Downtown library to add rooftop cafe

For years, Watsonville Public Library’s Main Street location has drawn community members young and old to find their next great book, perform research or to simply sit and read in silence.

And soon, people could have another reason to come.

The Watsonville City Council on Tuesday heard a plan to add an outdoor rooftop cafe and meeting space to the upstairs portion of the library, which would include a seating area, a children’s play area and a classroom space where children could learn and adults could attend events and classes such as Zumba.

The space would include overhead lights and a TV. Coffee, tea and pastries would possibly be supplied by Cabrillo College’s culinary program.

The proposed site, now a patio behind two locked glass doors on the northeast side of the building facing Main Street, is currently covered with a layer of small black river rocks. If construction starts as planned next spring, the cafe could be ready as soon as early 2026, with construction tentatively scheduled to begin in the spring.

Library Director Alicia Martinez said that she wants to breathe life into the downtown area, and to inspire other businesses to do the same.

“I want to create the library as a hub of downtown, because there’s not much happening here,” she said. “It would be a catalyst, a jumpstart.”

More than that, Martinez said, it would fit in with the library’s mission of being a community gathering spot.

“The library is a very calming place,” she said. “It’s a welcoming place for everyone. But I also want to create an ambiance where people feel comfortable and want to come to the library not just to read but to be outside and enjoy a variety of instructional classes.”In other action, the Watsonville City Council; approved density two housing developments, one a 13-lot subdivision at 36 Airport Blvd. and the other a five-lot subdivision at Evan Circle.