The local nonprofit tasked with raising money to purchase Watsonville Community Hospital is about to receive $25 million from the state. If Gov. Gavin Newsom signs the final budget including that allocation, the Pajaro Valley Healthcare District Project will still need more than $12 million to reach its goal, but organizers say most of that money should be raised before the Aug. 31 deadline.
Watsonville
Posted inHealth & Wellness
Santa Cruz already seeing out-of-state abortion patients as Planned Parenthood ramps up regional services
Officials in Planned Parenthood’s Mar Monte region are preparing for 250 to 500 out-of-state patients seeking abortions each year across its 35 centers. Two of those centers, in Watsonville and downtown Santa Cruz, are expected to see some of those patients, but it’s not clear to officials just how many. Each site is seeking to hire one full-time provider.
Posted inFood & Drink
EATERS DIGEST: A guide to food trucks and pop-ups, yakitori and takoyaki on the Westside and the weirdest cookie
Use Lookout’s guide to food trucks and pop-ups to help you navigate Santa Cruz County’s thriving scene, including a pair of pop-ups serving yakitori and takoyaki on the Westside. Plus, Ser and Madson wineries grace the pages of Wine Enthusiast.
Posted inK-12 Education
Santa Cruz school districts’ transitional kindergarten plans taking shape, but much still left to do
While summer is just now officially kicking off, the school year already feels around the corner for Santa Cruz County school districts preparing to add a new grade level to their campuses: transitional kindergarten for 4-year-olds. Several districts have already submitted their TK plans — to meet a June 30 deadline — to the California Department of Education.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
County’s safe syringe programs see a change as Harm Reduction Coalition loses funding
The Harm Reduction Coalition — which has officially partnered with Santa Cruz County’s Health Services Agency for two years — and its safe syringes and related programs didn’t receive funding for the year. Supervisors cited duplication of services with the county’s own efforts, but HRC leaders say they provide needed, additive options.
Posted inCity Life
Icons of Santa Cruz: Mosaic project Watsonville Brillante aims to represent city’s entire cultural heritage
Transforming an anonymous parking garage, artists led by Kathleen Crocetti are creating a gigantic, quiltlike representation of Watsonville’s human story, a portrait of the city’s soul created with small pieces of ceramic tile. This “mind-blowing” work might be the most ambitious public art project in Santa Cruz County’s history.
Posted inCoast Life
Ask Lookout: Did the Virgin Mary actually once visit a lake in Watsonville?
Thirty years ago Friday, an apparition of La Virgen de Guadalupe visited Anita Mendoza Contreras at Pinto Lake, turning a sleepy county park into a pilgrimage site. The timing was impeccable, Wallace Baine writes.
Posted inWatsonville / Pajaro
‘A Renaissance woman’: Monarch Services’ Laura Segura passes
As women’s need for support multiplied during the COVID-19 pandemic, Laura Segura and her Monarch Services team met the profound challenges of helping those driven for help with sexual assault, domestic violence and human trafficking. The work crowned Segura’s contributions in helping the people of her native Watsonville.
Posted inFood & Drink
Lily Belli on Food: Venus taps chef John Harry for Beachside, Glaum gains, Zayante mysteries & ‘foodies’ vs. ‘buffs’
Heads up, foodies: I’m now sending alerts every time I publish a story. Sign up for texts from me here. Thanks to those of you who’ve already subscribed and offered your thoughts! And catch up on my recent work here. … Last month, Venus Spirits owner Sean Venus announced plans to open a second restaurant […]
Posted inK-12 Education
PVUSD renews SRO program in wake of Aptos High stabbing nine months ago
Santa Cruz County’s largest school district has renewed what has been a controversial policing presence at its high schools. Pajaro Valley Unified School District and law enforcement officials say it’s too soon to know its overall impact on student safety and preventing incidents, but early surveys find support for the program.