Lookout PM: Lily Belli on Food, Ripple Effect’s opening day, and salmon season reopens with staggered dates

Lily Belli on Food: Salmon season opens; Grey Bears expands; and ramen-slurping poetry

The latest in Santa Cruz County food & drink news, notes, event recommendations and more from Lookout correspondent Lily Belli.

The Big Ripple: An ambitious new arts festival hopes to spark a colorful and creative future for the county’s arts community

By Wallace Baine

Ripple Effect, a new, creative arts festival covering the entire county, officially launches on Thursday. It will feature a wide range of activities involving visual and performing arts, film, photography, and much more.

After years of shutdown, commercial salmon season to open May 1, with staggered dates

By Lily Belli

After a three-year closure, salmon fishing has reopened in the Monterey Bay Area with limited quotas and staggered seasons designed to support a cautious recovery. While the season remains tightly managed, it offers opportunity for smaller, lower-overhead boats — particularly those in Santa Cruz — to get back on the water.

OPINION: The real cause of gentrification in Santa Cruz isn’t new housing

By Don Lane

OPINION: Have we built too much housing in Santa Cruz or not nearly enough? Housing activist and former Santa Cruz mayor Don Lane reminds us that Santa Cruz spent decades limiting growth.

Nerd nirvana: Comics and kitsch fans turn out for Surf City Comic Con

By Mat Weir

Thousands flocked to the third annual Surf City Comic Con on Saturday, where cosplayers, vendors, and fans

Museum of Natural History receives highest national honor

By Ashley Palma-Jimenez

The Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History has received accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the nation’s highest recognition afforded to museums.