Rise and shine, Santa Cruz County. Monday, Aug. 18, is happening, with sunny skies and temperatures headed into the 70s by the bay and upper 80s in the mountains.
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With this past Saturday marking five years since the lightning storm that ignited 2020’s CZU fire, Wallace Baine starts our series on where things stand now with a visit to Big Basin Redwoods State Park, 97% of which was torched by the blaze. The redwood canopy might be gone, but there’s plenty of life.
Hillary Ojeda got some clarification Friday from UC Santa Cruz on delays for the 2,900-bed Heller Drive student housing project, which the school now says will break ground in 2027 and open during the 2029-30 academic year. Asked about the delay, Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley ripped into the University of California Board of Regents.
Bike lane improvements around the county get a thumbs-up from avid cyclist Dan Arias, who, in Lookout’s Community Voices opinion section, takes issue with a previous op-ed on the topic, praising local efforts and hoping for more.
To the headlines …
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A walk in new Big Basin, five years post-CZU: Signs of rebirth amid California lilac, huckleberries and ‘Dr. Seuss trees’
To a large degree, the redwood forests of the Santa Cruz Mountains have survived and are thriving in the wake of 2020’s CZU fire. We vulnerable humans often take comfort in the power of ecosystems to adapt and survive. But, scientists believe, we should probably stop short before declaring that all is fine in the world of California’s redwoods. More here from Wallace Baine.
UCSC clarifies delay on major housing project – now expected to break ground in 2027, open in 2029-30
Construction on the 2,900-bed Heller Drive student housing project at UC Santa Cruz will start in 2027 and be completed sometime in the 2029-30 school year; it was originally slated to be finished in 2028. Hillary Ojeda reports.
DAILY DIGEST
The new week will bring plenty from Lookout, and that includes Christopher Neely’s Monday peek inside Santa Cruz County politics & policy with In the Public Interest – one of the many newsletters and breaking news alerts you can sign up for here. Download the Lookout Santa Cruz app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store to get our award-winning local coverage right on your smartphone, and if you’re on social media, come find Lookout on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Bluesky.
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Thanks for reading, and may your Monday be a smooth one.
Will McCahill