Downtown Plan Expansion

Public Hearings

The Downtown Plan Expansion is nearing completion. Public hearings before the City Planning Commission and the City Council will take place in April and May 2025. The City Planning Commission will make a recommendation to the City Council to either approve, approve with amendments, or reject the proposed expansion of the Downtown Plan boundaries, the 25% increase in development capacity, and the proposed amendments to policies affecting the Downtown and South of Laurel neighborhoods, along with a recommendation regarding certification of the Environmental Impact Report. The City Council will consider the recommendation of the Planning Commission when taking final action on the proposed project.

• Planning Commission Public Hearing
  • Thursday, April 17, 2025
• City Council Public Hearing
  • Tuesday, May 13, 2025 (Council approved resolution and reading of ordinances)
  • Tuesday, May 27, 2025 (Second reading of ordinances and fee resolution(PDF, 92KB) to be considered)

Following action by the City Council, should the Council vote to approve the project in some form, the final step will be to submit certain portions of the proposal that relate to the Local Coastal Program (LCP) to the California Coastal Commission for review. Should the Coastal Commission approve the project in some form, the approved proposal will take effect immediately upon final action by the Coastal Commission. Staff currently anticipates review from the Coastal Commission in late summer or fall of 2025.

Environmental Review

The Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is now available for review on the City's CEQA webpage, linked below. The public review comment period closed on February 21, 2025, and the Final EIR includes responses to those comments and edits to the Draft EIR prompted by comment review.

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires that the Final EIR is available to decision makers and the general public no later than ten (10) days prior to final action on the proposed project. The City Council will take final action on the Downtown Plan Expansion as part of a public hearing, currently scheduled for Tuesday, May 13, 2025 (date subject to change). The April 15, 2025 release of the Final EIR falls within that required timeline based on the current schedule.

EIR and Draft Plan

1. Final EIR with Responses to Public Comments
2. Public Hearing Draft of Appendix 8, South of Laurel Area(PDF, 9MB)
3. Proposed amendments to the existing Downtown Plan,
   1. April 2025: Public Hearing Draft, Chapter 4, Development Standards and Design Guidelines(PDF, 4MB)
   2. January 2025: Chapter 4, Development Standards and Design Guidelines(PDF, 3MB)
4. Draft Environmental Impact Report and Appendices
5. Local Traffic Analysis*(PDF, 15MB)

(*Traffic analysis is not required by CEQA and is prepared by the City as part of compliance with our 2030 General Plan.)

Project Overview

The City of Santa Cruz is embarking on a planning study to consider future redevelopment of the area south of Laurel Street. City objectives include:

1. Providing additional affordable and market-rate housing in the downtown,
2. Creating public amenities like parks, public plazas, or better pedestrian infrastructure,
3. Improving the connection to the San Lorenzo River and beach areas, and
4. Creating new economic opportunities for local businesses and workers
5. Coordinate with the Santa Cruz Warriors to construct a new permanent arena.

A complete list of project objectives can be found below under Project Objectives.

Upcoming Events

EVENTS LIST

Study Area

The southern boundary of the City's current Downtown Plan is Laurel Street. The City is interested in extending the boundary south, generally to the Depot Park roundabout. The project study area represents the area for consideration to include in the Downtown Plan. (Enlarge Map(PDF, 796KB))

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Project Objectives

The following objectives have been identified by the City for the project:

1. Increase the total number of housing units that can be built in the City by adding capacity for multi-family housing
2. Create opportunities for public amenities and infrastructure including parks, the Santa Cruz Riverwalk trail, or other spaces for community use
3. Better connect downtown with the river and beach areas, which will:
   1. Give the community better access to the river and beach
   2. Help visitors see more of Santa Cruz, including its local businesses
4. Work with the Warriors to establish design standards and use allowances that accommodate potential development of a permanent arena facility
5. Create new economic opportunities for local businesses and workers
6. Generate new tax revenue for the City
7. Improve the pedestrian experience through thoughtful urban design measures

At their June 14, 2022 meeting, the City Council directed staff to prepare an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) analyzing the potential for environmental impacts of the Downtown Plan Expansion, and to study the following features as part of the project:

• A minimum of 1600 housing units;
• Maximum heights not to exceed one taller building of 175 feet and three additional building components not to exceed 150 feet, with each height being inclusive of anticipated height increases associated with a 50% density bonus and with the taller building elements comprising only a portion of shorter podium building forms;
• An option for auto circulation including the permanent closure of Spruce Street east of Pacific Avenue;
• The creation of new civic space in the closed Spruce Street right of way;
• Enhanced pedestrian connections between the Downtown and the beach;
• Options for the location of a permanent arena facility for the Santa Cruz Warriors, with a preferred location being on the south side of Spruce Street between Pacific Avenue and Front Street.

The development scenario described by this Council motion has been mapped and illustrated(PDF, 2MB). This scenario will be the basis of the analysis conducted for the EIR, and will be the foundation of the policies and standards that are drafted into the amendments that will be proposed to the City's Downtown Plan, General Plan, Municipal Code, zoning map, Local Coastal Program and Implementation Plan, and Beach-South of Laurel Area Plan.

On January 10, 2023, the Santa Cruz City Council provided additional direction to staff, replacing the above direction in part and adding to it. The City Council directed staff to study a development option that:

• Includes a maximum of 1600 housing units
• Limits heights of the tallest parts of buildings to no more than 12 stories, inclusive of any density bonus incentive
• Achieves a full 20% of the total number of housing units built as permanently below-market-rate affordable housing units

Further, the City Council directed that the EIR should continue studying a maximum of 1800 housing units as one of the development alternatives. EIRs typically consider two to three development alternatives for this type of project.

Question or Comment?

Thank you for your interest in the Downtown Plan. Please provide any project related question or comment in the fields provided. Your comment/question will be automatically directed to the City Planner assigned to this project. Please note that questions and/or comments entered here are public information and subject to release in accordance with the Public Records Act.

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