Good morning! It is Friday, Oct. 2, and after a cloudy start, it’ll be a warm one around Santa Cruz County, with temperatures from around 80 by the bay (where a coastal flood advisory has been extended to Friday evening) to lower 90s in the mountains (where a heat advisory kicks in Saturday morning and runs into Sunday night).
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With Election Day a month from Saturday, we’ve got a bunch of free local coverage. You’ll find Max Chun’s overview of the race for Scotts Valley City Council, where three candidates are running for two open seats. Development, particularly of the long-awaited town center, is among the big issues. Max also had news Thursday from the Santa Cruz mayoral race, where Ryan Coonerty secured an endorsement from one of his opponents in the June primary.
Tania Ortiz reports on the race for the District 7 seat on the Watsonville City Council, where two familiar faces are competing to succeed Councilmember Ari Parker. Nancy Bilicich is aiming to return to the dais after previously serving two terms, while Ed Acosta, a Santa Cruz County Board of Education trustee, is making his first run for the council.
Alia Yee Noll previews the fifth annual Watsonville Filipino American History Month festival, happening downtown on Saturday. Hosted by the Tobera Project, the event celebrates Filipino culture, food and music while uplifting the Manong generation of farmworkers in the Pajaro Valley.
The Friday headlines also include your cheat sheet to eating well and going out around Santa Cruz County this weekend, but first, an invitation: The Lookout team is popping up in Abbott Square in downtown Santa Cruz for a “mobile newsroom” on Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and we want to hear from you. Tell us what you’ve enjoyed, what matters most to you and how we can improve. Need help logging in, have questions about your membership or want to learn more about Lookout? All are welcome to come and chat with our team. Questions? Email jamie@lookoutlocal.com.
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In the Scotts Valley City Council race, all eyes are on the long-awaited town center
Three candidates — Danny Reber, Greg Wimp and Michael Zeller — are vying for two seats on the Scotts Valley City Council this fall. The small city north of Santa Cruz has one major, overarching issue that the community is closely following: the planning of a new town center, which has been decades in the making. Here’s what the candidates told Max Chun.
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Nancy Bilicich seeks Watsonville council comeback as Ed Acosta calls for ‘something new’
Nancy Bilicich is seeking a return to the Watsonville City Council, while Santa Cruz County Board of Education trustee Ed Acosta is making his first run for the body – setting up a District 7 contest between a familiar face and a candidate who says voters are ready for something new. Read more from Tania Ortiz.
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DAILY DIGEST
A busy first Friday of October, and with Lookout going full speed through the day and into the weekend, make sure you’re staying on top of it all. Sign up for free here for breaking news alerts via email and for all of our other newsletters (including the specially curated Sunday Reads over the weekend). Breaking news notifications are just one of the many features of the Lookout Santa Cruz app, available for download from both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. And if your scrolling adventures include social media, connect with Lookout on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Threads to pick up what we’re putting down there.
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Here’s to a smooth Friday, and a safe, relaxing weekend beyond. Stay cool, and thanks for reading.
Will McCahill