Good morning! Monday, Feb. 2, is here, and the Santa Cruz County forecast calls for sunny skies and high temperatures around 70.
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Watsonville Community Hospital lost nearly $23 million last year, Tania Ortiz reports, amid a flurry of challenges including a decline in the number of patients and changes to state and federal funding. WCH is continuing to search for a partnership with a regional health care provider to help manage its day-to-day operations.
With the Murray Street Bridge now open to eastbound traffic, the City of Santa Cruz is weighing whether it can allow traffic to flow in both directions, Max Chun reports in his weekly Carmageddon column. Meanwhile, the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission is set to move forward with rail trail construction at its meeting later this week.
Now that we’re into February, Lily Belli takes a look back at the best things she ate and drank in Santa Cruz County last month, highlighting brothless ramen, a revived Syrian pop-up, the return of a Capitola classic and hand-pulled noodle soup as the most memorable bites.
The Monday headlines also include opinion from Lookout’s editorial board on the lack of answers one year after the massive fire at the Moss Landing battery storage facility – read on.
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Watsonville Community Hospital reports nearly $23 million loss in 2025
Watsonville Community Hospital reported losses of nearly $23 million in 2025 following a challenging year of fewer patient visits and changes to federal and state funding. Hospital leadership expects to have an update by March on its search for a private partner to help shore up its finances. Here’s more from Tania Ortiz.
Carmageddon: City hopes to make decision on Murray Street two-way traffic within weeks; RTC’s early steps toward interim trail construction
After the Murray Street Bridge reopened last week for the first time since last June, the City of Santa Cruz is continuing to gauge the feasibility of allowing two-way vehicle and bicycle traffic along the one opened lane, and hopes to make a decision within weeks. On Thursday, meanwhile, the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission will continue moving forward with assuming common carrier status along the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line. Max Chun has the rundown.
DAILY DIGEST
Lookout’s coverage continues as we launch into February, and among what’s on tap for later is the latest in Santa Cruz County politics & policy, coming via In the Public Interest, one of the many free 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 bring it all with you on the go, and follow along on social media by connecting with Lookout on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Threads.
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Thank you for reading, and may your Monday be a smooth one.
Will McCahill