City weighs permanent area for Santa Cruz Warriors

The deadline is fast approaching for city leaders to decide if the Santa Cruz Warriors will stay put at Kaiser Permanente arena, three after the Golden State Warriors D-league team came to Santa Cruz.

In 2012, the Santa Cruz Warriors weren’t exactly welcomed by some of the surrounding neighbors. Nearby residents complained about traffic and noise. But since then a lot has changed and basketball has become part of this beach town.

“Everybody has invested a tremendous amount of time energy and resources to make this city work and I think that it’s been proven to be pretty effective just from the fan perspective,”Jim Weyermann, president of Santa Cruz Warriors, said.

The fan base has grown over the years and even a resident who lives by the arena said the positives of having a sports team in the city outweigh the negatives.

“I’ve been volunteering at Gault Elementary School and the basketball players come to the school a lot. They did a relay race with the fourth and fifth graders. The little kids they get so excited when they come,” resident Morgan Ehritt said.

Businesses see even bigger positives on game days. KC’s Sports Bar benefits from having the arena so close. But other spots further away, like Erik’s Deli and 99 Bottles, get crowds of people before and after games, too.

“You know when we have a victory you know people like to come here and celebrate and we like to have that atmosphere for them and it brings in a lot of business around the game times,” Sean Stone, manager at 99 Bottles said.

99 Bottles even has a meal deal for fans who bring their game day ticket stubs. The city is looking for a consultant to do a feasibility proposal, researching the benefits of having a permanent arena in Santa Cruz. Weyermann said it’s a process that could take up to 18 months. But the first step is determining if it makes sense to move beyond the current structure.

“I think we’re all ecstatic where we are at right now,” Weyermann said.

The Santa Cruz Warriors clinched their division Sunday night. They are the No. 1 overall seed going into the playoffs. Game 1 is this Wednesday against the Oklahoma City Blue. The series is a best of three.