Hello there! Tuesday, Nov. 4, is here – the last day to vote on competing ballot measures if you’re in the city of Santa Cruz and on statewide Proposition 50 for all voters. Clouds will be increasing in Santa Cruz County after a sunny start, with a bit of a rainmaker inbound and high tides that could bring some coastal flooding.
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UC Santa Cruz Ph.D. candidate Pranvera Hyseni has already accomplished plenty after surviving war in her native Kosovo, leading an effort to open the Balkan country’s first observatory and planetarium, Hillary Ojeda writes. Now she’s working to inspire would-be astronomers in her homeland and in the Bay Area.
Max Chun dug into fundraising efforts behind Measure B and Measure C, housing ballot initiatives before voters in the city of Santa Cruz. The money backing Measure B came entirely from the real estate industry, he found, while Measure C’s support came from a mix of elected officials, housing developers, labor unions and political groups.
In Lookout’s Community Voices opinion section, San Lorenzo Valley resident Mickey Rush advocates for opening more fire roads and trails around Santa Cruz County to mountain biking and trail running, relieving pressure on existing open spaces and trail networks as outdoor recreation explodes in popularity.
The Tuesday headlines also include another round of Lookout List winners and runners-up – from the arts & entertainment world – plus a gallery of portraits captured by photographer Jana Marcus in downtown Santa Cruz on Friday night. Let’s get to it.
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UCSC astronomy Ph.D. survived war and helped build Kosovo’s first observatory. Now she’s bringing the cosmos to Bay Area classrooms.
After surviving the Kosovo War and witnessing her first solar eclipse as a child, UC Santa Cruz astronomy Ph.D. student Pranvera Hyseni turned a moment of wonder into a lifelong mission to bring astronomy education to her homeland. Now the founder of Kosovo’s first national observatory and planetarium, she continues inspiring young people in both Kosovo and California to reach for the stars. Hillary Ojeda has the story.
Measures B and C: How campaign finance shakes out as voters head to polls
Both Measures B and C saw hundreds of thousands of dollars roll into the respective campaigns, but there are some notable differences between the competing initiatives before voters in Santa Cruz. Measure C saw nearly $100,000 more donated than Measure B, which had only three major contributions, all from different realtors organizations. Max Chun crunches the numbers.
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Get out there and vote if you haven’t already, and thanks for reading.
Will McCahill