Aloha, readers. Tuesday, Jan. 13, is upon us, bringing another sunny day to Santa Cruz County after a brisk start, with temperatures in the upper 60s at the beach and lower 70s in the mountains.
Before we dive in, a message from Jamie Garfield, Lookout’s director of student and community engagement:
Lookout Santa Cruz is proud to introduce the next chapter of our Lookout in the Classroom program: Lookout for Teachers, giving local middle and high school educators free, unlimited access to Lookout Santa Cruz’s independent, fact-based local journalism. Beyond full access to our reporting, teachers receive a weekly stream of curated current events paired with classroom-ready resources — quizzes, lesson guides, discussion prompts and media literacy activities aligned to real curricula. Read more here.
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Max Chun has the latest from Santa Cruz County’s housing market, reporting that sales are high as we hit the new year even as the number of homes for sale shrunk in December, as it often does.
Grace Chinowsky has a pair of stories from Monday’s meeting of the Cabrillo College governing board. As expected, the trustees gave Jenn Capps – most recently provost at Cal Poly Humboldt – their stamp of approval as the school’s next president, replacing Matt Wetstein. The board also took steps to deal with Cabrillo’s ongoing budget squeeze, redirecting more than $7 million in one-time tax credit revenue to early retirement incentives, construction projects, general reserves and more.
In Lookout’s Community Voices opinion section, longtime Santa Cruz activist Gillian Greensite warns that a recent move by the city’s planning commission to end public hearings for some large affordable housing projects will not only rob the community of its voice in such matters, but also that the removal of protections for heritage trees in a new zoning district could cost Santa Cruz some of its greenery, too.
How about some headlines?
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Supply of Santa Cruz County homes for sale contracts in December, while sales stay high as 2026 begins
The Santa Cruz County housing market saw a seasonal drop in the number of homes available to buy in December, but sales remained largely level with November, and high for December. Meanwhile, mortgage advisers aren’t quite sure what to make of the criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, but will be paying close attention to who takes over for him following the end of his tenure as chairman in May. Max Chun has the latest numbers.
Cabrillo College board approves Jenn Capps as Matt Wetstein’s successor
Cabrillo College’s next president faces a myriad of near-term challenges. Jenn Capps comes to Cabrillo from Cal Poly Humboldt; she will earn an annual salary of $306,000, according to her contract. More here from Grace Chinowsky.
DAILY DIGEST
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Many thanks for reading – be good, and I’ll see you next time.
Will McCahill