silver Spur restaurant. The proposal is to be presented at a public meeting scheduled for Oct. 17, as reported by Wallace Baine for Lookout Santa Cruz:

"The community meeting to talk about the plans for the Silver Spur property takes place at the restaurant, 2650 Soquel Dr., on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 7 p.m. The public is invited. . . . 

     [Silver Spur’s owner, Daniel] Govea said that the project will feature 189 units of housing on a site that includes the Spur and some neighboring businesses and properties."

 

The image at right is a Google satellite view of the area. I have not yet seen plans showing the developer's proposal, so it's not yet clear which parcels are included.

 

Santa Cruz Changes 103: Mobile murals

In 2023 SCMTD began, with the help of several local artists, to transform a number of Santa Cruz public transit buses into rolling works of art. By the end of 2024, SCMTD expects to have 30 buses repainted with images from famed nature photographer Franz Lanting and others. And next year the buses will have a new transit center to park in. 

Santa Cruz Changes 102: 1811-1815 Mission Street

 

Another week, another informational meeting on another Workbench mixed-use development project. Those people are busy! The images above are a finished-project rendering from the developer on the left and a current site view on the right, seen from approximately the same direction on Mission Street. Below is info from the city, including about a community meeting this coming Monday, Sep. 30.

"Project Description

• Project Size: Large Development Project
• City of Santa Cruz Project Number: CP24-0122 (SB330 Preapplication)
• Addresses: 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street
• Project Status: Visit Etrakit for Most Current Status and the Assigned Planner

SB330 Only Preapplication to combine three lots and construct a six-story mixed use development with a partial rooftop deck consisting of ground floor commercial space and 68 residential units on a property located within the C-C (Community Commercial) zone district and within the Mission Street Urban Design Plan Area.

Community Meetings/Webinars

A community meeting is required pursuant to the City's Community Outreach Policy for Planning Projects, and the feedback provided may contribute to alterations in the project design and additional project entitlements.

September 30, 2024 Virtual Community Meeting:

On September 30, 2024 a virtual community meeting will be held for 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street, CP24-0122. Below you will find the link to the community meeting. For those who cannot attend, the community meeting will be recorded, posted, and available on this webpage after the meeting.

Join the Virtual Public Community Meeting for 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street on September 30, 2024 at 6:00 PM. 

You are invited to attend a Public Community Meeting, to be held on Monday, September 30, 2024 from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM, for the project application related to 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street, Project Number: CP24-0122.

Community members can click the link below to join the community meeting:

• When: September 30, 2024 6:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
• Topic: Virtual Community Meeting for Project 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street (CP24-0122)
• Webinar Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85322601044 
• Webinar ID: 853 2260 1044
• Call:  669 444 9171

Contact Information

Associate Planner, Rina Zhou

(831) 420-5104; rzhou@santacruzca.gov" 

Santa Cruz Changes 101: Soquel Avenue and Soquel Drive

Update: An earlier version of this post confused the Soquel-Drive-at-Thurber-Lane project with a project at 1024 Soquel Avenue, in the City of Santa Cruz; for which there will be a public informational meeting tomorrow. From the city website:

"Community members can click the link below to join the community meeting:

When: September 16, 2024 06:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Topic: Virtual Community Meeting for Project 1024 Soquel Avenue (CP24-0100)

Webinar Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81098434200 

Webinar ID: 810 9843 4200

Call:  669 444 9171"

 

And at Soquel Drive at Thurber Lane: 

Those who have been around Santa Cruz for more than a few years will remember this site as the long-vacant corner of Thurber Lane where a big Christmas tree lot used to set up every year, on Soquel Drive just east of Dominican Hospital. The Anton/Devco development firm is now proposing a five-building project on the corner site, with 188 apartments. The rendering below is a by the developer, looking from Soquel Drive, with Thurber Lane on the left. More information, and a complete plan set, are available from the Anton Solana website. 

