Mornin’, folks. It is Thursday, May 15, and you know this Santa Cruz County forecast: fog early, sun later, temperatures in the 60s and 70s.
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Lookout’s coverage of the local impacts of the second Donald Trump administration continues, with Santa Cruz County educators telling Hillary Ojeda that migrant education and English learner services are among the programs and services in jeopardy as Trump’s proposed budget slashes millions.
Our series on the future of downtown Santa Cruz also continues, with Kevin Painchaud taking locals’ temperature on how they feel about the big changes happening on and around Pacific Avenue.
The “tiny village” homeless housing project is close to breaking ground in downtown Watsonville, and Tania Ortiz reports on how local nonprofit Community Action Board plans to manage the 34-unit shelter.
In Lookout’s Community Voices opinion section, Santa Cruz Pride board chair Rob Darrow writes that as Pride celebrates its 50th anniversary, there’s never been a more urgent time to stand up in support of the LGBTQ+ community as it faces Trump administration threats.
Plenty more in the Thursday headlines – let’s check ’em out.
How Trump’s proposed spending cuts could affect education funding in Santa Cruz County
After President Donald Trump released his proposed federal budget, school officials across the country, and in Santa Cruz County, began estimating what services and programs they could potentially lose funding for. The federal budget won’t be finalized for months but the proposal presents a grim outlook. Hillary Ojeda reports.
➤ TRUMP 2.0: Read Lookout’s ongoing coverage here
Downtown Santa Cruz in transition: Locals share hopes and fears for a changing city center
Lookout interviewed local residents to get their thoughts on why they come to downtown Santa Cruz, what they think of the changes underway and what would encourage them to visit the city center more often. Here’s what they said.
➤ FUTURE OF DOWNTOWN: More in the series here
DAILY DIGEST
The week rolls on here at Lookout, and if you’re peeking ahead to the weekend, you’re not alone. Wallace Baine will be along in a bit with recommendations for things to do all over Santa Cruz County, plus news and notes on local arts & entertainment. Weekender is just one of the many newsletters and breaking news alerts you can sign up for here, and you can take Lookout’s award-winning local coverage along with you by downloading the Lookout Santa Cruz app in both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. In the wilds of social media, you can find Lookout’s mix of news and views by following us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Bluesky.
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Until next time, thanks for reading.
Will McCahill