Thank you for your interest in the proposed project for 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street (CP24-0122). 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.
1. Select what applies:
[×] I have a comment(s).
2. Question/Comment:
My name is Joe Hutson, and I live just one parcel away from the proposed Mission Studios—also known as Mission Street Towers or Luxury Student Housing. I’m a concerned neighbor and a parent of a young family.
This six-story project is completely incompatible with our modest residential block. The balconies on the north side will allow dozens of people to look directly into our homes and yards, creating a serious loss of privacy for long-time residents.
At minimum, I urge the Santa Cruz City Council to require that these be redesigned as Juliet balconies or reoriented toward Mission Street. No family should have their private space turned into a petri dish for students and young adults to gaze into from the dozens of balconies above.
The parking situation is a disaster waiting to happen. There are only 14 spaces for over 67 units, most with 2–4 beds. That means potentially 120–150 residents, not including guests or commercial traffic. With no loading zone and no real transit infrastructure here, this guarantees spillover parking, traffic congestion, and unsafe conditions for our neighborhood, including Bay View Elementary, less than one block away. This traffic safety hazard without mitigation is, in my view, sufficient reason for the City Council to deny the project and require the applicant re-submit at a more modest number of units and residents, with sufficient parking and traffic mitigation to adequately serve the new residents.
This project is not for our community. It’s for a future population that doesn’t live here—at the expense of those who do.
Just three blocks away, the Almar project shows how responsible, affordable, parking-inclusive development can be done.
This Mission Street Towers project does almost nothing for affordability. It’s over 90% market rate, and the rents will not be attainable nor meet the need of our workforce. They will certainly not meet the needs of students on a budget who are most in need of reasonable housing options. Again, luxury student dorms for out of area residents, at the expense of local tax paying residents.
The state mandated laws that are allowing these non-conforming projects in our neighborhood are based on flawed demographic methodologies; the population of California has leveled off. Cursory research of the history of the Housing Crisis laws show that State Senator Weiner has crafted these laws to benefit deep pocketed developers without concern for the communities that are affected. Housing projects are being imposed upon communities that do not have sufficient infrastructure to support them, to say nothing of water, sewer, and other living services that will continue to be stressed beyond capacity. As a city, we are building feverishly in the downtown metro area, and if we must build, that is where it should be. Allowing these projects in our residential neighborhoods will degrade the quality of life immeasurably, dumping vehicles and traffic onto our streets, and impelling a change to the community over the will of the residents. And the primary beneficiary will be investors with the capital and resources to wait on a long term profit.
24.393
Projects adjacent to existing SFR neighborhoods, such as Mission Street Studios, the Food Bin project, and several on Water and Ocean Streets, should be viewed in a different light than the downtown projects. These are the epitome of poor planning and will do more harm than good, both to our neighborhoods, and to the long-term goodwill and community support for additional housing and development.
Please deny this application. And if approved, require:
– Reoriented or Juliet balconies on the north and east sides of the project to protect privacy of the existing neighborhood – Leases that prohibit car ownership
– Permit-only parking zones that exclude new tenants
– Safe drop-off zones and loading areas on-site
We are not anti-housing—we’re for housing that fits, that’s needed, and that benefits our local workforce. The Mission Steet Studios proposal is not any of these things.
Thank you.
3. If you have a question that needs a response, please enter your email address or phone number.
Email: Not answered
Phone: Not answered
Thank you,
City of Santa Cruz
This is an automated message generated by Granicus. Please do not reply directly to this email.
24.394
Brittany Inclan
From: Bonnie Bush
Sent: Monday, September 8, 2025 5:12 PM
To: Brittany Inclan
Subject: Fwd: 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street - Question/Comment Received Bonnie Bush, CMC
City Clerk
City of Santa Cruz
809 Center St., Room 8, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Phone: 831-420-5035
Email:[email protected] Web: www.cityofsantacruz.com Begin forwarded message:
From: Rina Zhou <[email protected]>
Date: September 8, 2025 at 5:10:12 PM PDT
To: Bonnie Bush <[email protected]>
Subject: FW: 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street - Question/Comment Received
Hi Bonnie,
Forwarding more public comments received prior to 5pm.
Thank you!
Rina
Rina Zhou, RPP, MCIP
Senior Planner
City of Santa Cruz | Planning and Community Development Department 809 Center Street, Room 101, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Direct: 831-420-5104 | Main Line: 831-420-5110
Email: [email protected]
Web: cityofsantacruz.com
From: [email protected] <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, September 8, 2025 4:49 PM
To: Rina Zhou <[email protected]>
Subject: 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street - Question/Comment Received
A new entry to a form/survey has been submitted.
Form Name: 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street - Significant Project Date & Time: 09/08/2025 4:48 PM
24.395
Response #: 54
Submitter ID: 118860
IP address: 50.209.134.61
Time to complete: 1 min. , 18 sec.
Survey Details
Thank you for your interest in the proposed project for 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street (CP24-0122). 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.
1. Select what applies:
[×] I have a comment(s).
