Morning Lookout: Overwhelming support for Measure A; why are ADU restrictions still in place?

By Tulsi Kamath

Source: Lookout Santa Cruz

Good Morning! It’s Wednesday, November 3 and there will be areas of fog before 10 a.m. followed by a sunny day with a high of 74.

Santa Cruz voters overwhelmingly approved giving a larger chunk of cannabis tax revenue to the Santa Cruz Children’s Fund yesterday. Lookout contributor Maria Gaura delves into the world of ADU restrictions and the question of why they haven’t been updated yet. And Santa Cruz police arrested a man in an alleged hate crime assault.

Let’s dive in:

Santa Cruz Measure A receives overwhelming support

Students, staff and nearby residents cast their ballots at UCLA Ackerman Union as polls

Santa Cruz voters overwhelmingly approved Measure A, with 82% agreeing to increase the percentage of money generated by the city’s cannabis tax given to childhood development programs. The Santa Cruz Children’s Fund currently receives 12.5% of the revenue from the city’s cannabis business tax; the passage of the measure means this would increase to 20%. Read more from a Lookout staff report here.

The criminalization of car homelessness? How oversized vehicle ordinance could affect Santa Cruz’s unhoused

Rose was displaced by the CZU fire last summer.

With a vote of 5-2 last week, the Santa Cruz City Council approved an oversized vehicle ordinance in its first reading, with a second reading yet unscheduled. Opponents to the ordinance, both local activists and legal experts, say it criminalizes homelessness and could lead to greater issues for the city in addressing the unhoused. Read more from our Grace Stetson and see photos by Kevin Painchaud here.

‘It’s infuriating’: Why Santa Cruz’s earliest ADU adopters are asking where to find their perks

The residence at 324 Dufour Street caters to UCSC students and will soon have an adjacent ADU providing more housing units.

The original restrictions faced by those who built ADUs when they became legal in 1986 — such as owner-occupancy for renting them out, parking and setbacks — are no longer in order for today’s owners taking advantage. So why haven’t the terms been updated for those ADU pioneers? Read more from Lookout contributor Maria Gaura here.

Not all the unvaccinated are diehards, but the ‘wait and see’ crowd is shrinking

A woman meditates next to a rally near the Santa Monica Pier

Not all unvaccinated people have totally ruled out COVID-19 shots. Some say they will “wait and see” about getting vaccinated, or will do so “only if required,” surveys show. “It’s not that they were against vaccines, but they just need that extra push,” said one public health official. Read more here.

‘I don’t recognize myself anymore’; How the pandemic drowned a working mom in debt

Maybelle Manio, right, and her son, Jake Cruz at their new apartment in San Mateo on Oct. 4, 2021.

While the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic devastated low-income families, middle-class households were not immune. Commercial real estate agent Maybelle Manio is one of many middle-class Californians who found themselves financially stranded by the pandemic. The 42-year-old turned to public support for the first time in her life. Read more here.

Hi or bye to ibuyers? Algorithmic home sales, growing in popularity, hit early hurdles

Portrait of Ruben Aguayo, Hazel Aguayo, Ariel Aguayo, 4, and Noah Aguayo, 5, in their yard Oct. 24, 2021 in Duarte, CA.

A new way of selling homes is taking root on laptops and smartphones across the country. Companies including Opendoor, Offerpad and Redfin are using algorithms backed by reams of data to value houses and buy them fast, in cash, and with much of the transaction online. Operating somewhat as industrial-scale flippers, the so-called ibuyers — instant buyers — have expanded rapidly in recent years. Read more here.

PG&E must reduce outage impacts on customers, says California Public Utilities Commission

Following a series of PG&E outages meant to reduce fire risk in parts of Santa Cruz County over the summer, the California Public Utilities Commission is requiring the utility to mitigate the effects on residents who were left without power, sometimes for days. The commission responded to a letter sent by the Santa Cruz County Chair of the Board of Supervisors in September. Read more from our Hillary Ojeda here.

Around the county...

Santa Cruz police arrest man suspected of hate crime assault (Lookout Santa Cruz)

AT&T proposes camouflaged cell facility near Aptos High (Santa Cruz Sentinel)

Two Watsonville men arrested in connection to double homicide (The Pajaronian)

Prescribed burns in Wilder Ranch State Park continues, park shares photos (KION-TV)

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Have a great day!

Tulsi Kamath
Lookout Santa Cruz