Santa Cruz Changes 100: Progress Report part 2

Here's the second half of the report. The more recent posts are mostly about developments that are still in early stages of the planning/permitting process, which takes a while, so only those projects that are completed or under construction will be noted here.

Completed:

• 530 Center Street "Mas Paseos"] (Changes 57, February 18, 2023). The walkway from the end of Cathcart Street at Cedar Street through to Center Street, is now open - as shown in the photo above. 

Under Construction:

• 119 Coral Street (Changes 55, February 4, 2023). Groundbreaking ceremony Sep. 17.
• 111 Errett Circle (Changes 60, April 8, 2023). Demolition is complete, site prep underway.
• Pure Water Soquel (Changes 83, March 2, 2024). Construction seems to be nearing completion.
  
• Chanticleer Ave. pedestrian bridge (Changes 82, February 17, 2024). Construction seems to be nearing completion. 
• Capitola Avenue overpass [Highway 1] (Changes 84, March 11, 2024). Under construction; demolition of old bridge complete.
• UCSC East Meadow housing (Changes 95, June 29, 2024). Site prep continues.
• The Park at Rispin Mansion [Capitola] (Changes 96, July 6, 2024). Completion expected in October.

Santa Cruz Changes 99: Progress Report

During the past three years, this blog has reported on a lot of development projects involving large new buildings. It's August, a time of year when projects that are going to break ground this year have already done so. So which ones are completed, which are under construction, and which have not started? Here are the first 50 - remainder to come next week.

Completed:

• Pacific-Laurel-Front (Changes 4, March 6, 2021). All of the construction fencing was removed a few weeks ago, and the on-site leasing office is open.
• 1547 Pacific Avenue (Changes 6, March 22, 2021). Opened in 2021; still no tenants in any of the street-level retail spaces.
• Delaware Addition (Changes 7, March 27, 2021). The two commercial buildings and one apartment building in the back have been completed. What in 2021 looked like the beginning of construction on a larger residential development proposed for the west side of Panetta Lane was apparently just a staging area for the other buildings. That large still-fenced lot now shows no activity, and city records show no active permit application. 
• 350 Ocean Street (Changes 13, May 16, 2021). Completed in 2021.
• Water Street Apartments (Changes 18, June 20, 2021). Completed in 2021.
• Beach Street (Changes 35, October 23, 2021). The Marea Sol hotel opened this year.
• Not Quite Beach Street (Changes 36, October 30, 2021). The Courtyard hotel on Riverside Ave. opened in 2022. La Quinta hotel on Second Street opened in 2023.
• 1500 Capitola Road (Changes 43, December 18, 2021), Completed in 2022.
• Aptos library (Changes 45, January 15, 2022). Opened in 2024.
• 530 Center Street Mixed-Use (Changes 50, June 18, 2022). Just opened.
  
 

Under Construction:

• 418-508 Front Street (Changes 9, April 17, 2021). Now up to the second level, even with the levee top.
• Pacific Station South (Changes 21, July 10, 2021). Nearly complete, should open this year.
• Pacific Station North (Changes 22, July 17, 2021). Broke ground this year.
• Beach Street (Changes 35, October 23, 2021). The La Bahia hotel will probably open next year.
• Rail Trail (Changes 49, February 19, 2022). The California-to-Pacific segment should be completed this year.
  
 

Not started:

• 831 Water Street (Changes 19, June 26, 2021). No activity on permit application since 2021.
• 324 Front Street (Cruz Hotel, Changes 40, November 27, 2021). Still in the planning permit process. Revised plans were submitted in 2023.
• 130 Center Street (Changes 41, December 4, 2021). The Calypso apartments project was approved by the City Council in January, 2022. An application for a 6-month permit to use the property temporarily as a parking lot was approved on July 31.
  

An update on changes in downtown retail tenant changes will follow, sometime later this year.

Santa Cruz Changes 98: 831 Almar

The previous post concerned the proposed development at 850 Almar, in the empty triangular lot formed by Almar Avenue, Rankin Street, and the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail - aka "the rail trail". Across Almar is the site of another proposed development, at 831 Almar. The view above looks at the site from where the rail trail crosses Almar. 

