Soquel Avenue, 1214 (CP26-0104)

Welcome

Welcome to the City of Santa Cruz project page for 1214 Soquel Avenue. Here, you will find information about this project, including the project description, plan set, and future meetings related to this project. For project-specific information, the project applicant, Workbench, may be contacted at info@workbenchbuilt.com. Rina Zhou is the planner reviewing the SB330 Preapplication.

Please subscribe to this project at the bottom of the webpage in order to receive email notifications whenever the webpage is updated (i.e. community meeting information, formal submittal, etc.).

Project Description

Project Size: Significant Project
City of Santa Cruz Project Number: CP26-0104
Addresses: 1214 Soquel Avenue
Project Status: Visit eTRAKiT for the most current status and the assigned planner.

On July 16, 2026, the Planning Department received two SB330-only preapplications from applicant Workbench, which includes two different project concepts for the site located at 1214 Soquel Avenue. An SB330 Preapplication is permitted under Government Code Section 65941.1, a State law that requires that the City review such applications for completeness pursuant to a specific list of requirements. A determination of completeness vests the projects to the City standards in place at the time when the complete Preapplication was submitted.

The applicant has requested that the City only review compliance with SB330 criteria, and, therefore, staff will not review the preliminary designs for consistency with City design and site development standards as part of the SB330 Preapplication. Once deemed complete, the applicant will have 180 days to submit a formal application for the project. Government Code Section 65941.1 states that the project would lose its vesting rights if the formal application later submitted is revised such that the number of residential units or square footage of development changes by 20% or more. Please be advised that no formal decision is made to approve or deny a preapplication.

NOTE: The applicant indicates that the drawings submitted are preliminary massing diagrams rather than the actual proposed design of the project which will be submitted with a formal application. The State law requires the submittal of elevations with the SB330 process, however, it does not prohibit the applicant from changing the design with the formal application as long the square footage and number of base units does not change by 20%. It is typical for applicants to submit massing drawings with an SB330 preliminary application. Staff will evaluate the designs submitted with a formal application against objective standards and determine the permits required and level of CEQA review. This page will be updated when a formal application is submitted. Please subscribe at the bottom of the webpage to be notified of new materials, upcoming meetings, and formal application submittal.

Two project concepts have been submitted:

CP26-0103: SB330-only preapplication to demolish all buildings on site and construct a six-story, 173 unit senior living facility with 5,000 sq. ft. of commercial space on the ground floor on property located in the MU-H (Mixed-Use High Density District) zone district and within the Eastside Business Improvement Plan.
CP26-0104: SB330-only preapplication to demolish all buildings on site and construct a six-story, 281 unit 100-percent affordable housing project with 5,000 sq. ft. of commercial space on the ground floor on property located in the MU-H (Mixed-Use High Density District) zone district and within the Eastside Business Improvement Plan.

Community Meeting

According to the City's Community Outreach Policy for Planning Projects, a community meeting is required. Feedback provided may contribute to alterations in the project design and additional project entitlements. Meeting information will be shown here once available.