Santa Cruz County

One county, two different fire alarm processes.

Two offices here publish what a fire alarm submittal has to contain, and the two lists do not match. Most of the county publishes nothing about fire alarm work at all.

Request a free estimate Call (831) 455-5858

Serving businesses throughout Santa Cruz County, including Santa Cruz, Watsonville, Capitola and Scotts Valley. After-hours service available.

Rolled construction drawings resting on a work surface — Rolled drawings on a job

Start here

Most calls into this county start with a panel, not a permit.

Fire alarm service and repair is the first thing we do here: a trouble light, a beeping panel, a failed device, a battery that will not hold. If the panel is doing something now, start there rather than with the permit question below.

Fire alarm inspection and testingThe periodic work, and the written report that comes out of it.
Fire alarm monitoringArranged through Moro Cojo. We do the programming; a third-party central monitoring station receives the signals.
Fire alarm installation and new constructionNew buildings, tenant improvements, and replacing a system at the end of its life.

The county

A small county, and more than one way of doing things in it.

Watsonville sits at one end and Scotts Valley near the other, and the two publish different submittal lists. The rest of the county is covered by separate districts again.

Fire district boundaries are not drawn here. They could not be sourced reliably, and a single shaded county would say the opposite of what this page found.

Santa Cruz County service area

Example communities across Santa Cruz County, which we cover in full.

County served
Communities served
Neighbouring counties we also serve

The work happens at your building. If your address is not one of the communities marked, call (831) 455-5858 and we will tell you whether we cover it.

Two published processes

Same county. Two different submittal lists.

Both set out what a fire alarm submittal must contain. They ask for different things, in different formats, and only one says how long a review takes.

City of Watsonville

An itemized package, on paper, in duplicate

Published by the City under the FAQ category “Fire Code (CDD)”, Community Development. No page we opened names a fire prevention division.

“Fire alarm systems may only be installed by a licensed alarm contractor holding a California Specialty License C-7, C-10.”

Moro Cojo holds a California C-10 Electrical Contractor license, CSLB #1088212. That is a fact about the license, not an arrangement with the city.

Every application is to include

A completed Building Fire application.
A scaled site plan, where there are multiple buildings on the site.
A scaled floor plan showing the location and type of the devices to be installed.
A riser drawing.
Battery calculations for all devices and circuits.
Manufacturers’ product specification sheets.
California State Fire Marshal equipment listings.

Two complete copies minimum: one becomes the job copy, one is retained by the City.

The city’s published requirements at watsonville.gov (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

City of Scotts Valley, and unincorporated county land inside district boundaries

Fire alarm plan review, named and electronic

Scotts Valley Fire Protection District, Fire Marshal. It checks plans for the city and for unincorporated areas of Santa Cruz County inside its boundaries, so the city line is not where its work stops.

“Fire Alarm Plan reviews; new, additions, and remodels.”

Plans go to the Fire Marshal electronically. The district has adopted the 2022 California Fire Code and the county Fire Prevention Officers Association standards.

The submittal is to include

A completed application.
A copy of the building permit, if one applies.
Electronic plans with device cut sheets.
Battery and voltage drop calculations.
California State Fire Marshal listing information.

“Plan review can take up to two weeks for most projects.” Fees are paid before a permit is issued.

The district’s plan submittal page at scottsvalleyfire.com (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

Both ask for: Device-level drawing or cut sheet information, battery calculations, manufacturer product information, and California State Fire Marshal listings.
Watsonville only: A riser drawing, a site plan where a site holds more than one building, and paper in duplicate.
Scotts Valley only: Voltage drop calculations, a building permit copy where one applies, electronic submittal, and a published review window.

Outside those two

The office changes, and so does the answer you get.

Unincorporated land outside the established fire districts, and the Pajaro Valley Fire Protection District, fall to the Santa Cruz County Fire Marshal’s Office, which works from CAL FIRE CZU headquarters on Highway 9 in Felton. Its page does not spell out the arrangement behind that, so neither do we.

What its page does spell out is a split worth knowing before a project starts: “Plan checks for all specialized fire detection and suppression systems are performed by outside resources, while the inspection of these systems is performed by the Fire Marshals Office personnel.” The office that checks the drawings is not the office that inspects the finished system.

Checked, with sources

The other offices we have checked in this county

What each publishes, with a link to the page we read and the date we read it. Watsonville and Scotts Valley are above. Nothing here implies that any authority approves of, recommends or works with Moro Cojo.