The development proposal, by the local firm called Workbench, began the approval process sooner than 850 Almar, but will probably take longer, because it's larger, mixed-use, and the apartments will not be 100% affordable. The rendering below looks at the development from Almar Avenue, with a bit of the rail trail seen at far left. We'll compare and contrast these two proposals later, as they move through the approvals process. Note that, because of recent state legislation, the process will be much quicker than in the past.

Santa Cruz Changes 97: the 850 Almar Triangle

For years, I've walked past the large triangular vacant lot across Almar Avenue from the Westside Safeway shopping center, wondering if anything would ever happen there. It appears that the wait is nearly over. At right is an aerial view of what it looks like now. Along the bottom of the triangle is the Rail Trail.

Here's an architectural rendering of the proposed 38-unit 100% "affordable" apartment development, from beyond the upper point of the triangle in the view above. 

And below is some of the city planning dept. info about the project and the upcoming August 7 Planning Commission public hearing:

Santa Cruz Changes 96: The Park at Rispin Mansion

 

Restoration has been a long time coming to Capitola's Rispin Mansion, and it has often seemed like it would never come at all. The now-unusable 7,000+ square-foot mansion was last occupied in 1959, and the City of Capitola bought the property in 1985, but just this year construction finally began to turn the landscaped and extensively hardscaped grounds into a city park named "The Park at Rispin Mansion". In 2011, the city "entombed" the building by restoring its roof and floor, and closing up all openings to the outside. No further restoration of the building is planned. Situated across Wharf Road from the new Capitola library (see Changes post #), the new park will be another nice public amenity in that neighborhood.

Santa Cruz Changes 95: UCSC East Meadow housing underway

The Santa Cruz Sentinel published the photo above on June 20. The caption reads:

"A drone photo taken Thursday morning shows the grading that has taken place in the East Meadow at UC Santa Cruz as construction has begun near the intersection of Coolidge and Hagar drives for a project UCSC is calling Student Housing West. According to the university, the project will provide housing for about 3,000 students at two sites, which will be constructed in two phases. The first phase, known as the Hagar Development, will take up about 120,000 assignable square feet on 17 acres in the East Meadow. The development, which is intended for students with families, will include 140 two-bedroom apartment units in 35 two-story, four-plex buildings, a childcare facility, community building, a maintenance building and a wastewater treatment plant. The second phase of the project, known as the Heller Development, includes approximately 950 housing units in six, five to seven-story buildings spanning 780,000 assignable square feet that are a mix of apartment and communal style units and a new wastewater treatment plant. University staff and faculty were joined by a coalition of community members who fought unsuccessfully to stop the project, saying that the East Meadow should be preserved as a natural landscape. They also challenged the university’s promise to offer affordable rents. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)"

As noted in the caption, this is a two-phase project on two widely-separated sites on the UCSC campus. The Hagar Development, located at one of the most open and prominent street corners on the campus, will replace the view below:

 

Santa Cruz Changes 94: The Clocktower is ticking

Local developer Workbench has taken the lead in applying recent state law changes to local project proposals, especially in regard to building height. 

The state has taken the position that increasing the housing supply (especially "affordable" housing) takes precedence over local zoning rules. 

The latest proposal by Workbench (actually a pair of proposals), tentatively named Clocktower Center, pushes the new state law envelope to its limits, envisioning a building up to either 8 or 16 stories in height, while contending that the city can do little to limit height.

The proposal is still in the pre-application phase, and a community meeting (Zoom only) is scheduled for June 26. More info available on the city project page. 

There will no doubt be substantial local opposition, and there likely will be additional posts here as the proposal progresses. It will be interesting to watch how this plays out. 

Another Workbench project, the Food Bin replacement building, is farther along in the planning/permitting process (see an intro in post #85). More info on that project is available on the city's project page. 

