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Description

The midtown area is generally defined as the area east of the San Lorenzo River, but west of Live Oak. Midtown encompasses the Branciforte and Seabright areas. The northern portion is mostly industrial and residential. The origin of the use of the word midtown to describe this area is unknown and may be relatively recent; some locals prefer to use the term Eastside for any area east of the San Lorenzo River, and some will insist there is no such area as midtown Santa Cruz. For example, how many people in Santa Cruz today would consider Eastside Hardware, which was located on Soquel Avenue, the Eastside still? On the other hand, people who use the term midtown to include the entire eastern portion of Santa Cruz, and sometimes even beyond the city limits, over-extend the logical use of the term to include areas outside of the 'town'.

History

Community

Fewer UCSC students live in Midtown than the Westside, given that there are almost no direct routes to the university from the area. Much of midtown is residential, but portions around Soquel Avenue, Water Street and Seabright Avenue tend to have a lot of commercial activity.

Businesses

Transportation

Maps

Related Links

• Eastside
• Westside
• Beach Flats
• Beach Hill
• Branciforte Avenue, Branciforte
• Seabright Avenue, Seabright
• SoWat, NoWay
• Mid-County
• Capitola

Comments

2011-01-30 00:45:11   um you people are on glue and dont know any thing about santa cruz.. the midtown extends from the board walk to 17th ave the rest is the east or the west, you better change this website befor you have some angry midtowners at your door.... —24.6.92.101

2012-11-30 20.11   Um, i'm afraid the commentator of 2011-01-30 is the one in need of some Santa Cruz education. This 'Midtown' moniker is indeed of recent vintage, and piques many of us long-time Eastsiders. I've lived in Seabright and just west of Arana Gulch since 1981--and delivered mail in the same area for nearly twenty of those years--and the area from Ocean View Avenue to the eastern city limit (the Yacht Harbor and Arana Gulch) was always called the Eastside or East Santa Cruz...until i started hearing a few young Westsiders calling it 'Midtown' in the early '90s. It has now gained unfortunate and unfounded currency to the point of being heard on radio advertisements and seen on on-line maps. But it doesn't make sense: Calling this area 'Midtown' assumes the vast area from the Yacht Harbor to the Capitola city limit is the Eastside of Santa Cruz, yet it is no such thing as it isn't in Santa Cruz at all. I would think instead that residents of Twin Lakes, Live Oak, Pleasure Point, and Santa Cruz Gardens are equally perturbed that the historical names of their areas are being supplanted by the indeterminate new meaning of 'Eastside'. I say eschew 'Midtown' and call the real Eastside by its rightful name.