Good morning! It’s April 9 — here’s what’s going on in your community today…
A couple of afternoon showers in Westside / Downtown
Today will be variable cloudiness with a couple of showers this afternoon. There is a 60% chance of rain. The high will be 65 with a low of 55. Allergy sufferers beware: there are high amounts of tree pollen in the air. Cloudy now, changing to mostly cloudy at 11 a.m.
Westside / Downtown news
Santa Cruz officials oppose housing released sex offender Michael Cheek in an Ocean Street hotel, citing community safety concerns if Watsonville isn’t an option.
La ciudad de Santa Cruz se opone firmemente a un plan para colocar al violador Michael Cheek en un hotel de Santa Cruz
By By Tania Ortiz
Apr 8, 2026
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What’s new around you
▼︎ police incidents ▼︎ food inspections ▼︎ events
Read on to see the details about each item…
Things to do in Westside / Downtown
Reefer Madness
Inspired by the original 1936 film of the same name, this raucous musical comedy takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the hysteria caused when clean-cut ki…
At Santa Cruz Veterans Memorial Building on April 9
Repeats 8 more times until April 20
Roadwork is affecting traffic in the region
- The southbound Highway 1 onramp at Buena Vista Drive in Watsonville will have daytime closures starting today. The onramp will be closed off and on from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, for about three weeks.
- One northbound lane of Highway 17 between Santas Village Road and Vine Hill Road in Scotts Valley will be closed during the day for tree removal work from Monday, April 6 through Friday, April 10.
- Daytime one-way reversing traffic control will be in place on Highway 9 at the San Lorenzo River and Kings Creek Bridge, north of Boulder Creek in Santa Cruz County, from Monday through Friday this week due to ongoing bridge replacement work.
Restaurant inspections
County officials regularly inspect food facilities to ensure compliance with state laws. Here, Lookout Santa Cruz reports both those who have passed the inspections and those that the county deems to have a “major” issue. The county’s full ongoing report can be accessed here.
- Mission St. Bbq at 1618 Mission St., Santa Cruz, passed a county health inspection on April 8 with no critical issues.
Community crime report
- A grand theft and elder abuse incident was reported, involving the theft of more than $950 from an elder or dependent adult. This happened near the 400 Block of Cliff St., Santa Cruz, at 3 p.m. on April 3. (source)
- A person was arrested for causing injury to their spouse or someone they live with. The incident happened near the 1000 block of Elm St., Santa Cruz, at 4 p.m. on March 23. (source)
- A robbery happened near the 200 Block of Union St. in Santa Cruz at 4 p.m. on April 7. (source)
- A burglary was reported, but there is no information about any suspects. The incident happened near the 600 Block of High St. in Santa Cruz at 9 a.m. on April 8. (source)
- A suspect used a stolen credit or debit card to make a fraudulent purchase (identity theft). The incident happened on the 400 block of Soquel Avenue, near the 1300 Block of Ocean St., Santa Cruz. It occurred at 10 a.m. on March 27. The suspect was identified. (source)
- A restraining order was violated. This happened near the 300 Block of Main St., Santa Cruz at 7 p.m. on April 7. (source)
- A restraining order was violated. This happened near the 300 Block of Main St., Santa Cruz, at 1 p.m. on April 3. (source)
- A person was arrested for a parole violation. The incident happened near the railroad tracks and Coral St. in Santa Cruz at 3 p.m. on April 7. (source)
Note on today’s report: Some of the incidents listed are not recent. This can happen for a couple of reasons: Delays in agency reporting — sometimes officials don’t file reports right away, or agencies release batches of reports weeks later. Delays in public complaints — people may not notice or decide to contact police until some time after an incident. Please contact the responsible law-enforcement agency or your local elected officials if you have concerns about their delay in releasing information.
Disclosure: Traffic incidents and police incidents are partially generated by artificial intelligence. We are constantly working to improve the accuracy and quality of our AI-generated content. However, there may still be errors or inaccuracies. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us.