Santa Cruz Changes 93: City Seeks Public Input on South of Laurel Plan

The City of Santa Cruz Planning and Community Development Dept. is moving along on potential rezoning to promote its South of Laurel redevelopment vision (Downtown Plan Expansion). 

As reported last August in Santa Cruz Changes #67, the plan aims to facilitate some big changes to the area surrounding the Kaiser Permanente Arena. 

The overhead view above-right shows the project study area outlined in red. Laurel Street is the top limit line. KP Arena is the large white rectangle near the river at upper right. The Depot Park soccer fields are the green area at far left, outside the red boundary line. 

The City is now asking for public review and comment on the latest version of the plan. From the project website:

"Public comments are welcome on the Downtown Plan Expansion from May 31 to July 10, 2024.

The plan consists of two equally important parts: a New Appendix 8 for the Downtown Plan. Proposed amendments to the existing Downtown Plan, Chapter 4, Development Standards and Design Guidelines.

The two pieces work together to create the public and private spaces that will evolve over the coming decades within this neighborhood. Comments welcome via email to Senior Planner Sarah Neuse."

Santa Cruz Changes 92: Preserving and Repurposing

A shout-out to Housing Matters, a local non-profit whose mission is to find solutions to local problems of homelessness. The organization's presence in the Harvey West neighborhood has grown steadily over the past nearly 40 years, most visibly with the Rebele Family Shelter that opened in 2005 at the corner of River Street and Coral Street. 

Santa Cruz Changes 55 noted the Housing Matters project at 119 Coral Street.

A more-recent acquisition, in 2023, was the nicely-preserved Victorian at 801 River Street. The former single-family-residence has now been repurposed as Casa Azul, described as "Housing Matters . . . first permanent supportive housing project". 

The transformation was accomplished without sacrificing the structure's historical integrity, and the colorful results can be seen below. 

Santa Cruz Changes 91 - 530-548 Ocean Street

The City of Santa Cruz will host a pre-application virtual community meeting tomorrow, May 20, for presentation of a new mixed-use project proposal at 530/542/548 Ocean Street. The concrete Branciforte Creek channel is adjacent to one end of the 3 parcels that will be combined. Four nondescript 2-story commercial buildings will be demolished to make way for the 6-story, 2-building mixed-use project. 

The size and style have become familiar - most of the recent mixed use projects are similar. This one can be compared to the project nearing completion next to Calvary Episcopal Church, on the former parking lot between Cedar Street and Center Street. 

Below the city info is a current Street View image, from approximately the same direction as the architectural rendering above. The City website says:

"Join us for the virtual community meeting to discuss 530, 542, 548 Ocean Street on Monday, May 20, 2024 at 6:00 PM. 

• Webinar: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82500719155 
• Webinar ID: 825 0071 9155
• Telephone option: 669-444-9171

For more information, please visit the calender invite."

Santa Cruz Changes 90 - Other closings (and reopenings)

In addition to The Dolphin restaurant (see previous post), several other long-time Santa Cruz County restaurants have recently closed or changed ownership. Most in the news is the former Mission Street site of Emily's Bakery, which closed after 41 years in business. The new owners have applied for permits to open a [medical] cannabis dispensary there, and there is substantial neighborhood opposition, but it looks like the city will eventually approve the application. The City Council will hear an appeal of the recent Planning Commission approval on May 14, in a public meeting. [5/16 update: the City Council approved, in a 6-1 vote]

Other closings and/or ownership changes in Santa Cruz include Soif Wine Bar & Merchants, on Walnut Avenue, which closed in 2022 and has reopened in 2024 as Hook and Line seafood restaurant. 

The fate of highly-rated Alderwoods seems uncertain after executive chef Jeffrey Wall quit suddenly. That followed the equally-sudden closing last fall. of the restaurant's second location on Pacific Avenue. 

A change of name to Cafe GSC failed to reverse the fortunes of the former Cafe Gratitude, which closed last October after 13 years of serving vegan-friendly fare in Santa Cruz.