2. Question/Comment:
Re: 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street Project
Please consider these serious community concerns in advance of Tuesday's (9/9/25) Public Hearing.
The proposed 6-story development at 1811, 1815, 1819 Mission Street fails to align with the vision and guiding principles of the Mission Street Urban Design Plan - The plan clearly states its intent: " to beautify the corridor, enhance the economic vitality of the corridor, improve the quality of life for Westside residents, protect neighborhoods adjacent to the corridor, and finally to contribute to the creation of a sustainable environment.” The proposed project falls short of meeting these essential goals. Palm and Dufour Street families and residents have expressed their concerns for the loss of privacy and risk to public safety. This project is not a fit for the Mission Street Corridor and adjacent single family
residential neighborhoods as the design currently stands.
The project will add to an already highly congested chaotic interchange of highway one, restaurant traffic, a coffee shop, logistics of loading zones and daily residential commutes.The corner of Dufour and Mission Street has a high frequency of vehicular stops. The traffic studies should not be looked at as a singular development, but how this confluence of Starbucks, the Ramen House and 70 new units all at the gateway to a single-family residential neighborhood will somehow flow seamlessly in and out of highway one – Mission Street. Tenants will own cars, they will have visiting family and friends that own cars. The neighborhoods will be impacted, pedestrian safety will be at risk.
The Mission Street Design Guidelines were designed to safely manage the transition from a busy highway to nearby singlefamily neighborhoods, while providing retail and restaurants with balanced living environments. Height limits on buildings and floor area ratios set at limits that did not diminish the adjacent neighborhoods, but rather, protect views of the unique environment we live in.
The proposed 6-story building ignores those principles. It is overbearing, it fails to address site challenges, and it imposes directly on the residents who live here. Walk Mission Street yourself—stand by the new four-story buildings off Swift Street, then imagine two more stories stacked on top, with zero setbacks, looming over homes.
We’ve already shown Downtown that housing can be developed responsibly: meeting state goals, adding local housing, and respecting the skyline by not exceeding the Palomar. Mission Street deserves the same standard with respect to the context of the Westside neighborhoods.
24.396
The state sets housing targets, but planning is the city's responsibility. We need to approve projects that uphold our city’s guidelines. If this 6-story project is approved, this council will be accountable for any dangerous risk upon the neighbors and pedestrians at these highly sensitive transitional corridors. If approved, this will be the new precedent for more 6-story building blocks, creating a concrete canyon through Mission Street, a greater divide between the upper and lower Westside neighborhoods.
We urge you to listen to the voices of the residents who are here now, and find common ground. We can support responsible growth without obliterating established neighborhoods or forcing large-scale developments into areas where the infrastructure cannot support them.
Respectfully,
Joanne Hutson
3. If you have a question that needs a response, please enter your email address or phone number.
Email: Not answered
Phone: Not answered
Thank you,
City of Santa Cruz
This is an automated message generated by Granicus. Please do not reply directly to this email.
24.397
1811, 1815, 1819 Mission St
(CP25-0002)
Planning and Community Development
24.398
Proposed Project
24.399
Project Site
C-C zone
C-C zone
C-C zone
R-1-5 zone
Subject property
MU-M Zone
24.400
Public Noticing
• Aug. 6, 2024 – Webpage Posting for SB330 Only Preapp
• Sep. 13, 2024 – Notice of Community Meeting Postcards Mailed • Sep. 13, 2024 – Notice of Community Meeting Sign Posted • Sep. 16, 2024 – Webpage Updated for Community Meeting • Jan. 22, 2025 – Webpage Posting for Formal Application • Jan. 27, 2025 – Notice of Application Submittal Sign Posted • Jun. 25, 2025 – Email sent to Lead Contact for Dufour and Palm St Neighbors re: Public Hearing Date
• Jul. 1, 2025 – Notice of Planning Commission Public Hearing Postcards Mailed • Jul. 3, 2025 – Notice of Planning Commission Public Hearing Sign Posted • Jul. 3, 2025 – Webpage Updated for Planning Commission Public Hearing • Jul. 12, 2025 – Social Media Posting for Planning Commission Public Hearing • Aug. 21, 2025 – Notice of City Council Public Hearing Postcards Mailed • Aug. 21, 2025 – Webpage Updated for City Council Public Hearing • Aug. 26, 2025 – Notice of City Council Public Hearing Sign Posted • Sep. 7, 2025 - Social Media Posting for City Council Public Hearing
24.401
Public Outreach
• Size of Project: Significant (1,000-foot noticing
radius)
• Community Meeting held on Sep. 30, 2024
• Approximately 65 members in attendance
• Concerns/Support
• Other Meetings
• Nov. 7, 2024
• Communication with Lead Contact for Dufour
and Palm St Neighbors
• PC Public Hearing: Jul. 17, 2025
• City Council Public Hearing: Sep. 9, 2025
24.402
Voluntary Actions
• Significant redesign
• Frosted windows
• Permit parking program
• Landscaping
24.403
Previous Design Current Design
24.404
Previous Design Current Design
24.405
Voluntary Actions
• Significant redesign
• Frosted windows
• Permit parking program
• Landscaping
24.406
Loading Zone
24.407
Modified COA
• 54. As volunteered by the applicant, prior to building permit issuance, building permit plans shall show the installation of the loading zone along the northern curbline of Dufour Street, including details, to be reviewed and approved by the Public Works Department.
