The strawberry capital of the world is said to be Watsonville, California, and thanks to a sweet rental agreement, Santa Cruz County officials have been inhabiting their own little patch of office space in the city.
Watsonville is an agricultural hub of 52,000 residents founded in 1868 just south of the Bay Area. The city might be old but its population is young, with a median age of 31.1, well under the national average. Watsonville lies near ocean beaches, lakes and mountains and has the second-highest population in the 600 square miles of Santa Cruz County, only slightly behind the municipality of Santa Cruz itself, which sits about a 25-minute drive to the northwest.
When county brass in Santa Cruz sought to expand their presence further in Watsonville, which sits near the southern edge of their area of responsibility, they found a perfect solution in a building in the southern part of the city at 28 Second St.
The two-floor, 20,000-square-foot building, which was completed in 2008, welcomes visitors under a round-arch balcony above the entrance and contains lively boutiques and a restaurant at ground level. The structure sits across from a multitiered public parking lot festooned with attractive murals and across from a well-polished fire station. The property sits near the corner of Main and Maple and not far from the heart of the city in verdant Watsonville Plaza.
About the project: Santa Cruz county administrators had a plan to expand the county's presence into Watsonville, as well as other parts of the county, with the goal of providing services closer to residents, especially those who had more difficulty getting to Santa Cruz.
When they spotted the mixed-use building in the southern section of Watsonville, they realized it would be a fine spot to settle in and use as a hub to implement their various programs, which range from homelessness response, employer resources for business owners, emergency preparedness, public assistance, animal adoptions, mental health services, as well as beach and water quality assurance.
The county inked a five-year lease for 10,440 square feet on the upper floor. The bright, airy office space includes 15 offices with over 50 workstations. The lease earned a 2023 CoStar Impact Award, as judged by real estate professionals familiar with the market.
What the judges said: "This deal was a good way to bring new jobs into downtown Watsonville," said Ow Commercial President Benjamin Ow.
They made it happen: Ryan Hinn and Nick Torres with Sherman & Boone Commercial.