Out in the Harvey West neighborhood, what is arguably Santa Cruz' oldest restaurant is for sale: the fate of the venerable Bocci's Cellar is up in the air until a new owner takes over. 

Out in Aptos, Cafe Sparrow is closing after 38 years, and Palapas restaurant is changing ownership and name after 34 years at its Seascape location. The new name will be Dos Pescados, with a similar Mexican seafood theme. If they keep the Palapas margarita recipes, all should be well. 

A shout-out here is in order to Lilli Belli, Lookout Santa Cruz reporter, for keeping us informed of all these changes.

Santa Cruz Changes 89: Dolphin's Demise?

 

City plans to remodel the Santa Cruz Wharf have been in the news repeatedly, and a clear picture of what that will look like has yet to emerge. 

One change, however, is definite: the building that has housed The Dolphin restaurant will soon be demolished. An article in Lookout Santa Cruz has more details.

Damage sustained to wharf supports in December 2023 storms can't be repaired with the current building remaining in place. Demolition of the restaurant building, which is owned by the city, is expected to begin soon, and wharf structural repairs will follow.

What happens after that on the far end of the wharf is very much up in the air. Will The Dolphin return? To find out, we'll have to wait for a final version of the Santa Cruz Wharf Master Plan.

Santa Cruz Changes 88 - Replacing the not-so-old

Shown above are two views of a multi-family housing project at 314 Jessie Street, now (2024) under construction. The upper image is an architectural rendering that replaces the previous buildings with a drawing of the proposed replacements. The lower image shows the same scene before demolition of the previous buildings. The recently-completed development at 350 Ocean Street (Changes 13) is visible at far left in both images.

There has been very little undeveloped land within the Santa Cruz city limits for quite some time, so most of today's development projects share a starting condition - existing structures that have to be removed to make way for the new construction. After a new building has been in place for a few years, it's easy to forget what was on that site previously, and one reason for this blog is to include images/descriptions of the "before" conditions. In most cases, the removed buildings were not loved and are not missed. The one recent exception is the La Bahia hotel project (Changes 35 and 51), where years of public opposition failed to prevent demolition of most of the historical apartment complex.

At the other end of the spectrum are projects like the 50-unit apartment complex shown above, which replaced existing 14-unit apartment buildings structures that were less than 50 years old. This proeject demonstrates an ending condition common to most recent residential development projects - increased density.

 

Santa Cruz Changes 87: Pacific Avenue updates

Back in 2021, early in the post-pandemic recovery, a series of posts (23-28) took a walk down Pacific Avenue, noting recent changes. Quite a few of those changes have changed again, and it's time for an update on a few notables.

The most highly-visible change is pictured above. The old beer garden at 1335 Pacific, abandoned by Starbucks in ~2019, is now our downtown place for donuts (no reviews yet).

Across the avenue at 1308, the former Marini's confectionary that sat empty for several years is now Gobi Mongolian Barbeque. Again, no reviews yet, but it smells good from the sidewalk.

At 1220, Rosie McCann's Irish Pub reopened (surprisingly!) after a lengthy pandemic shutdown.

At the Soquel Ave. corner, New Leaf Market has announced plans to move this branch out to Gateway Plaza, into the much-larger building now occupied by Ross clothiers. Here's hoping that a similar food retailer will take over the nicely-restored historical Bank of Italy building.  

The Metro Center site is now fenced off, and demolition should commence soon in preparation for the Pacific Station North project (see post #22). Across the street, the former Andy's Auto Supply store is still empty.

One business that has come and gone since 2021 - sadly for the few of us who enjoyed hanging out there - deserves mention: the funky-groovy cafe/art gallery/performance space at the corner of Laurel (previously called Munch and never officially changed). It was the kind of place you might have found in Santa Cruz in the late 1960s, but never caught on in this millenium, and closed early this year.

Across Laurel, the venerable Bonesio's Liquors has closed, and the property has been advertised for sale.  

