July 10, 2025

Downtown Tackles Long-Vacant Buildings

Since 2021, the former home of Joe’s Pizza in downtown Santa Cruz, CA, has been empty.

A block away is another building that has stood vacant even longer, since 2018.

In response, the city implemented a Downtown Vibrancy Ordinance, which requires owners of storefronts along the main street that have sat vacant for longer than two years to pay a fee to register the vacancy with the city.

Property owners must also provide a plan for upkeep while the property sits empty, retain a local property manager, and meet annually with city officials to discuss the property’s leasing status and maintenance issues.

In addition to cracking down on problem owners, Santa Cruz is encouraging downtown activation. One initiative calls for activating downtown alleyways with art installations, outdoor cafes, and play areas.

In another initiative, the city expanded its Downtown Pops! pop-up program. That initiative allows the city to sign a lease with the owner of a vacant storefront, then offer a six-month sublease of the space to a new local business at an attractive rate.

More on downtown economic growth appears regularly in the pages of Downtown Idea Exchange newsletter.

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Recommended Reading

Streets Reconsidered: Inclusive Design
for the Public Realm

Streets Reconsidered provides a roadmap to redesigning city streets for modern living — Streets that accommodate people of all ages and abilities, using all travel modes, and promoting healthy urban living, social interaction, enhanced commerce, and environmental sensitivity.

The book is divided into six main sections each reflecting one of these important roles for today’s streets. Each section includes:

• An introduction to the core concepts and benefits of each type of street.
• Case studies showing the concepts in use. The cases are fully illustrated and include photos, plans, and schematics that demonstrate how the street works.
• Best practices. Based on the case studies and the authors’ work, the best practices section describes and illustrates important techniques and lessons learned.

Streets Reconsidered offers an inspiring and actionable view of all that streets can be in any community.

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See the Table of Contents

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Streets Reconsidered is just one of the many books on Good Design available from the Downtown Development Center.