A rendering shows an apartment building at Mission and Otis streets in Santa Cruz proposed by local developer Andy Goldberg. (Workbench)

SANTA CRUZ >> A proposal to demolish a medical office building in Santa Cruz at the corner of Mission and Otis streets and replace it with a six-story, 60-unit rental apartment building faces opposition from neighbors and from those concerned about the potential displacement of medical professionals.

All but two of the more than 20 residents who spoke Tuesday at an online community meeting were against the project, proposed at 926 and 930 Mission St. 

The building would contain a mix of studios, two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments, five of which would be reserved for “moderate income” renters and five for “very low income” renters. Income limits are set annually by the state.

The building would also have ground-floor commercial space, bicycle parking, solar panels, a 14-space parking area and other amenities. 

Jamileh Cannon, owner and co-founder of Santa Cruz-based Workbench, the project’s architect, said Tuesday that more than half of Santa Cruz renters pay at least 30% of their income toward housing, and that more than a third of Santa Cruz renters pay at least 50% of their income toward housing.  

“If we build more, then demand decreases and price growth slows,” Cannon said. Already, she said, rents in Santa Cruz County are starting to level off, “which is amazing for our community.”

Cannon said that the city of Santa Cruz must approve thousands of additional units by 2031 to meet its state-mandated housing goals.

She said she expected the new apartments would attract university students, as well as young professionals, couples and older singles looking to downsize.

At the meeting, several neighbors brought up traffic, parking, privacy and safety concerns, as well as concerns about the building’s size, shadows, architectural design and potential effect on property values.

“I share your concerns over the proposed height of this building, abutting up to a single family-home neighborhood, the lack of a setback, and the lack of parking,” said City Councilmember Scott Newsome, who is up for reelection and faces a challenger in the June primary. 

“A sentiment I’m hearing more often from the community is that people are for housing, but they also feel that certain developers have shown they’re not willing to responsibly wield the power the state has handed them,” Newsome added. 

In recent years, state laws meant to address California’s housing crisis have largely stripped power from local authorities to deny or change proposals for housing.

A Santa Cruz resident who identified herself as a health-care provider in the building set to be demolished said “this will put us in a really tough position.” 

Another woman who said she’s a patient at a chiropractor office onsite asked where the medical professionals would go once displaced by this housing project. “It’s very inconsiderate of the developers to destroy their practice and deprive the community of such needed service,” she said.  

Local real estate developer Andy Goldberg, a frequent partner of Workbench, is behind the project. Once a formal application is filed, a public hearing will take place before the zoning administrator or planning commission. 

This project is one of several multi-story apartment buildings expected to be built on Mission Street in Westside Santa Cruz. Current proposals include an eight-story, 60-unit building on Mission Street between Bay and Trescony streets, a six-story, 67-unit building on Mission and Dufour streets, a three-story, 21-unit building adjacent to Mission Hill Middle School and a five-story, 48-unit building at the site of the Food Bin and Herb Room on Mission and Laurel streets. 

In general, multi-story apartment complexes in Santa Cruz have proved contentious. Three of Workbench’s projects, for example, are now being fought over in court.

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