A single-family home at 841 Capitola Road could be replaced with 57 apartments. (Jesse Kathan — Santa Cruz Local file)

Update Friday, Oct. 24: The planning commission approved the project at its Wednesday meeting after hours of public comment from neighbors who opposed the project. 

Because of state law, commissioners could not require significant changes or deny the project. But they did attach conditions to the approval, including that developer Workbench pay an affordable housing impact fee or include six below-market rate units. As planned, the project includes four below-market-rate homes. 

“It’s important that you stay organized and talk to your state legislators,” said Commission Chair Trina Barton, addressing the neighbors who showed up to the meeting. “We are in a tough bind here. We want to make this project better for you, and our hands are tied. We can only kind of wiggle at the margins.”

Resident Michael Reis said in an email he and other neighbors plan to appeal the project’s approval to the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors.

It is expected to be the first approved project in the county that utilized a state law that allows developers to defy zoning rules under certain circumstances. According to a planning commission staff report, county zoning on the property allows a maximum of eight homes.

Santa Cruz County’s state-mandated housing plan, called a Housing Element, lapsed in December 2023 after the county failed to submit its updated plan on time. California authorities certified the county’s Housing Element in April 2024, but not before developers submitted three proposals that took advantage of the lapse. 

If a local government does not have a certified Housing Element, a state law called the Builder’s Remedy allows housing proposals with greater density than would otherwise be allowed within a property’s zoning. Local governments have essentially no say over approval of such projects.

The law is meant to allow unfettered housing development when a government isn’t keeping up with Housing Element requirements.

The proposal at 841 Capitola Road was submitted by Santa Cruz-based developer Workbench in April 2024 two weeks before the state certified the county’s Housing Element. The property is in unincorporated county area, and falls under county government jurisdiction.

Workbench first proposed a project with 15 homes at 841 Capitola Road. The project has grown to include 57 homes. (Workbench)

Workbench first put forward a plan for the site in 2023 that included 15 homes. The version proposed in 2024 included 40 homes, and after several iterations a final application included 57 units. 

In addition to the Builder’s Remedy, other state laws allowed Workbench to grow the project’s size even further because it includes four below-market-rate homes. State law grants “density bonuses” to some housing developments, allowing developers to grow projects that include affordable homes.

Neighbors’ concerns

At a community meeting in April, neighbors of the project expressed concerns about its scale and the potential impacts on parking and traffic. 

In a letter shared with Santa Cruz Local this week and signed by 35 neighbors of the proposed project, residents said they were “stunned” by the scale of the proposal.

“This immense, five-story building will have a profoundly negative impact on our quality of life and our homes. Standing roughly 60 feet tall, its balconies will loom over our properties and homes, eliminating any privacy we currently have,” the letter states. “What is now our kid-friendly (and safe) cul de sac will become a busy thoroughfare, and all available on-street parking will likely be taken up.”

The letter also decries the destruction of every tree on the property, including 12 coast redwoods and four coast live oaks. 

Residents who oppose the project plan to attend the meeting and can be reached at [email protected]. 

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