On Tuesday, SantaCruz.com cited news source saying that “Officially, 150 jobs were added to Santa Cruz over 2009, with 86 of them in the final quarter.” Of course, “County officials [were] more optimistic, saying that as many as 362 jobs were either created or saved last year through the county’s departments alone.” For some reason, this doesn’t match up with a state report claiming that the county added 600 new jobs in local government in December, compared to November. The new jobs were supposedly added to county government, city government, school districts and community colleges.
News
School Board Considering Drastic Cuts
At its meeting yesterday the board of the Pajaro Valley Unified School District debated a series of drastic cuts to overcome its $5.5 million deficit.
SCPD Deputy Chief Patty Sapone Calls It Quits
On Feb. 5, Patty Sapone turns in her gun and badge for retirement. She leaves as the first woman to be promoted all the way through the ranks and the longest-serving female officer in SCPD history.
Maldonado Starts Confirmation Hearing for Lieutenant Governorship Today
While confirmation is not yet a sure thing, contenders for his senate seat are already lining up.
UCSC Researcher Finds Albatross Tragedy
In the video, a mottled Laysan albatross chick waddles slowly in a circle, clacking its beak angrily in the camera’s direction. Its scruffy brown wings hang limply at each side, occasionally fluttering and dragging in the soil as the young bird struggles to defend itself from the perceived threat. Around its grey webbed feet, tiny white flecks dot the ground.
“Paint chips,” says UC-Santa Cruz assistant researcher Myra Finkelstein, the woman behind the camera, who’s now watching the video on her home PC. “Lead-based paint chips cover the ground in a lot of places. It’s real easy for the young birds to ingest them.” With video.
Bartering: The New Raise
It is, unfortunately, easier to spend less than it is to make more. As a finance geek, I tend to approach every problem armed with an Excel spreadsheet, so let me illustrate. After taxes, an annual 5 percent raise (optimistic by most companies’ standards) results in an approximately 3.3 percent increase in take-home pay. If your income is $100,000, that’s only $3,300 for the year, or $275 a month. With luck, it will mitigate overall inflation and leave you exactly where you were before. It’s certainly not enough to afford the new Porsche I’ve always dreamed of.
Comcast Admits to Bill Errors
There’s some good news for Comcast customers living outside of the city of Santa Cruz.
No Cheers for Gym Closing
In the four years since it opened, the Majestic All-Stars Cheer Gym in Watsonville has become a local institution.
Child Porn Case May Extend to Santa Cruz
The SCPD is looking for people who know Richard Werner Schweich.
How Many Jobs Can Santa Cruz Get for $106 Million?
Officially, 150 jobs were added to Santa Cruz over 2009, with 86 of them in the final quarter. County officials are more optimistic, saying that as many as 362 jobs were either created or saved last year through the county’s departments alone—and that this doesn’t count small businesses that benefited.
