The Town Center mixed-use development is the lynchpin of the City of Scotts Valley’s homes plan. Previous iterations stalled-out. But the new vision has been making steady progress—with residents largely optimistic and an environmental report already on the books.
It represents an opportunity to inject vitality in a sleepy corner of California that’s suffered from high housing prices and a lack of social activities and employment opportunities for youth.
Last Wednesday evening, as the sun dipped below the redwoods and an odd mist dusted the Santa Cruz Mountains foothills, Swenson Builders scored the coveted opportunity to work with the City as the exclusive vendor to make the Town Center a reality.
While this is by no means the only consequential build in the Santa Cruz company’s portfolio (and actual designs are still to be worked out), any time a developer is approved to reshape an entire downtown of a small community is a big deal.
However, this major win of Swenson was tempered by the news, a few days earlier, that Oliver Tree, the 32-year-old “Life Goes On” and “Miss You” singer—the son of a former Swenson vice president—had died in a helicopter crash in Brazil alongside five others.
“This is a tragic event. And so many people loved Oliver. And it’s just sobering,” Jeff Huff, VP of the Santa Cruz office for Swenson Builders—the successor to Oliver Tree’s dad Jesse Nickell—said in the twilight after the meeting. “It puts a reality (to) how time is short, and how it is a vapor that comes and goes. And that every day is a gift. And we don’t know what tomorrow or tonight—or the next hour—will promise. But we know that we all pull a ticket at some point.”
The day prior, as the big Scotts Valley presentation loomed, instead of being laser-focused on crossing the T’s and dotting the I’s of the Town Center pitch, there was Huff meeting with Nickell, helping him start the marathon of paperwork related to Oliver Tree’s passing. Huff gave the bereaved father a giant bear hug.
“He’s hanging in there. He said, ‘Rest in peace Oliver,’” said Huff, recalling Nickell’s words. “We’re thankful for the time we had with him.”
Huff, who has been with Swenson going on 18 years now, knew Oliver Tree back when he would ride the Aptos Post Office Jumps—a seminal site in the history of mountain bike culture that closed in 2015.
“That was something that Jesse built that Oliver was a part of. And then he pursued his music career,” Huff said. “I didn’t get super connected to the music per se… But every time I saw Oliver, he was extremely genuine—before his star status or whatever, all the way through it.”
Mark Pilarczyk, president of development for Swenson Builders, also shared his condolences and said Oliver Tree’s death really puts the value of life and the importance of fostering true community in perspective.
If anyone exemplified building community in this algorithm-driven, social-media-obsessed, hyperpop, disconnected era, it was Oliver Tree. He understood the modern communication landscape—not to mention the sense of alienation felt by all too many in this day and age. It’s no wonder even his death served to bring people together, with RIP updates posted from across the globe.
“I loved his message about being true to yourself,” Huff commented, “—the idea that, like, ‘Look, you might be thinking you’re ugly, and you might think people think you’re ugly.’ But his message was like, ‘No, you’re beautiful.’”
Canadian electronic musicians Zeds Dead dropped their remix of his “Miracle Man” anthem at a packed show at Discovery Meadow Park in San Jose last weekend; his music resounded among recreators floating down the Deschutes River in Bend, Ore.; tributes poured out from Deadmau5, Zedd, Diplo, Dillon Francis, T Pain, Louis the Child, Oliver Heldens, Getter and more, online; and comedians from Whitney Cummings to Andrew Santino to Bobby Lee shared emotional video tributes.
Meanwhile, Swenson Builders has had its naysayers, with some Santa Cruz County locals displeased with the modern upscale village they brought forth in Aptos; NIMBY-minded Los Gatos residents recently pushed back against a large multifamily proposal from the company on the other side of the hill (Swenson was willing to negotiate a compromise in that instance); and a union official, speaking during the Scotts Valley hearing, claimed workers have faced challenges receiving timely payments.
However, Scotts Valley Councilmember Krista Jett said she’d recently visited Swenson’s The Dunes development in Marina—which includes a Trader Joe’s, some housing and restaurants—and really liked it.
“I thought it had a really nice open plan,” she said. “It really flowed well with the town and with the surrounding villages.”
Jett was one of the votes in favor of Swenson taking the reins of the Town Center project.
“They have made it abundantly clear that they’re really flexible,” she said. “We have not accepted any project proposals at this point. We are just moving forward with the next step of entering into this exclusive negotiation agreement with them.”
Oliver Tree’s remains have been returned to California. His memory will live on through his foundation/endowment named “Dr. Oliver Tree’s Extremely Epic Grant For Baby Geniuses.”
