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Scotts Valley mayor outlines town center purchase, housing mandates and budget outlook
Summary
Mayor Derek Timm told a Senior Life Association audience that the city purchased the former airport land for a city-led town center, faces state-driven housing mandates including projects that bypass local review, and expects budget deficits to shrink as revenue and grants ramp up.
Mayor Derek Timm delivered a State of the City to the Senior Life Association, describing recent city purchases, housing policy pressures from the state, and changes to the city budget and staffing. He said the city bought the former airport parcel now planned as a town center and is pursuing a city-led vision rather than handing the site to a private developer.
Timm said the city received a $1,000,000 earmark tied to housing and urban development that helped with the town center purchase. He called the purchase a turning point after decades of delays tied to the fact the land was previously owned by the City of Santa Cruz. “We are focused actually on trying to envision what a town center could look like and doing it, organically, building it with the city's vision in mind, not the developers,” Timm said.
The mayor warned that recent state housing laws reduce local control over where housing appears. He referenced a state statutory pathway (cited during the meeting as AB 2011) that has allowed developers to propose projects that meet state criteria and proceed without the city’s usual public hearings. Timm said one such proposal for the former Seagate headquarters could yield up to 100 housing units under that law and described limits the city encountered when trying to influence design and siting.
Timm also summarized key municipal numbers: about $32 million in annual revenue, roughly $20 million in operations, 65 budgeted staff with about 95% of positions filled, roughly 31 miles of public roads, and a population in the neighborhood of 12,000 residents. He said the city’s revenue improvements — including a modernized business license tax and pursuit of state and federal grants — have reduced projected budget deficits and are expected to put the city “in the black” by 2027 under current projections.
On housing targets, Timm said the state-assigned RHNA goal for Scotts Valley was roughly 1,220 units over the next seven years and noted some projects submitted under new state rules will not reach the city council for local review. He described a golf-course–area proposal and other projects that will come before the planning commission or proceed under state law.
Timm said the town center concept includes about 30,000–40,000 square feet of retail, a central plaza and pedestrian connections to Skypark, and that the city plans an RFP for developers in the first quarter of next year. He also announced the council vacancy process after a recent resignation: applications opened Sept. 10, were due Sept. 25, and the council hopes to appoint someone at its Oct. 1 meeting to serve through December 2026.
Why this matters: the town center purchase represents a rare chance for the city to shape a large central parcel; simultaneously, state housing laws are shifting which properties may be used for new housing and how much local control remains.
Timm closed by listing upcoming and in-progress projects the city is advancing, including pavement and parks work, wastewater plant planning, and continued work on the town center vision. He encouraged residents to use the city website for information and to submit questions to staff.
