About
Westside Research Park is a growing hub for discovery and innovation at UC Santa Cruz.
Managed by the Baskin School of Engineering, the 18-acre campus provides state-of-the-art facilities for interdisciplinary research in science, technology, and the arts. Located near Antonelli’s Pond and Natural Bridges State Beach, WRP combines a rich industrial past with a forward-looking mission—supporting world-class research that contributes to technological advancement, human understanding, and community impact.
Interdisciplinary innovation
At Westside Research Park, researchers from the Genomics Institute, the Baskin School of Engineering, and the divisions of physical and biological sciences, social sciences, and the arts work side by side. This interdisciplinary community strengthens UC Santa Cruz’s commitment to innovation, enabling new connections between science, technology, and creative inquiry.
Home to the world-renowned Genomics Institute
David Haussler, distinguished professor of biomolecular engineering in the Baskin School of Engineering and scientific director of the UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute is known worldwide for breaking down the entrenched academic silos that often hinder collaborative, interdisciplinary research, and for his commitment to sharing technology and data broadly.
Rapidly expanding facilities
UC Santa Cruz’s film and digital media department has opened a groundbreaking new Social Documentation Laboratory—a facility with state-of-the-art technology designed to help students elevate socially engaged filmmaking.
History of the Westside Research Park
Built in 1980, the 18.5-acre site originally operated as a silicon wafer manufacturing plant, first used by Synertech, then AT&T, and later Silicon Systems, which was eventually acquired by Texas Instruments.
After the plant shut down, the property remained on the market for several years before UC Santa Cruz purchased it in 2004 for $5 million, with an additional $6.5 million contributed by Texas Instruments as a charitable gift. The site includes 243,000 gross square feet and 191,000 assignable square feet.
Buildings A and B were lightly remodeled, and administrative staff began occupying the space in September 2005. Building C was modified for the first materials labs around 2010. Administrative staff later relocated to the Scotts Valley Enterprise Center in 2017, and the facility continues to undergo development as a growing science and research campus.
The nearby pond was originally created around 1905 to float logs for the San Vicente Lumber Company. The on-site mill produced approximately 400 million board feet of lumber—much of it used to rebuild San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake and fire. The trees were harvested from the San Vicente drainage area above Swanton and Davenport. The company closed in 1923, and the site was later used to grow begonias by the Antonelli Brothers. Once known as Moore Creek Lake and Mill Lake, the pond became known as Antonelli Pond and has gradually shrunk due to silt buildup.
The Land Trust of Santa Cruz County now maintains the pond property.