Motivated by discrepancies between observations and previous theory, we present a stochastically forced model of wind-driven current fluctuations that includes the observed northward intensification of wind stress curl, a feature absent from a previous model. The model is linear, barotropic, and quasi-geostrophic. It is bounded by absorbing walls along lines of constant latitude in the north and south, and is unbounded east and west. The northward wind intensification causes a northward bias in the coherence of wind stress curl and currents that is similar to the observed. An unanticipated secondary maximum occurs northeast of the mooring in the low-frequency (37-day period) meridional velocity coherence predictions. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1991