Hi there! It’s Friday, Oct. 31, and the forecast couldn’t be better for Halloween and Día de los Muertos happenings around Santa Cruz County, with mostly clear skies and highs topping out in the lower 80s in the warmest spots Friday through Sunday. A note of caution if you’re planning to be near the water this weekend: The Nation Weather Service has issued a beach hazards statement from Saturday morning through late Monday night, warning of sneaker waves and rip currents.
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Max Chun has digested the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission’s 300-plus-page final concept report for its ambitious passenger rail project. While the broad outline hasn’t changed since a June draft, there are some changes to possible stations and routes, and revised estimates on travel times along the route between Pajaro and Natural Bridges.
A headstone that marked the grave of one of Santa Cruz County’s first English-speaking teachers turned up recently outside a storage facility near the Harvey West area of Santa Cruz, Tania Ortiz reports. The business owner brought it to the County Office of Education, which in turn passed it along to the Museum of Art and History, which runs Evergreen Cemetery, where Mary Amney Case was buried after her death in 1889.
After turning the weathered Watering Hole into “five-star dive bar” Mission West on Santa Cruz’s Westside, its owners have sold, Lily Belli reports. Max Turigliatto and Grant Staudt are planning a final New Year’s Eve celebration before as-yet-unnamed new management takes over in January.
County Supervisor Justin Cummings has his say on Santa Cruz affordable housing ballot initiative Measure C in Lookout’s Community Voices opinion section, writing that while the city has long required new developments to include affordable units, more is needed amid the ongoing housing crisis. He urges a yes vote.
The day’s headlines also include Wallace Baine’s rundown of Halloween and Día de los Muertos events around the county, so check it all out below.
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Four takeaways from the RTC’s new passenger rail report
After years of studies, the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission published its final report on a proposed passenger train this month ahead of a December meeting for the rail project. The plans largely stay the course, though some call for routing the train through the Beach Flats area to avoid the Boardwalk, with longer travel times and possibly higher costs. Here’s more from Max Chun.
Headstone of one of Santa Cruz County’s first teachers, missing for years, found near storage facility
The tombstone of Mary Amney Case, Santa Cruz County’s first English-speaking schoolteacher, disappeared years ago and was believed to be stolen. Now, it has made its way to the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History after being found under a pile of leaves near a storage facility. Tania Ortiz has the story.
DAILY DIGEST
As we cap off October, there’s more on the day’s Lookout menu, including more from the world of Santa Cruz County food & drink in the form of Lily Belli’s Eaters Digest – among the many free newsletters and breaking news alerts you can sign up for here. Accessorize your smartphone with our award-winning local coverage by downloading the Lookout Santa Cruz app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, and spruce up your social media scroll by connecting with Lookout on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Threads and/or Bluesky.
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Thanks for reading – may your Friday be as trick-or-treaty as you like it, and here’s to a safe, relaxing weekend beyond.
Will McCahill