Lookout PM: Bad Animal's new food offerings, lower speed limits coming to Highway 9, and local prep for Super Bowl Sunday

Welcome to Friday night’s Lookout PM.

Credit: Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz

Bad Animal’s next act: Global French bistro cuisine offers glimpses of a chef on the rise

By Lily Belli

Bad Animal ended its acclaimed Hanloh pop-up in December and brought its kitchen in-house, tapping former chef de cuisine Nick Hahn to lead the downtown Santa Cruz restaurant. While his precise, produce-driven dishes show clear promise and technical confidence, the opening menu feels like an early chapter — polished and wine-friendly, but still searching for the sense of surprise that defines the space.

Caltrans to lower speed limits on Highway 9 in Felton, Ben Lomond, Brookdale

By Max Chun

Caltrans is lowering speed limits on some sections of Highway 9 in the Santa Cruz Mountains following a recent traffic survey. They will go into effect within 30 days, once all existing signage is updated.

Local kickoff: Santa Cruz County food businesses cash in on nearby Super Bowl

By Lily Belli

Santa Cruz County butchers, pizzerias and breweries are bracing for a busy Sunday as fans stock up for home watch parties for Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara. From thousands of pounds of handmade sausage to a flurry of last-minute pizza orders, local food makers say football and sunny weather are a reliable recipe for a sales surge.

Watsonville airport braces for crowds flying in for Super Bowl weekend

By Tania Ortiz

Watsonville Municipal Airport is welcoming tourists from all over the country as they arrive in the region to watch Super Bowl LX this weekend. Watsonville is one of 16 regional airports selected by the FAA to help support the increase in air travel for the big game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.

Credit: Godofredo A. Vásquez / Associated Press

Here’s how Newsom proposes to revamp California’s education department

By John Fensterwald / EdSource

Gov. Gavin Newsom has put forth his plan to shift responsibility for the California Department of Education from the state superintendent to the governor and state board of ed. Rarely has a proposal to transform a bureaucracy moved so quickly from academia to legislation.

California spends billions based on this pollution tracker. Who benefits from its latest update?

By Alejandra Reyes-Velarde / CalMatters

California is updating CalEnviroScreen, the influential pollution tracker that helps determine which communities get environmental grants. Advocates say the state should improve the tool and use it more frequently to cut pollution.

Sign up for your Neighborhood Roundup. Sent every weekday morning, receive a neighborhood-specific roundup of the weather forecast, local news, crime reports, road closures, permit applications, road closures, restaurant inspections, upcoming events and more.