In a letter to the editor, a Soquel resident takes issue with Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keely’s push for a new tax to support the development of affordable housing in the city.
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Weekender: Accidentally Wes Anderson, Lewis Black postponed and ‘Good Trouble’ at The 418
Recommendations, news and notes from Santa Cruz County arts & entertainment from Lookout’s man about town.
Best 9: Top events for the week ahead in Santa Cruz County arts & entertainment, Jan. 23-30
With the weekend nearly here, check out Wallace Baine’s Best 9 recommendations for things to do around Santa Cruz County via Lookout’s BOLO events calendar.
Morning Lookout: Moss Landing fire’s uncertain aftermath, Atre trial opening statements, lessons learned at the border
Santa Cruz County news and opinion coverage from Lookout for the morning of Thursday, Jan. 23.
In wake of battery plant fire, Santa Cruz County supervisors plan briefing; Central Coast lawmakers call for investigation
After last week’s fire at the Moss Landing battery plant forced evacuations and caused health and environmental concerns, calls for accountability have increased. The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors will hold a briefing next week, while Central Coast lawmakers have called for a thorough and transparent investigation.
Moss Landing fire impact: Officials offer reassurance as some locals worry and wonder
Almost a week after the fire at a power plant and battery storage facility in Moss Landing, officials say air quality in nearby northern Monterey County and southern Santa Cruz County is safe and do not see any health risks. Vistra, the facility’s owner, says it is conducting its own investigation into the fire.
First of four suspects in Tushar Atre murder case finally goes to court
The first of four separate trials for the suspects in the 2019 murder of Pleasure Point tech and cannabis entrepreneur Tushar Atre finally began Wednesday afternoon after years of legal proceedings. Attorneys gave their opening statements as they started the trial of Stephen Lindsay, expected to last four to six weeks.
An approach to immigration, not Trump’s
UC Santa Cruz history professor Grace Peña Delgado is writing a chronicle of the U.S.-Mexico border and in the summer, she and Lookout photographer Kevin Painchaud spent time documenting stories at one Arizona spot along the border, a place locals call the “End-of-the-wall,” because it’s where 34 miles of steel columns dividing the land abruptly end. Building barriers won’t stop immigration, she writes: “Robust climate action, economic investment in vulnerable areas and more expansive legal pathways for asylum-seekers offer a more sustainable path than building walls that funnel families into even deadlier routes.”
Morning Lookout: Opposition to affordable housing tax, Alderwood closes, local business roundup
Santa Cruz County headlines from Lookout for the morning of Wednesday, Jan. 22.
Santa Cruz real estate lobby opposes proposed affordable housing tax measure
The Santa Cruz County Association of Realtors’ unexpected opposition throws shade over the proposed Workforce Housing Solutions Act, an affordable housing tax measure designed to raise $5 million annually through a parcel tax and a tax on sales of luxury homes in the city of Santa Cruz.

