The number of sick and injured brown pelicans in Santa Cruz County has decreased quite a bit in recent weeks, but International Bird Rescue in Fairfield is still busy finishing rehabilitation for birds from all over the state, including locally. The organization, along with Native Animal Rescue of Santa Cruz County, is requesting additional funding from the county to help with costs associated with caring for the influx of ailing pelicans.
Today’s Top Story
A significant story with interest across the county
Posted inHousing & Development
Pacific Station North affordable housing project breaks ground in downtown Santa Cruz
Along with Pacific Station South, Pacific Station North will bring the total number of new units on the corner of Pacific Avenue and Laurel Street to just shy of 200 by the end of 2026. The city celebrated its groundbreaking Monday as it prepares to open up Pacific Station South to tenants by the summer.
Posted inFood & Drink
With a sixth location set to open on San Francisco’s Pier 39 this summer, Santa Cruz’s Humble Sea is defying craft beer’s bust
Santa Cruz’s Humble Sea Brewing Co. will open its sixth taproom in the Bay Area on San Francisco’s Pier 39 this summer, making it one of the most prolific breweries in the state. The brand has grown 25% year over year, according to one of the owners, defying a downward trend in the craft beer industry overall.
Posted inLatest News
Tensions escalate for UC Santa Cruz pro-Palestine encampment
Following more than two weeks of UC Santa Cruz students holding an encampment for Palestine in the center of the university campus, administrators and students issued statements Thursday showing that they could be approaching a breaking point.
Posted inLatest News
With 15,000 Santa Cruz County homeowners being ‘non-renewed’ for insurance, anxieties grow as plans are hatched in Sacramento
Amid a local and statewide insurance crisis, the California Insurance Commissioner’s office sent representative Richie Sayavong to Santa Cruz County on Tuesday to discuss the current struggles with the board of supervisors and lay out the ways the office is trying to mitigate impacts. He participated in an insurance forum in Scotts Valley later Tuesday night.
Posted inLatest News
Over school district, parents’ objections, Santa Cruz City Council allows Westside dispensary by 6-1 vote
The Hook Outlet cannabis dispensary, through a partnership with WAMM Phyotherapies, will be able to open at the old Emily’s Bakery location at Mission and Laurel streets following months of community uproar over its proximity to two schools.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
After residents told to move their mobile homes for Coastal Rail Trail, some mull legal action
Residents in two Live Oak mobile home parks directly beside the rail line fear they could be displaced by the Coastal Rail Trail project, specifically, Segments 10 and 11 that run right between the two parks. As the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission prepares to consider options for the residents, those living in the parks have begun seriously weighing legal action.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Santa Cruz dispensary decision pits city’s past against anxieties about its future
The Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana, a local nonprofit with a bold past, seeks a commercial lifeline through a partnership with The Hook Outlet. However, the proposal has caused friction with the local school district. On Tuesday, the Santa Cruz City Council will have to balance the vestiges of the city’s counterculture against the anxieties of parents.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Happy Birthday, baby: Santa Cruz’s enduring symbol, the Giant Dipper, hits the century mark
Santa Cruz’s most identifiable icon will celebrate its 100th birthday Saturday with a ceremony and fireworks, and ahead of the milestone, Wallace Baine not only talked to some of those who know and love the Giant Dipper best, he also got a close-up look that few who haven’t worked at the Beach Boardwalk have experienced.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
With Cummings leading, Coastal Commission gives Santa Cruz two-year extension — not five — of oversized vehicle ordinance
The California Coastal Commission scuttled the City of Santa Cruz’s plans to extend its controversial oversized vehicle ordinance to a five-year program. County Supervisor Justin Cummings, who sits on the commission, successfully pushed for a two-year extension instead to assess the OVO’s effects on coastal access during the peak tourist season.