Good morning! It’s Monday, Sept. 28, and the forecast is for continued sunny skies around Santa Cruz County, with high temperatures mostly in the 70s. Our shoreline is under a coastal flood advisory from 11 a.m. Monday until Thursday afternoon, with high tides bringing water higher up the beach than usual.
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Tania Ortiz leads things off with the ongoing closure of the neonatal intensive care unit at Watsonville Community Hospital. For families who continue to plan to give birth in Watsonville, the closure is adding another layer of uncertainty and stress.
In his weekly Carmageddon column, Max Chun looks ahead to Week Without Driving, an annual effort that encourages people to use transit, bike or walk instead of use cars. That’s set to begin Thursday.
In Lookout’s Community Voices opinion section, the owners of Santa Cruz developer Workbench give their perspective on their Bright Plaza project, at Soquel and Seabright avenues. “Our hope at Workbench,” write Jamileh Cannon, Tim Gordin and Sibley Simon, “is to create more than 200 affordable homes for people who work in this community, along with a thriving, local-business-focused ground-floor experience.”
The day’s headlines also include photojournalist Kevin Painchaud’s inside look at the weekend’s sumo wrestling event at Kaiser Permanente Arena – away we go.
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Watsonville Community Hospital NICU remains closed, adding anxiety for expecting families
Watsonville Community Hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit has been closed since mid-July because of staffing shortages, with no reopening date set. Local maternal health advocates say the closure is adding anxiety for expecting families. Tania Ortiz has the update.
➤ Para leer el artículo en español, haga clic aquí.
OPINION: Why Bright Plaza matters for Santa Cruz’s housing future
Bright Plaza has become a talking point in the city of Santa Cruz’s debate over housing, development and neighborhood change. The site could eventually hold more than 200 affordable homes, along with space for local businesses. In a Community Voices op-ed, Workbench owners Jamileh Cannon, Tim Gordin and Sibley Simon explain the reasoning behind the project – and that building here follows a long-standing city plan for denser housing along commercial corridors. They address the concerns surrounding the project, explain why they believe Santa Cruz needs to make room for more housing, and invite the public to join Tuesday’s community meeting about the project. Read their opinion piece here.
DAILY DIGEST
A busy final Monday of September, and with more on the way from Lookout, you’ll want to stay plugged in. Download the Lookout Santa Cruz app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for all of our local coverage, with breaking news notifications, games and more. Sign up here for breaking news alerts via email and for whichever of our many other newsletters – all free – pique your interest. Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Threads are where you can connect with Lookout on social media.
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Let’s get out and have a good Monday – thanks for reading.
Will McCahill