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Capitola City Council candidates agree on budget, rail trail — but differ slightly on housing
By Tania Ortiz
Five candidates for the Capitola City Council discussed a variety of issues affecting the city, including the city budget and the Coastal Rail Trail, during an election forum Wednesday evening.
Santa Cruz County coast faces possible coastal flooding, 16-foot waves and dangerous surf
By Lookout Santa Cruz staff
The National Weather Service will issue a coastal flood advisory beginning on Friday and a beach hazards statement on Saturday.

Weekender: Open Studios and Open Farms
By Lookout Santa Cruz staff
Your cheat sheet for eating well and going out this weekend around Santa Cruz County.
The best things I ate and drank in Santa Cruz County in September
By Lily Belli
September is Santa Cruz County’s quiet stretch of summer, when the crowds thin out and the weather holds. It’s a good month to eat where locals eat, and four dishes worth tracking down are a sourdough smash burger piled high, lobster cacio e pepe, an agua fresca with a chamoy-coated rim, and squash bread brushed with harissa butter.
Why pay to listen to music? A new Santa Cruz lounge is betting on the power of vinyl
By Wallace Baine
In an age when virtually any song is available instantly and cheaply, a new Santa Cruz business is betting that people still want to listen to music the old-fashioned way — on vinyl, through headphones and without distractions. Sonivore, opening downtown this fall, will charge customers to choose an album, sit down and simply listen.
OPINION: UCSC Chancellor Larive: We are doing our part to build more housing
By Chancellor Cynthia Larive
UC Santa Cruz Chancellor Cynthia Larive writes that the university is taking community and student concerns about housing and traffic seriously and outlines UCSC’s efforts to address both persistent community concerns. She highlights new and planned projects that she says will increase student housing by more than 40% within a decade, including a two-year housing guarantee for incoming students. Larive also writes that campus vehicle trips are lower than they were 20 years ago, despite enrollment growth, and says UCSC will continue taking responsibility for its impact on the broader Santa Cruz community.
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Best of Santa Cruz County events, October 9-11
Here are some events you may be interested in this weekend:
Friday, Oct. 9
- SUD Voices for Change Consumer Advisory Group | 12 a.m. @ | Free
- Mission Hill Middle School Surf Team & Club 30th Anniversary Paddle Out | 3 p.m. @ Cowell’s Beach | Free
- BEAT: Belew/Vai/Levin/Bozzio Performing the Music of KING CRIMSON | 8 p.m. @ Quarry Amphitheatre
- Monster Energy Presents: LFA 243 | 4 p.m. @ KAISER PERMANENTE ARENA
- PETE SAWYER AND THE LEFT HAND MONKEY WRENCH GANG | 7 p.m. @ The Crepe Place
- Moe’s Alley Presents: The Breaks | 9 p.m. @ Moe’s Alley
- The Vault After Dark: Dressed to Kill | 8 p.m. @ Bruno’s Bar and Grill | Free
- Dual Demons Show | 8 a.m. @ The 418 Project
Saturday, Oct. 10
- Aptos Farmers Market at Cabrillo College | 8 a.m. @ Cabrillo College | Free
- Wilder Ranch State Park – Ranch History Tour | 1 p.m. @ Wilder Ranch State Park
- Cars and Coffee | 9 a.m. @ East Lake Village Shopping Center | Free
- Writing Circle | 10 a.m. @ WomenCARE
- Acid Bath with High On Fire, Melvins & Windhand | 6 p.m. @ Quarry Amphitheatre
- Thomas and Percy’s Halloween Party(TM) | 10 a.m. @ Roaring Camp Railroads
- Moe’s Alley Presents: Coffee Zombie Collective w/ special guests | 9 p.m. @ Moe’s Alley
- Hand-Blown Glass Pumpkins | 4 p.m. @ Chris Johnson Glass Studio | $180
Sunday, Oct. 11
- Corralitos Farm and Garden Market | 11 a.m. @ Corralitos farm and garden market | Free
- Youth Robot Series – Santa Cruz Maker Studios | 10 a.m. @ Santa Cruz Maker Studios | $245 (Siblings get a 20% discount )
- Second Sunday AVALON VISIONS PSYCHIC FAIR | 11 a.m. @ Avalon Visions | Free
Repeats once more on October 11
- SPAM New Media Festival 2026 | 11 a.m. @ Indexical | Free
- Dia De Esperanza Organic Agriculture Festival | 11 a.m. @ Esperanza Community Farms | Free
- Sunday Sound Bath + Reiki | 7 p.m. @ Kula Connections | $25
- Celtic at the Brewery | 2 p.m. @ Steel Bonnet Brewing Company | $35 to $45 (Discounts for college students under 26 and kids under 18)
- AC Myles & Band: Stratocaster Masters | 2 p.m. @ Moe’s Alley





