Kids Parks in Santa Cruz: San Lorenzo Park

137 Dakota Street (Dakota @ Ocean Street) This is really sad! This is probably the prettiest park I have ever been to: It has nice play structures, a duck pond, and it is huge...but it is super sketchy! I just don't trust the place. I've seen significant drug activity. You get the feeling you might get mugged.

We come to this park almost weekely, and I came here as a kid when it was one of the only parks in SC. My son loves the "snake" for climbing. There is a big effort to clean this park up and it's a lot better than it used to be. See something suspicious? Call the cops 471-1131 and they'll come! They WANT to make this area nice. We ride our bikes along the levee path too which is a lot of fun.
My Rating: 2

I go here a lot cause it's close to home and it is so much better then it used to be . Every time I've gone I've seen the cops do a driveby and if there are any people loitering they clear them out. They also have a gated play area for the younger kids which is nice. Give this park a try. The space itself deserves a 5 but because of the questionable area my rating is lower
My Rating: 3

We have visited the park quite a bit recently and we have only had good experiences. Very niced fenced in play area and structure for younger kids and some bigger structures for older kids. Great duck feeding. I was berated here by a homeless guy that I refused to give money to, but no one else has bothered us here.
My Rating: 3

It would be a great park if it wasn't for all the homeless and drugged out teenagers everywhere. They hang out on the edges of the park and yell and scream at eachother. I have gone a few times at iit was great but I have left on many occations because I was uneasy about certain individuals.
My Rating: 2

We love this park! It's easy to access from TJ, my son loves the footbridge over the river, the gated play area for smaller kids is very helpful with the little littles, and it is near the duck pond! Don't be afraid of the people who walk around the park or hang out on the grass by the river. They are mostly harmless and not wanting to get into your way as well. If you do see a problem, notify the authorities. We as parents and community members need to make it OUR place!
My Rating: 5

My son calls this the "Big Snake" Playground, and we have been coming here for 7 years, and never had any problems with the homeless. It was actually an irate dad who was shoeing my son out of the tot area and closing the gate so his kid could have the whole tot area to herself--and the sign says 12 yrs and under and my son was 5 yrs old!!!
Play structure for the older kids is GREAT, and enclosed tot area is nice.
Nice to hear music being played on weekends.
Makes adults feel like a kid again.
My Rating: 5