Hello, hello, hello. It’s Friday, June 13 – looking like another typical summer day weather-wise, with Santa Cruz County waking up under a marine-layer blanket and warming into the 70s as sunny skies emerge. Rinse and repeat through the weekend.
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Max Chun starts us off with coverage of Thursday’s meeting of the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission, reporting that commissioners balked at the price tag and ridership projections of the proposed passenger rail project.
Thursday also saw the Capitola City Council fill the seat left by last month’s resignation of Alexander Pedersen, with William S. Woodhams on hand as the council voted to appoint Susan Westman, a city planning commissioner and former city manager.
The Pajaro Valley Unified School District board voted to nullify two controversial April decisions, Hillary Ojeda reports — a failed censure of former trustee Kim De Serpa and an apology letter to a consultant — amid allegations of violating California’s Brown Act.
In Lookout’s Community Voices opinion section, Jenni Veitch-Olson, the chair of the Santa Cruz County Democratic Party, urges county residents to join one of the local “No Kings” protests happening tomorrow and condemns recent federal immigration raids and the use of the military to control Los Angeles County protests.
The Friday headlines also include Wallace Baine’s weekly stroll through the local arts & entertainment scene, with recommendations for things to do through the weekend and beyond. Onward!
RTC commissioners bristle at ‘daunting’ price tag for passenger train, sparking concerns about who will pay for it
Several regional transit commissioners balked Thursday at the price tag and ridership projections of a proposed passenger rail project that could require Santa Cruz County taxpayers to shoulder up to $148 million in annual costs and potentially trigger a sales tax hike to pay for it. Max Chun reports.
Capitola City Council appoints planning commissioner Susan Westman to vacant seat
Capitola has a new city councilmember, the second in more than five months, after the city council voted Thursday to appoint Susan Westman to fill a vacancy left by former councilmember Alexander Pedersen. William S. Woodhams has our coverage.
DAILY DIGEST
No Eaters Digest this Friday as Lily Belli enjoys a well-deserved vacation, but there’s more on the Lookout menu into the weekend, and lots of ways you can stay up to date with our award-winning local coverage. Download the Lookout Santa Cruz app in both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, sign up here for breaking news alerts and for all of our other newsletters, and if you’re on social media, connect with Lookout on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Bluesky.
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A pleasant Friday, one and all, and here’s to a safe, relaxing weekend beyond.
Will McCahill