Water Street, 525

Welcome

Welcome to the City of Santa Cruz project page for 525 Water Street. Here you will find information about this project, including the projects description, plan set, and future meetings related to this project. For more information, please contact the assigned planner.

Project Description

Project Size: Large Development Project
City of Santa Cruz Project Number: CP25-0136
Address: 525 Water Street, 111 Market Street
APNs: 008-332-35, -10

Major Modification to Application No. CP25-0001 to revise Density Bonus incentives/concessions to allow for omission of the requirement for provision of unlimited local transit passes for all residents as required by SCMC 10.64.040, on property located in the C-C (Community Commercial) zone district (Environmental review: Categorical Exemption).

Formal Application

A formal application for the proposal (CP25-0001) was submitted on March 11, 2025. The project scope of work and design was modified from the project as submitted in the Preapplication to include a new, five-story, multifamily housing project encompassing 90 residential units, including 89, 100% affordable residential units and one manager's unit. The development would include units of varying sizes, including 41 standard residential units and 49 flexible density units (units of 220 square feet to 650 square feet, exempt from General Plan and zoning ordinance density standards) and would integrate ground-floor space of approximately 5,000 square feet intended for commercial or residential amenity use. Pursuant to State Density Bonus Law, the project is eligible for a height increase of three stories or 33 feet above the maximum height of the Municipal Code and remains exempt from maximum density controls, to include a total of 90 residential units. As proposed, affordable housing would consist of 22 Very Low Income units (each offered at 30% of Area Median Income, or AMI) and 67 Low Income units (including 18 units offered at 50% AMI and 47 units at 60% AMI), with 23 units provided to veterans of the United States Armed Forces.

Submitted project plans and supporting documents appear below:

Community Meetings

A community meeting is required pursuant to the City's Community Outreach Policy for Planning Projects. The feedback provided may contribute to the alterations of the project design and additional project entitlements.

March 26, 2025 Community Meeting: A virtual community meeting was held from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM. For those unable to attend, please find the link to the recorded community meeting below.

Project Documents

525 Water Street, CP25-0136 Bike Fix It Station(PDF, 862KB)

Leasing Information

For information regarding tenancy and leasing, please visit info@StanfordSC.com. The city does not manage leasing of these residential units and will not be able answer questions.