Santa Cruz Changes 86: Walnut Avenue Commons

 

The condo-coop development seen above was completed in 2016, so noting it now is somewhat belated, but it was a significant change to the corner of Walnut Avenue and Center Street. The architecture is inoffensive, and certainly an improvement on the asphalt parking lot it replaced. The image below is from 2011.

Santa Cruz Changes 85: 1130 Mission Street

The northwest corner of Mission Street and Laurel Street has long been home to two modest 1-story buildings housing the Food Bin natural foods store and The Herb Room. An open parking lot separates the two. 

A proposal now before the city planning department would fill the lot with a 5-story multi-use building. Ground floor commercial space fronts on Mission Street, with covered parking behind, accessed from Laurel Street. 59 residential rental units stack above, on three sides of a central courtyard.

From the project website:

"On April 18th, 2023, a virtual community meeting was held by the applicant too present the proposed pre-application project (Project No. CP23-0003) and gather public feedback. For those who could not attend, below you will find the link to the recorded community meeting.

April18th, 2023, Community Meeting Recording"

The website also shows the project application scheduled for a Planning Commission meeting on Feb. 18, 2024, but the item did not appear on the agenda either for that meeting or for the Mar. 7 meeting, so current status is unclear.

Santa Cruz Changes 84: Capitola Avenue overpass

From Lookout Santa Cruz reporter Max Chun:

"Starting at 9 a.m. Monday [March 11], crews will begin the process of tearing down and rebuilding the Highway 1 overcrossing at Capitola Avenue, work that will keep the bridge between Soquel and Capitola shut down for more than a year. 

The construction is part of the ongoing Highway 1 expansion project, which includes adding new lanes that give motorists more space to merge at exit and entrance ramps and also serve as dedicated bus-on-shoulder lanes in some places, allowing buses to bypass traffic. The expansion project also includes adding new bicycle and pedestrian overcrossings. 

One such overcrossing at Chanticleer Avenue is already well on its way to completion [see Changes post #82]. But the Capitola Avenue overpass remake is just getting started. Crews plan to demolish the bridge and construct one that adds bike lanes and wider sidewalks. The overpass isn’t set to reopen until the summer or fall of 2025."

Santa Cruz Changes 83: Pure Water Soquel

Unlike the Santa Cruz Water agency, which gets much of our water from surface sources, Soquel Creek Water District depends entirely on 15 wells scattered throughout its service are from Live Oak to La Selva Beach. In recent years, demand has exceeded supply, resulting in an intrusion of salt water from Monterey Bay into underground aquifers. To offset part of that overdraft, Pure Water Soquel was created -  a huge project that, in a partnership with the Santa Cruz Wastewater Treatment plant, will inject treated waste water back into the aquifers via reverse wells.

Two new components of that system are now under construction. In Santa Cruz, big new pipelines are now hanging below each side of the Laurel Street bridge over the San Lorenzo River (see top photo). They terminate at the Santa Cruz Wastewater Treatment Facility next to Neary Lagoon. When completed, architectural panels attempting to imitate the stair-step design of the bridge piers will cover the pipes.

The other end of the long pipelines is the Water Purification Center, across Chanticleer Avenue from the bay-side end of the new pedestrian bridge over Highway 1 (also under construction - see post 82). Below is a recent photo of that work-in-progress. From there, purified water will enter more pipes, leading to three injection wells around Capitola.

Completion of pipeline construction is estimated for mid-May. I didn't find a completion estimate for the Purification Center, but my guess is sometime next year.

Note: the vote on Santa Cruz Measure M will be Tuesday, March 5. For a reminder of what brought Measure M about, see Changes 67, with an update on recent events.

Santa Cruz Changes 82: a bridge to nowhere?

 

Those of you who travel on Highway 1 between Santa Cruz and Capitola have seen the new pedestrian bridge under construction at Chanticleer Avenue (shown above). 

