The buildings on Soquel Avenue will house community meeting facilities to accommodate up to 150 people, a kitchen and large open courtyard and other support facilities to encourage its use as a resource to nonprofit organizations in Santa Cruz. New buildings will house the program operations of Barrios Unidos and the Resource Center for Nonviolence, including classroom space, recreational space, meeting rooms, program space and office. Although built as condominiums, the housing above the two nonprofits will primarily be used as workforce rental housing for both organizations. 1817 Soquel Avenue will significantly upgrade a key portion of the Soquel Avenue corridor.

Ground floor retail space on Soquel Avenue will take advantage of frontage along one of Santa Cruz's busiest transportation corridors, utilizing on-site and curbside parking. 1817 Soquel will be bulit for long-term flexibility to accommodate retail operators as the market changes over time. A silk-screen business and retail store and a café (social enterprises to operated by Barrios Unidos) will occupy a portion of Soquel Avenue frontage.

 
The residential units along Trevethan Avenue will be market rate for-sale units that will provide a well-planned transition from the adjacent single-family homes, to the more dense commercial corridor. The sale of these condominiums will help finance the program space and housing for Barrios Unidos and Resource Center for Nonviolence.

1817 Soquel Avenue will be a “green” development constructed to meet LEED standards for new construction and sustainable operation.

Much more than the mortar and bricks, 1817 Soquel represents an investment in the future of social change work by two of the premier nonprofit organizations in Santa Cruz and beyond. 1817 Soquel Avenue will strengthen the programmatic collaboration of the two organizations, while enhancing both organization's sustainability. This major undertaking could not be done by either organization on its own. 1817 Soquel Avenue will enable construction and operation of community gathering spaces that neither organization has been able to provide on its own. These facilities will be used by dozens of other nonprofit and community organizations. The housing will enable both organizations to employ and support workers who could otherwise not afford to live and work in Santa Cruz. This will strengthen staffing, internships, guest residencies, and visits by a wide range of resource people. 

1817 Soquel Avenue will serve as a base and a launch pad for coming generations of social change educators and activists, an ongoing incubator for initiative and cooperation.