Hiya folks. It’s Friday, Sept. 12, and the forecast foresees a mild, sunny day around Santa Cruz County once the marine layer dissipates, with temperatures mainly in the 70s to mid-80s – and much the same through the coming weekend.
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The process of turning the Capitola Mall into much-needed housing took a step forward Thursday night, Max Chun reports, as the Capitola City Council voted to move ahead on updating zoning codes to allow for redevelopment. The option councilmembers chose aims to wrap up the process by January.
The Trump administration‘s latest attack on minority-serving academic institutions could see Cabrillo College lose around $3 million in federal funds, Hillary Ojeda reports. President Matt Wetstein says the school is exploring legal challenges to the move.
Lookout food & drink correspondent Lily Belli had quite the assignment this week: judging the apple pie contest at the Santa Cruz County Fair. It’s quite the undertaking, she found, so read on for her behind-the-scenes report and to get the recipe for this year’s Best in Show pie.
Jana Marcus returns to review Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s latest, writing that the ongoing production of “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys” delivers a devastating portrait of racism, betrayal and moral choice – a must-see.
And the rail and trail are again the topic in Lookout’s Community Voices opinion section, with Cami “Clemensen” Corvin, a resident of one of the mobile home parks along the rail line, calling on the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission to to halt unrealistic trail plans in the face of an enormous funding gap.
Let’s check out the Friday headlines.
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With city council vote, path to Capitola Mall redevelopment begins to take shape
The Capitola City Council voted unanimously Thursday to advance plans to redevelop the Capitola Mall, setting a proposed January deadline for a rezoning process that could allow the long-stalled project to finally begin to move forward. Max Chun has the latest.
Sweet victory at the Santa Cruz County Fair: A behind-the-scenes look at the apple pie contest
What makes a great apple pie? As a first-time judge at the 48th annual Apple Pie Contest at the Santa Cruz County Fair, Lookout food and drink reporter Lily Belli gained a new appreciation for the complexity and craftsmanship behind a perfect apple pie after scoring more than 30 entries. Get a taste of the experience here.
➤ BEST IN SHOW: See Janice Weaver’s winning recipe here
DAILY DIGEST
TGIF, and the regular readers among you will know that one of the staples of Lookout’s Friday content is Lily Belli’s Eaters Digest, featuring her latest recommended local bite and events to check out this weekend and beyond. Sign up here for that and all of Lookout’s other newsletters, plus breaking news alerts; you can also opt into breaking news notifications on the Lookout Santa Cruz app, now available in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. The social media mavens among you can keep up with our award-winning local coverage by following Lookout on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Bluesky.
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Thanks for reading, and may your Friday be a smooth one.
Will McCahill