Quick Take
As expected, Santa Cruz County public works has little clarity surrounding how future federal funding could be affected under the Trump administration as fast, frequent changes to the way grants are evaluated continue to sow uncertainty. A county spokesperson said that uncertainty even bleeds into work already under contract.
As Santa Cruz County deals with applying for federal grants to fund upcoming road projects and awaits reimbursement for storm damage from both 2017 and 2023, it is largely in the dark about how both of those components might unfold in the coming years.
President Donald Trump’s federal funding freeze from late January, which was temporarily halted by a federal judge, spurred notable confusion and concern over what could lose funding — and how much. Last week, City of Santa Cruz Public Works Assistant Director Kevin Crossley told Lookout that, while the agency’s ongoing work has not been affected, the future is unclear, and the city might need to change how it pitches its projects to the federal government.
County Community Development and Infrastructure spokesperson Tiffany Martinez echoed that uncertainty, and said that while staff has not heard of any funding that is specifically in jeopardy, there is concern that anything could happen in the current political climate.
Martinez said the county has two main concerns: Federal Emergency Management Agency reimbursements and its Safe Streets For All (SS4A) program. Regarding the former, Martinez said the county spent $80 million on projects from the 2023 storms alone, half of which was spent on roads that are part of the federal highway system. It has been awaiting reimbursements ever since.
“We’ve been waiting on these funds for years now, and we’re spending all this money because we’re told we’re going to get federal money,” she said. “So we do the project, and then we’re waiting years for reimbursement. What does the future of that look like? Are we ever going to get our money?”
Martinez said the county has already won a $750,000 grant for the SS4A program, which is essentially a wide-ranging traffic safety plan aimed at preventing roadway deaths and serious injuries. That involves county public works coordinating with its cities to both identify streets that see the highest number of collisions and draft strategies to make them safer.
The work to move this project forward is just beginning, with Martinez part of a team outlining what such a countywide plan could look like. It’s too early to offer specific ideas or features that could be implemented, she said, but added that it could mean anything from infrastructure changes at busy intersections to improved traffic safety education. However, it’s heavily reliant on the federal grant.
“If we do lose this funding, we lose out on this opportunity to really make a difference in our community,” she said. “It would stop pretty significant work from progressing, and that would be a shame to see that taken away from us.”
Latest news
- Caltrans expects the on-ramp to southbound Highway 1 from Bay Avenue in Capitola to reopen in February, several months later than initially planned. It has been closed since late September to allow construction crews to build a new ramp. Drivers can take a detour north on Porter Street to Soquel Drive, then east to Park Avenue, where they can rejoin Highway 1. They may also head south on Bay Avenue to Park Avenue, and rejoin southbound Highway 1 there.
- Striping along northbound and southbound Highway 1 between Bay Avenue and State Park Drive will cause overnight closures of both lanes in each direction. The northbound closures will occur between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. from Sunday through Friday. The closures will alternate between lanes, so one lane will be open in each direction at any given time.
- Tree work and slope repair will close down sections of Highway 9 from Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Those sections are between Rincon Creek Bridge and Henry Cowell Redwoods Vista Point, Brown Gables Road and Irwin Way, Prospect Avenue and Lorenzo Avenue, and Cresta Drive and Camp Campbell Entrance.
- In Watsonville, a single lane on Green Valley Road from Holohan Road to Casserly Road is closed for the Multi-Use Trail Improvement Project. Lane closures occur from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Additionally, a single lane is closed on Buena Vista Drive and Ranport Road for overhead tree trimming on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., causing potential delays.
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