Good morning, everyone. It is Monday, Sept. 15, and after some morning fog, we’re warming up around Santa Cruz County, with 80 possible at local beaches and temperatures nearing 100 in the mountains.
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In the latest in our series examining the aftermath of the CZU fire five years later, Carly Heltzel reports from Lompico, where the fact that the San Lorenzo Valley community has just one road in and out is a source of grave worry. After residents witnessed CZU’s devastation, interest in grassroots fire and disaster preparedness organizations surged in Lompico and nearby Zayante.
Community organizers are relaunching the Watsonville chapter of the Brown Berets, Tania Ortiz reports, a Chicano activist group first established in 1967 to address discrimination against and mistreatment of Latinos, and focused on issues affecting their community, such as police brutality and education. Omar Dieguez, an activist currently on hunger strike to draw attention to the use of pesticides around Pajaro Valley schools, hopes to inspire a new generation facing familiar battles over immigration and civil rights.
From UC Santa Cruz, Hillary Ojeda reports that the university is starting to phase out its use of on-campus residences to house the provosts of some of its colleges. The high cost of maintenance is a big reason.
The ongoing makeover of Watsonville roads is the focus of this week’s Carmageddon column from Max Chun. After major upgrades along Green Valley Road, Freedom Boulevard will get $4.7 million in bike lanes and sidewalks, among other projects.
The headlines also include Wallace Baine’s story on tech prophet Jaron Lanier returning to his Santa Cruz musical roots with an upcoming event at Kuumbwa Jazz – let’s keep reading.
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One way out: Did Lompico’s narrow escape from CZU leave it more vulnerable to the next big wildfire?
Five years after narrowly escaping the CZU fire, the San Lorenzo Valley community of Lompico is betting everything on its ability to outrace the next megafire. Residents are safeguarding their properties and plans are in the works to construct a second road out of the box canyon. Will it be enough? Read more from Carly Heltzel.
After 30 years, Brown Berets relaunch in Watsonville facing familiar immigration debates
Watsonville activists have relaunched a new chapter of the Brown Berets, a Chicano activist group established in 1967. The chapter relaunched this year in response to the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant rhetoric and aggressive deportation tactics. Tania Ortiz reports.
DAILY DIGEST
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Thanks for reading – may your Monday be a smooth one.
Will McCahill