One of the images in Changes 148 was a photo I took from the top of the wide steps at River Row, the now-opening mixed-use project on Front Street. The photo at right is from farther back in the courtyard.
This Thursday, March 12, there will be an opening celebration from 11 am to 1 pm. Other openings include five new downtown businesses that have opened since the beginning of 2026. The City of Santa Cruz newsletter for March gave this list:
* Anthropologie – 1134 Pacific Ave.
* Alley Oop [bistro] – 320 Cedar St.
* Switch Bakery – 1016 Cedar St.
* Rock Salt Pilates – 1106 Pacific Ave.
* Palmetto Super Foods – 1335 Pacific Ave.
One more notable recent opening: the Murray Street bridge over the harbor has reopened to 2-way traffic. For now, traffic will be alternating directions in the one open lane.
In zoning news, Santa Cruz will be considering a zoning overlay for the Coral Street area, in support of the temporary housing services provided by Housing Matters. The city's plan for this move can be found here.
Out in Capitola, the city is slowly working toward a rezoning of the Capitola Mall that will allow mixed-use development, as described in the linked Sentinel article. More info can be found in Changes 141.
