Morning Lookout: It’s election day; 328 sq. feet million-dollar home in Seabright and more

By Tulsi Kamath

Source: Lookout Santa Cruz

Good Morning! It’s Tuesday, November 2 — Election Day — and there will be patchy fog before noon that will gradually clear up into a mostly sunny day with a high near 68.

Santa Cruz voters will decide just one thing today —the fate of the Santa Cruz Children’s Fund and whether it will get a bigger share from cannabis tax revenue. A tiny 328 square-foot home in Seabright sold for more than a million dollars — a sign of “not enough inventory,” according to the listing agent.

Let’s dive in:

Santa Cruz voters will decide today if children’s fund becomes permanent, gets increased revenue

Few voters mid day at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and Music Center in downtown Los Angeles

Just one item will be on the ballot when city of Santa Cruz residents go to the polls today: the future of the Santa Cruz Children’s Fund. With Measure A, voters will decide whether the fund gets a bigger share of the revenue generated by the city’s cannabis business tax and if it gets a permanent place in the city charter. Read more about the measure and how you can vote from our Hillary Ojeda here.

Child care in California hasn’t rebounded — why many workers aren’t coming back

Tonya Muhammad walks through the playground of her child care in Hawthorne

California lost about 27,800 child care workers between February and April of 2020 — or roughly a third of its workforce — according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. From then through September of 2021, about 19,600 have come back. Still, the workforce is about 10% smaller than it was pre-pandemic. Read more here.

Shooting at home of Gilroy council member leaves 1 dead, 3 injured; suspect arrested

Kent Nishimura Los Angeles Times RESIDENTS OF GILROY,

Authorities arrested a 19-year-old man in connection with a shooting this weekend at a party that took place at the home of a Gilroy City Council member Rebeca Armendariz. The shooting left one teenager dead and three others wounded. Read more here.

Climate change is now the main driver of increasing wildfire weather, study finds

Burned trees rise above a truck destroyed by the Dixie fire in the town of Greenville

A new study says climate change is essentially two-thirds to 88% responsible for the conditions driving wildfire woes in the western United States. And that’s a conservative estimate, said study author Rong Fu, a climate researcher at UCLA. “It’s happened so much faster than we previously anticipated,” she added. Read more here.

PG&E under federal probe in Dixie fire, expects more than $1 billion in losses tied to blaze

Firefighters clear away combustible material at the head of the Dixie fire near Janesville.

In yet another investigation into the role that utility giant PG&E has played in California’s worsening wildfires, the company said yesterday that it received a subpoena from the U.S. attorney’s office seeking documents related to the Dixie fire — the second-largest wildfire in state history. The utility also said it is expected to take a loss of at least $1.15 billion from the blaze. Read more here.

CZU family approved for new home in Habitat for Humanity development

A fence in front of a two-story yellow house

Over a year after losing their rental home in the CZU Lightning Complex fire, Luke Politte and Amber Julien — along with son Leo and two dogs — will finally have a permanent spot to land, thanks to Habitat for Humanity. “It’s like a huge weight has been lifted off of our shoulders,” Julien said. Read more from our Grace Stetson here.

‘A lot of full-cash offers right now’: Seabright ‘tiny home’ fetches a cool $1M amid multiple offers

A wood house with a red door, with an awning over the door, and a blue bench in front.

After only four days on the market, a 328-square-foot home in Seabright sold for over $1 million, following five competitive offers and a packed open-house weekend. According to listing agent Walter Stauss, who’s sold homes in the area for nearly 25 years, it’s a sign of the demand vastly outpacing the supply: “There’s a huge pressure on the inventory.” Read more from our Grace Stetson here.

Around the county...

Santa Cruz man pleads guilty, convicted of partner’s murder (Santa Cruz Sentinel)

Almost 20,000 Santa Cruz County school children could receive COVID-19 vaccinations next week (KSBW-TV)

Watsonville voters want progress on rent, jobs, youth programs (Santa Cruz Local)

That’s it for today. If you’re enjoying our coverage, please tell your family and friends about our Lookout Newsletter & Text Center, where they can sign up for all the newsletters and alerts we offer. You can also keep tabs on everything we’re publishing through the day by bookmarking our website and following us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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Have a great day!

Tulsi Kamath
Lookout Santa Cruz