Despite a rainy weather forecast, some of the country’s top professional surfers are gearing up for the return of the O’Neill Cold Water Classic at Steamer Lane starting Wednesday and running through Sunday. The World Surf League qualifying event promises fierce competition in the iconic amphitheater off of West Cliff Drive as more than 100 surfers, including Santa Cruzans like Nat Young, John Mel, Maddie Storrer and Autumn Hays, compete for $10,000 in prize money.
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Posted inLatest News
No atmospheric river after all: Santa Cruz County to face milder rainstorm this week
Santa Cruz County residents can still expect rain this week, but the atmospheric river label won’t be applied to this weather system anymore, as it never quite drew moisture from the tropical source that so often spurs the intense winter storms.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
The Napa of pot? County supervisors temper pitch for smoking lounges, cannabis agritourism
Santa Cruz County supervisors debated a pioneering cannabis tourism proposal Tuesday that envisions farm tours and smoking lounges. However, county lawmakers said they felt the public needed to be brought in before making such substantial changes.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Santa Cruz County’s plan to tackle homelessness is seeing results
Santa Cruz County’s three-year plan to combat homelessness is coming to an end and Carlos Palacios, the county’s administrative officer, offers an update on what the county has achieved and the work still to be done.
Posted inFood & Drink
Pleasure Point breakfast spot Cliff Café to close after 33 years
Since 1982, Cliff Café has been a Pleasure Point staple for home-cooked breakfast. Now, the restaurant will close at the end of November because the building will be redeveloped.
Posted inFood & Drink
Live music dispute ignites feud between Capitola restaurant, landlord
For the first year and half it was open, owners Lasalle and Michelle Strong featured regular live music at Capitola Bar & Grill. Landlord Steve Yates says the music is in violation of their commercial lease and disturbs the residential tenants in the building, and ordered them to cease. Now the feud is playing out with lawyers in arbitration, in court and on social media, where the Strongs allege Yates’ actions are racist.
Posted inRecreation & Sports
High school sports roundup: Harbor volleyball falls in NorCal playoffs; Soquel, Scotts Valley football advance
A banner season for the Harbor High volleyball team ended Thursday against Lowell High. Meanwhile, Soquel High and Scotts Valley High moved on in the Central Coast Section football playoffs with convincing victories, Soquel boys water polo scored a CCS crown and a host of local runners are headed to the state cross-country meet.
Posted inLatest News
QOTD: Why does Highway 1 need bus-on-shoulder lanes?
As the long-planned Highway 1 expansion project moves forward and the future form of the major artery slowly becomes a reality, some might find it difficult to imagine a Santa Cruz Metro bus on the highway at all. In fact, it’s possible that you’ve lived here for many years and can’t recall ever seeing a […]
Posted inHealth & Wellness
Watsonville Community Hospital nurses to picket Monday over ‘safe staffing, patient safety, retention’
Watsonville Community Hospital nurses are holding a picket Monday to protest “deep concerns about safe staffing, patient safety, retention, and recruitment” amid what they say have been “extremely contentious” negotiations for a new contract. “We sacrificed and struggled to care for our community during the pandemic and then worked to save this hospital from bankruptcy,” […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, San Lorenzo Valley
Rain-rich, faucet-famine: The irony of Boulder Creek’s ongoing water woes
After a year of heavy rainfall, Boulder Creek faces a paradoxical water crisis. Despite abundant natural resources, private utility Big Basin Water Company is grappling with infrastructure failures traced back to the 2020 CZU fire, leaving faucets dry and costing some residents thousands of dollars.