The original intent seems to have been to provide a walk/bike connection between the health care hub north of the freeway (around Dominican and Sutter hospitals) and developing health care-related facilities on the south side. The bridge approach on the south side begins in front of the County Sheriff facility, which opened in 2014. 

That development was to have been led by health-care giant Kaiser Permanente, which showed plans for a large new facility on Soquel Avenue (Hwy. 1 frontage road) near the corner of Chanticleer. The County planned to chip in with pedestrian/bike safety improvements to the northern segment of Chanticleer Avenue, a chaotic stretch where there are now no sidewalks or bike lanes.

But Kaiser abruptly changed its plans in May 2023, deciding to abandon the development plan. And now it appears that the County has put northern Chanticleer Ave. improvements on indefinite hold. Without those improvements, how many people are going to be brave enough to walk/ride on the street (Google Street View below)? We'll keep an eye on this one.  

Santa Cruz Changes 81: Zoning changes things

In the news recently: state efforts to encourage (or force) more housing density in single-family neighborhoods. A big obstacle to increased density is local zoning that limits how many housing units can be built on a parcel of a given size. Asking a city/county for permission to exceed the zoned density will almost always be answered with a big NO. 

When those cities/counties themselves decide that more density is desirable for  a certain neighborhood/area, they do it in a more planned manner - by changing the zoning to a designation that allows greater density. 

A couple of recent multi-family projects on a short section of May Avenue were probably facilitated by such a zoning change - from R-1 (one unit) to R-L (multiple units). The project at 448 May (above), now completed, replaced one residence with four attached townhomes, which is about the maximum number that can be fit onto a ~5,000 sq. ft. lot like this one.

A similar project (below) nearby is now working its way through the planning process, for a double-wide lot of ~10,000 sq. ft.  The double width allows a project that basically doubles the one at 448 May. Because the two buildings share one driveway, however, there's more than twice the area available for building footprints. Also, the units are smaller than those at 448 May, giving a total unit count of 16.

Note: across May Avenue from these two small projects is the site of the largest Santa Cruz multi-family project proposal in recent memory. That 400+ unit development application is still on hold after a couple of rounds of planning review, and will be described here when its fate becomes clearer.

Santa Cruz Changes 80: Lighthouse Field Improvements

 

Anyone who walks in Lighthouse Field during the rainy season knows that there are places where the path is likely to be underwater after recent rains. In January of 2024, State Parks has nearly completed weatherizing and accessibility upgrades to the main pathways. The map above, which can currently be found posted at the Pelton/Laguna path entrance, shows the extents of the program.

Low lying sections of paths have been given gravel surfaces and raised above the vernal pools that typically form once the ground becomes saturated with rainwater. The photo below, looking south toward West Cliff Drive (the lighthouse is out-of-frame to the left) shows one such raised path section, with a vernal pool beyond. In past years, this would have been one of those muddy spots. 

In addition to the pathway improvements, path entrances from Pelton Street and from West Cliff Drive have been given concrete curb-cut-style entrances to improve accessibility. One curious omission - which one hopes will soon be corrected - is where the new path paving should connect with the paved area in front of the Steamer Lane Supply food concession. There's a gap of about 20 feet between the two, which is currently a large mud puddle. 

Santa Cruz Changes 79: San Lorenzo Park redesign

Back in 2020, the Santa Cruz City Council approved a future-planning document called the "Parks Master Plan 2030". Part of that master plan is a redesign of San Lorenzo Park. Developing an actual redesign proposal began in earnest in 2023, and continues into 2024. 

On Monday, January 8, the Parks and Recreation Commission meeting will be devoted to finalizing Commission recommendations to the City Council. The site plan shown above is the redesign version recommended to the Commission by staff. A complete agenda packet can be found here. 

The Parks and Rec decision will not be the final word, just a recommendation to the City Council, although staff recommendations are not often rejected. In this case, there is another redesign-plan option that will also remain available for consideration. That other option has more riparian restoration and less community-park-type amenities.

No doubt there will be more to say about this as 2024 proceeds.