The Cruz Hotel is envisioned as a vibrant new Santa Cruz community hub and pedestrian gateway to Santa Cruz. As the first new Downtown hotel development in over 90 years, The Cruz Hotel is envisioned to be a landmark building at the nexus point between city and beach, fully embracing the Santa Cruz Lifestyle where beach culture, active outdoors, and cutting-edge work converge. Conceived as a public square as much as a hotel, The Cruz will be a catalyst infill project that will complement and further expand upon the emerging mixed-income/ mixed-use district that runs along the Riverwalk.

The Cruz Hotel encompasses over 150,000 SF of hotel and public amenity program dispersed over six levels. The planning and design resolution takes full advantage of the site conditions. With prominent orientations on all four sides, a clear organizational system was required to activate the surrounding public space.