Top o’ the morning to you, Santa Cruz County. ‘Tis Tuesday, March 17, and our warm stretch continues, with a heat advisory from the National Weather Service in effect into Friday and temperatures forecast to soar into the mid-90s in the mountains.
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Max Chun starts us off with a milestone in efforts to redevelop the Capitola Mall, reporting that at a special meeting Monday, the city council approved rezoning that could bring housing and hotel space to the area. Capitola officials have identified the mall site as vital to meet a state mandate to permit 1,336 new housing units by 2031.
For the first time in years, there will be a limited commercial and recreational salmon fishing season in California this spring, Lily Belli reports. The sport fishing season will open April 11; commercial salmon fishing, which has been closed in the state since 2023 due to low stock numbers, is set to open in mid-May.
A local band’s anti-ICE T-shirt is bringing in big bucks to support the local immigrant community, Mat Weir reports. Punk trio Drain raised nearly $40,000 in one weekend selling the tee bearing the band’s logo and the slogan “MELT THE ICE!!” – which it then donated to the Supporting Immigrants in Santa Cruz County Fund through the Community Foundation.
To the headlines …
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After years of delays, Capitola City Council approves mall zoning code amendments, opening door for redevelopment proposal
The Capitola City Council approved zoning code updates for the Capitola Mall site at a special meeting Monday, finally moving into the next step of the saga and allowing a developer to submit a project proposal for the large-scale redevelopment in discussion for nearly a decade. Here’s the latest from Max Chun.
After years of closure, California salmon fishing set to reopen this spring — with tight limits
After several years of closures due to low populations, California will reopen limited commercial and recreational salmon fishing this spring as stocks rebound. Local fishers welcome the return but say the short, highly restricted season might not be enough to revive the struggling fleet. Lily Belli has the story.
DAILY DIGEST
Among what’s still on the Lookout menu this St. Patrick’s Day is a dispatch from Santa Cruz County’s culinary world in the form of Lily Belli on Food – one of the many free newsletters and breaking news alerts you can sign up for here. Get access to all of our award-winning coverage right on your smartphone by downloading the Lookout Santa Cruz app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, and stay current on social media by following Lookout on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and/or Threads.
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Have an excellent ☘️ Tuesday, and thank you for reading.
Will McCahill