24.408
Recommendation
• Staff recommends denial of the
appeal, upholding the Planning
Commission’s approval.
24.409
QUESTIONS?
24.410
Appeal of Planning Commission Decision
of 7/17/2025
Bruce Thomas
Presented on 9/9/2025
Dufour and Palm Street Neighbors
24.411
Public Safety Issue
(e) Undersized
Loading Zone
(new) Northside
Loading Zone
Delivery trucks frequently double park
due to:
• Poorly enforced parking restrictions
• Inadequately sized loading zone
Double parking BLOCKS A LANE OF TRAFFIC
at a VERY BUSY INTERSECTION
Public Safety should be of Paramount Importance
24.412
New Loading Zone
“Mission Studios” project plans
include a new loading zone.
(on the North side of Dufour Street)
City Staff have green-lighted this loading zone
(see COAs 54* and 67).
This loading zone should help reduce the amount of
double parking taking place.
*n.b. COA 54 should specify “along the northern curbline of Dufour Street” after the words “the loading zone”
24.413
History of Loading Zone Issues at 1901 Mission
2017 – Starbucks opens, daily 18-wheel deliveries but no loading zone – after many meetings, city paints curb yellow and posts Commercial Loading signs.
The Loading Zone was cobbled together as an after-thought 2018-Present – Continual and Ongoing Issues
– countless reports to Chief of Police, Parking Enforcement et al. – “We don’t have the resources”
Lesson to be Learned: Avoid creating Loading Zones after-the-fact
24.414
Loading Zone
issues occur
regularly
and are
ongoing
9/14/2024 11/10/2024 11/19/2024 12/29/2024 1/11/2025
2/9/2025 3/19/2025 4/2/2025 4/14/2025 4/30/2025
5/7/2025 5/12/2025 5/19/2025 5/23/2025 6/2/2025
6/20/2025 6/23/202524.415 6/26/2025 6/30/2025 7/1/2025
Cars Parked in Loading Zone
3/19 4/14
4/30 5/19 24.416
Jack-knife Parking
11/10 5/7
5/23 6/23 24.417
Key Loading Zone Issue to Address
(1) Starbucks customers frequently park at loading zone --this forces delivery trucks to double park thereby BLOCKING A LANE of traffic from Mission Street.
Issue #1 is an ENFORCEMENT ISSUE which may also
plague the new (North) Loading Zone
This issue is causing daily traffic safety issues - needs to be addressed a.s.a.p.
24.418
Recent Traffic Safety Hazards at Dufour x Mission
6/26/2025 6/30/2025
24.419
Recent Traffic Safety Hazards at Dufour x Mission
8/11/2025 8/11/2025
24.420
The new Loading Zone will be just as problematic
as the Starbucks Loading Zone unless effective
measures are put in place to prevent Starbucks
customers (or other non-delivery vehicles) from
parking at the new Loading Zone.
24.421
8’
A 10’ wide parking zone
can be accomplished
by reducing sidewalk width
From 8’ to 6’.
Easy to do but would
require additional
waivers from city’s stds.
Waivers would be in
service of PUBLIC SAFETY
= Win-Win Situation Plastic bollards
Safe, Effective Loading Zone
24.422
Parking and Traffic Safety
Q1: Where are Amazon/UPS trucks supposed to park?
Q2: Where are Uber/Lyft/DoorDash drivers supposed to park? Questions asked at 9/30/24 Community Meeting:
Designate parking spaces 13 and 14 as 10-minute only.
-for use by Uber/Lyft/DoorDash drivers
Solution for Q2:
24.423
Additional Note
The existing Loading Zone’s signage is not
congruent with the current delivery truck schedule.
The current sign declares Commercial Loading
from 8pm-Midnight but Starbucks delivery
trucks frequently arrive as early as 6pm.
24.424
1. Solve the loading zone enforcement issues at Dufour x Mission (with Oversight mechanism).
2. Have city and developer do everything possible to limit the amount of double parking on Dufour Street.
3. Citizen involvement in the creation of new policies.
Goals of this Appeal:
Public Safety should be of Paramount Importance
24.425
Appeal Questions/Comments:
The COAs presented in the agenda packet are written for a “mixed use building with 67 residential units”. What happens if the developer submits plans to the building department with more than 67 units, won’t that make the COAs invalid? Oversight is needed to ensure that the Parking Enforcement issues at the end of Dufour Street finally get fixed and remain fixed.
Enforcement of loading zone parking restrictions is needed a.s.a.p. because traffic safety issues are occurring on a daily basis. These efforts will also be a proving ground for enforcement issues that the new loading zone is likely to face.
24.426
Thank you for letting me speak.
24.427
25.1 25.2