Wildlife has been dying at the Corcoran Lagoon, along the Santa Cruz County coastline. According to neighbors, the culprits are skimboarders, who dig trenches from the lagoon to the ocean so that they can ride the waves as the waters rush out of the lagoon.
Raspberries Make up for Strawberries’ Decline
Strawberries are still Santa Cruz County’s biggest crop. Valued at over $160 million, they account for over one-third of the county’s total agricultural production. But with a drop in prices and crop rotation between Santa Cruz and Monterey counties, their value has dropped by $36 million since 2007. Farmers aren’t worried though, because raspberries have picked up the slack, increasing in value by $35 million.
Santa Cruz Fencers Practice Swordplay
The clash of steel and the patter and squeak of athletic shoes fill the Waldorf High School gym. People wearing white and full of energy dance forward and backward, trying to catch their opponents off guard or waiting for the most opportune moment to attack. A beeping sound accompanied by a red or green light on the scoring machine resting on a chair identifies the winner of the point, or touché. (With slide show)
Reports: Revenue from State Parks Exceeds Cost
The governor’s proposal to close 220 of the state’s 279 state parks as a cost-cutting measure could shoot California’s economy in the foot. Results of two university studies have concluded that California’s state parks generate more money than they cost to operate, and local park advocates assure that tourism in Santa Cruz County will suffer if the parks go off-limits. (With slide show)
Santa Cruz Nonprofits the Latest Victims of Budget Cuts
Though the Santa Cruz County Conference and Visitors Council was spared the budgetary scalpel at a meeting of the Santa Cruz City Council Tuesday, other organizations throughout the city were not as fortunate. The city voted to keep the CVC’s funding at the same level as last year, and decided the same for the County Cultural Council, but 52 other nonprofits face an across-the-board 25 percent cut in municipal funding. The cuts saved the city a total of $300,000.
UCSC Facing Tough Budget Cuts
The finger pointing is well underway as regents of the UC system meet in San Francisco to decide on how to implement the necessary budget cuts for the coming year. The meeting comes in the wake of an $800 million cut in state funding to the 10-school system, compounded by an additional $335 million deficit expected over the next two years because of increasing costs.
Life And Death on the Pajaro River Levee
In Watsonville, within certain circles, it is a well known fact that if your wife or parents kick you out, or if you’re down on your luck, or if you just don’t want to be found, you can go down to the river levee. There, hidden along the banks of the Pajaro River in the brush and high grass, out of sight from the apartment complex windows and the prefab homes with their Dish Network satellites, you’ll find the casitas–little houses–built from tarps, bungee cords, tree limbs and blankets, constructed and tended to by a chronically homeless population of monolingual Spanish speakers. If you have nowhere to go, on the levee it’s possible to get a bite, maybe a beer and, if you get there early enough, even a bed. Most nights, that is, except for the night of March 25.
Local Man Injures Butt
Yeah, you heard me.
Public Opposes Monterey Desalination Plant
Monterey City Council was packed yesterday with almost 100 people, most of them opposed to a proposed desalination plant in Moss Landing. Apart from concerns over the $300 million price tag for the facility, opponents cited environmental concerns and a general misgivings about Cal Am as the reasons for their resistance to the project. “Corporations should not be profiting from water,” said Peggy Olsen, a Monterey resident.
Pogonip Brushfire Doused
A small brushfire that broke out yesterday afternoon between Harvey West Business Park and UC Santa Cruz was extinguished quickly by fire crews on the ground and a Cal Fire helicopter.
