San Lorenzo Park Project

The San Lorenzo Park Project was a major downtown Santa Cruz redevelopment that began in 1957, following the 1955 San Lorenzo River flood. The project area was bounded by Water Street, Ocean Street, Front Street, and Soquel Avenue. Everything in that quadrangle was condemned and demolished except the Santa Cruz Post Office and the adjacent Veterans Memorial Hall, lot lines were redrawn, and the resulting new lots were sold to developers.

• The Sidewalk Companion to Santa Cruz Architecture (4th ed. 2023), Chapter Five, sidebar, page 173.
• Down By the Riverside