Unincorporated areas outside established fire districts, and the Pajaro Valley Fire Protection District

Santa Cruz County Fire Marshal’s Office (at CZU headquarters, 6059 Highway 9, Felton)

The split quoted above, plus county fire prevention standards, forms and handouts, a fee schedule and business inspection material. Phone (831) 335-5353.

Their page for Santa Cruz County Fire Marshal’s Office (at CZU headquarters, 6059 Highway 9, Felton) (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

Pajaro Valley Fire Protection District and unincorporated areas around Watsonville

Fire Marshal’s Office, Pajaro Valley Fire Protection District

Plan reviews and inspections under the state regulations it names, covering building plans and commercial and residential alarms. It works “in conjunction with the Santa Cruz County Fire Marshals office”. 831-335-6748, 562 Casserly Rd, Watsonville.

Their page for Fire Marshal’s Office, Pajaro Valley Fire Protection District (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

City of Santa Cruz

Fire Prevention & Life Safety, City of Santa Cruz Fire Department

Plan submittals and inspections for specialized fire protection systems, a Fire Systems Permit Application and a fee schedule. “Our plan review turn-around is up to 15 working days.” fireprevention@santacruzca.gov, 831-420-5237.

Their page for Fire Prevention & Life Safety, City of Santa Cruz Fire Department (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

Aptos, Capitola, La Selva Beach, Live Oak, Rio Del Mar, Soquel

Community Risk Reduction Division, Central Fire District

A plan submittal page, an inspections page, a fee schedule and the county Fire Prevention Officer standards. Fire-alarm-specific requirements are not stated on the pages we opened. 930 17th Avenue, Santa Cruz; (831) 685-6698.

Their page for Community Risk Reduction Division, Central Fire District (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

Boulder Creek (San Lorenzo Valley)

Boulder Creek Fire Protection District (no prevention office name is published)

County Fire Prevention Officer standards as adopted by the district, a fee schedule, and defensible space inspections by appointment. Its permit application and construction plan pages are marked “Coming Soon”.

Their page for Boulder Creek Fire Protection District (no prevention office name is published) (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

Ben Lomond (San Lorenzo Valley)

Ben Lomond Fire Protection District (no prevention office or fire marshal is named)

The district serves “the San Lorenzo Valley & Santa Cruz County” and publishes Fire Prevention Standards. No plan review or permit process is published.

Their page for Ben Lomond Fire Protection District (no prevention office or fire marshal is named) (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

Felton (San Lorenzo Valley)

Felton Fire Protection District (no prevention office or fire marshal is named)

The district serves “the San Lorenzo Valley and surrounding Santa Cruz Mountains” and publishes fire prevention resources and a fire code reference. No plan review, permit or inspection process is published.

Their page for Felton Fire Protection District (no prevention office or fire marshal is named) (opens in a new tab)Checked 2026-09-15

Zayante Fire Protection District, the fourth San Lorenzo Valley district, was not opened in this check, so nothing here describes what it publishes. Requirements vary by jurisdiction and occupancy, and the local fire prevention office is the place to confirm them.

San Lorenzo Valley

There is no San Lorenzo Valley fire authority.

The valley is served by four separate, independent districts: Boulder Creek, Ben Lomond, Felton and Zayante. We opened three, and not one of them publishes a fire alarm plan review process. Boulder Creek’s permit application and construction plan pages are marked “Coming Soon”. We have not opened Zayante, so we say nothing about what it publishes.

For a building in Felton or Ben Lomond, that is the useful part: there is no published list to work from, so the district covering the address is the office to ask, and it is worth asking before drawings are produced rather than after.

When we get there

Whoever installed it, and whatever the office asked for.

We service and repair systems other contractors installed. What a particular panel allows can depend on manufacturer software, manufacturer training and access to the system, so tell us the panel make and what the display reads, and you get a plain answer about what can be done.

Inspection and testing ends in a written report of what was tested and any deficiency found. That is the record the office with jurisdiction can ask for months later, and it is yours to keep.

Free estimates. After-hours service available. We also do residential and tenant-improvement electrical work.

Santa Cruz County

Tell us where the building is, and what the system is doing.

Send the city, the building type and what you know about the system. You get a plain answer, including if the work is not ours.

Prefer to talk?

(831) 455-5858

After-hours service available. For an active fire or an unsafe condition, call 911.