The first new hotel development in downtown Santa Cruz in over 90 years, The Cruz Hotel is envisioned as a “living room” and community hub for the city: a relaxed, creative environment to gather and socialize as well as an active home base from which to explore the region. Overlooking the natural river bend and anchoring the southern portion of Downtown, the Hotel is a pedestrian gateway between Downtown and the beach. With its prominent location; diverse and publicly accessible indoor/ outdoor amenities, this catalyst infill project complements and further expands upon the emerging mixed-income/mixed-use district that runs along the Riverwalk, across Front Street, and south of Laurel.

Distributing nearly 150,000 SF of hotel and public amenity program across six levels, The Cruz Hotel anticipates renewed demand for personal and community connectivity as well as the enduring desire for privacy and connection to fresh air and the outdoors; every space—from guest room to restaurant and lobby to meeting rooms and ballrooms—is conceived of as an open indoor/outdoor space, with expansive operable door and window systems. ​ Prominent public-facing facades on all four sides effectively called for a building with no “back.” ​ Careful consideration in programming adjacencies and site planning yielded a clear organizational system that conceals back-of-house functions. ​ The dramatic rooftop outdoor amenity space features three rooftop pools, restaurant/bar service, generous lounge seating, and a 270° view of the city, beach and mountains.