As the June 7 election nears, the three candidates vying for the county supervisor seat that covers most of Santa Cruz and the North Coast — Shebreh Kalantari-Johnson, Justin Cummings and Ami Chen Mills — engaged in a spirited, pointed back-and-forth Thursday night. Meanwhile, four candidates — Liz Lawler, Gail Pellerin, Rob Rennie and Joe Thompson — for the newly redrawn State Assembly District 28 talked through a wide range of state-meets-local topics, and on where to spend California’s $68 billion surplus.
Mark Conley
Follow Mark Conley on: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook. Mark joins Lookout after 14 years at the Mercury News and Bay Area News Group, where he served as Deputy Sports Editor on a staff that covered three World Series, three Super Bowls, five NBA Finals, a Stanley Cup Final, six Olympic Games and three U.S. Opens over that span. He led enterprise coverage and special projects, and guided the Merc’s premium NFL and MLB magazines to five straight years of top APSE honors.Mark chaired a digital innovation committee and partook in the Table Stakes program that led to the newsroom’s establishment of a digital subscription team and a product development approach to coverage. He helped build brands around Pac-12 and high schools coverage via robust newsletters, social engagement, promotional deals and targeted audience content. Both coverage areas became top digital subscription drivers in the sports department — and the newsroom as a whole.Mark has lived in Santa Cruz County — Westside, Eastside, Midtown and now Capitola — for more than 20 years and has a passion for seeing journalism restored in the place he lives and loves.“This county is such a special place, and it’s as much about the people who choose to live here as the magical geography,” he says. “I’m looking forward to helping tell the stories of Santa Cruz County.”
Posted inPolitics & Policy
NORTH COUNTY SUPES PART 1: How would they lead, make a difference and build community?
With longtime politico Ryan Coonerty bowing out from his duties overseeing most of Santa Cruz and areas north such as Bonny Doon and Davenport, three new, diverse faces are vying for the chance to replace them. Lookout asked them to respond to a wide-ranging set of questions, so you can compare them as we go to the polls on June 7. In Part 1, the three candidates for the District 3 Supervisor seat talk about their leadership skills.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
NORTH COUNTY SUPES PART 2: How would they take on homelessness, affordability and climate change?
With longtime politico Ryan Coonerty bowing out from his duties overseeing most of Santa Cruz and areas north such as Bonny Doon and Davenport, three new, diverse faces are vying for the chance to replace them. Lookout asked them to respond to a wide-ranging set of questions so you can compare them as we go to the polls on June 7. In Part 2, they take on homelessness, affordability and climate change.
Posted inCoast Life
‘We’re here for you’: In wake of tragedy, Santa Cruz surfing community doubles down on generation next
There was a time in the not-so-distant past when a proudly miscreant tone and attitude dominated Santa Cruz surf culture. Some of those who survived that tough period, including big-wave champion Darryl “Flea” Virostko, are trying to pay it forward. Meanwhile, those assembled at Steamer Lane on Thursday afternoon mourned two recent deaths and tried to put them into perspective.
Posted inCoast Life
Quelling the ‘stigma of shame’: The county’s top doctor opens up about the pain of losing a child to fentanyl
If it can happen to Santa Cruz County Public Health Officer Gail Newel and her wife, Kelli, both longtime physicians, then it can happen to any family. If it can happen to the highest achievers in our society, like doctors and dentists and lawyers, then it can happen to anyone. Nyeland Newel was a 38-year-old dentist who picked up an opioid craving while at UC Santa Cruz. His addictive genes collided with America’s opioid crisis in tragic fashion.
Posted inCoast Life
Hungry for answers: Fentanyl town hall confirms a community plague and crying need for a better response
A crowd of 175 heard and talked with a panel of local experts about the fentanyl plague that is increasingly targeting young people in Santa Cruz County. The town hall offered a start at confronting numerous knotty issues that were raised in the recent Part 1 of Lookout’s “Poisoned” series.
Posted inEvents, Politics & Policy
As fentanyl’s painful death toll grows in Santa Cruz, taking young lives, it’s time for meaningful solutions
The stories of loss from mothers Sophie Veniel and Carrie Luther inform a much larger picture of fatal fentanyl overdoses. Lookout’s monthlong dive into the rise of fentanyl-related deaths locally finds a lack of cohesive attention paid to this post-pandemic epidemic, as local officials plan a Monday town hall to assess and troubleshoot new strategies. Our three-part series begins today.
Posted inLatest News
Morning Lookout: Warriors in the plans? Climate change talk at UCSC
Good morning, everybody. Will isn’t back until tomorrow, so it’s Mark again. You’ll notice some slick streets out there so please drive carefully wherever you’re headed on this Tuesday morning. It appears some more substantial April showers could be headed our way Thursday so stay tuned for further details on that weather event. Highlighting our […]
Posted inLatest News
Morning Lookout: A new leader, era for the river & more affordability woes
Good morning, everyone! Will has a few more hard-earned days off, so you’re stuck with me, Mark Conley, to trudge you through the dreaded Tax Day morning. (Unless you are an accountant, of course — then you might have already moved on to some fun vacation thoughts and left any dread far behind. 😉) Either […]
Posted inCoast Life
Only a Santa Cruz surfer knows the feeling: Celebrating a decade of protection as one of only a dozen World Surfing Reserves
There are only a dozen surfing ecosystems on earth that have been designated as World Surfing Reserves, communities that treasure their surf breaks so much that they commit to their preservation. As Santa Cruz celebrates the 10-year anniversary of joining the club, it has hired a top local surfer, who is also a committed environmentalist, to help strengthen its role as the program’s flagship ecosystem.