The San Lorenzo River was once celebrated as the heart of Santa Cruz.

Today, the San Lorenzo River remains an important resource – providing 100,000 people with drinking water and providing critical habitat for threatened and endangered species – yet people are disconnected from the river and the parks that line its banks. Businesses and homes face away from the river. Its banks are overrun with invasive species. The fish, birds and wildlife that rely on the river face threats from insufficient flows to impaired water quality to loss of ecosystem diversity. That’s why the Coastal Watershed Council is engaging people who live, work and play along the lower San Lorenzo River to get outdoors and transform their riverfront into a vibrant, welcoming, natural space in the heart of downtown Santa Cruz. The San Lorenzo River can be a place where people experience the outdoors as a part of everyday life and where native wildlife can thrive, if we invest in it. 

It’s for all of us.

The San Lorenzo River can be a driver of economic activity, thriving habitat for birds, bugs and fish, a destination for tourism and recreation and a beautiful natural place the community can feel proud of and safe near. The lower river is home to approximately 122 species of birds. It’s home to fish species like the endangered tidewater goby, endangered Coho salmon and threatened steelhead trout. And it’s a city park, a greenbelt for alternative transportation and a place for people to reconnect to nature right in the heart of downtown Santa Cruz. Just like the urban riverfronts you hear about across the globe, we too can have a safe, clean and fun San Lorenzo River that connects our community to nature.