By Jon Chown
APTOS — An application for water service from the developer proposing hundreds of homes on the former Aptos Par 3 golf course was approved by the Soquel Creek Water District at the board’s Aug. 18 meeting. According to the application, the project has grown to nearly 500 units.
Mark Pilarczyk of Swenson Development and Construction submitted the application May 14 seeking a “will-serve” letter from the district for the proposed Village on the Green development, two vacant parcels at 2600 Mar Vista Drive.
The application described a substantially larger project than the one initially presented to Santa Cruz County — 318 affordable rental apartments and 177 for-sale townhomes, for a total of 495 homes.
“I know this is a lot for us. We are not used to this many units, but we’ve got to approve it,” said SCWD Director Tom LaHue.
The preliminary proposal previously submitted to Santa Cruz County called for 412 homes: 197 for-sale, three-bedroom townhomes with attached two-car garages and a seven-story building containing 215 affordable apartments. The 495-unit figure in the water application would represent an increase of 83 homes.
The water application also reduces the number of townhomes from 197 to 177 while adding a second affordable apartment building. The earlier county proposal included one apartment building.
“There will be no clubhouse or swimming pool,” Pilarczyk told the water board. “We’re looking to facilitate the wetland area and surrounding area as a preservation area and keep our walkways out of those areas.”
A conditional will-serve letter, which is what the board granted to Swenson, confirms the preliminary availability of water for planning and permitting purposes. An unconditional letter, issued later in the process, guarantees water service to the property.
Swenson will have to meet district requirements involving water-use efficiency, infrastructure, metering, fire protection and capacity fees before receiving final service. SCWD staff estimated the project to use between 33 and 68 acre feet of water per year.
The proposed development would span 13.85 acres along the east side of Mar Vista Drive near Soquel Drive and Highway 1. The property has been vacant since the Aptos Par 3 golf course closed in 2000, although part of the site has been leased to a landscaping business.
Swenson began the county’s pre-application process Nov. 20. The county continues to list Village on the Green as a Development Review Group pre-application, a preliminary review that allows county departments and outside agencies to identify required studies, corrections and possible conditions before a formal development application is filed.
The property was one of 75 sites rezoned by Santa Cruz County to accommodate housing required under the state-mandated Housing Element. Its zoning was changed from Parks, Recreation and Open Space to Residential Flexible, with an additional designation that would allow a qualifying multifamily project to receive ministerial approval.
Ministerial approval status makes the approval process basically certain. If the project meets objective development standards and affordability requirements, the County can approve the project without a public hearing. Even if there are public hearings, the County still must approve the project if it meets the standards or the county could be subject to legal action from the developer.
Pilarczyk told the directors he had met extensively with county planing staff regarding the project. The project will wait on an affordable housing grant before ground is broke. He said the award process for the grants is broken into segments throughout the year, so it might be early 2028 before the project is started.
Director Rachél Lather said she was amazed at how different this project was from the previous proposed project.
That project, which fell through in 2008, planned for 230 homes. The land was still zoned as parks and recreation space and public opposition squashed it.
“The one thing I don’t like is the idea of a six-story building right there,” Lather said. “Because Cabrillo is five and it looks like a monstrosity.”