Aptos Times: March 15, 2024

Cover Aptos Alum’s Family Drama: ‘White Sky, Falling Dragon’ to be Staged April 19-May 5, By Jondi Gumz

Community News

4 Capitola Avenue Overpass to Close for 14 Months

5 Searching for Joy & Meaning in Life: Fundraiser for Treasure Cove Playground Taking Place March 22, By Jondi Gumz

6 Rail Trail EIR Goes To Supervisors March 26

7 Aptos Cannabis Input Session March 18, By Jondi Gumz

8 Monk of Mokha Book Cover Winners

10 Groundbreaking March 27 for Affordable Rentals, By Jondi Gumz

11 Good Friday Paddle Out • Jobs in Santa Cruz County

12 County Sales Tax Hike, Hospital Bond Leading: Brown, De Serpa Head for November Runoff, By Jondi Gumz • March 5 Election Update

13 Wanted: Grand Jury Volunteers

14 New School: 30 Years of Changing Lives: Alternative Education Program Helps Teens Catch Up

16 Friend Named Friend of Agriculture

18 Habitat Monterey Bay Women Build 2024 • The Ron Buswell Community Garden

19 Second Harvest Honors Crowe, Mosier

20 Youth Poet Laureate Finalists: Judges To Reveal Choice at April 10 Celebration • PVPSA CEO Jasmine Nájera Invited to State of the Union

21 Santa Cruz Metro’s New CEO Corey Aldridge • Soquel Creek Water District General Manager Ron Duncan to Retire

Jondi

the Capitola Soquel Times and Scotts Valley Times, each printed monthly, Coastal Weddings Magazine, Coastal Home and Garden Magazine, Aptos’ Fourth of July Parade Official Program Guide and Capitola’s Summer Festivals Official Program Guide, is owned by Patrice Edwards. Entire contents ©2024. All rights reserved. Reproduction in any form is prohibited without the publisher’s written permission

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Capitola Avenue Overpass to Close for 14 Months

The next step in the $79 million Highway 1 project to add bus and shoulder on auxiliary lanes is demolition and reconstruction of the Capitola Avenue overpass with bike lanes and sidewalks, starting in March.

As of March 11, the Capitola Avenue overcrossing will be inaccessible for 14 months during preparations for demolition with detours via Bay Avenue/Porter Avenue and Park Avenue.

On Saturday and Sunday, March 22 and 23, Highway 1 will be completely closed for the demolition, starting at 7 p.m. Saturday and reopening at 7 p.m. Sunday. Traffic will be detoured to Bay Avenue/Porter Street and Park Avenue and Soquel Drive. This 24-hour closure is needed so crews can complete the demolition and haul debris away.

COVER STORY

“White Sky, Falling Dragon” from page 1

Spike was close to his grandparents, having lived with them when he was 3 to 4 in Lincoln Street in Watsonville.

He began typing out this stage play on his cell phone.

“It just came out,” he said.

The story is about his father Ernest, who as a young Cantonese man in Watsonville fell in love and then was called to be a bombardier in World War II.

He was 19.

His bride-to-be, Alice, was 17.

During the war, he sent her letter after letter.

She saved every single one.

When she died in 2014, Spike found those letters and read them all.

Ernest came home from the war as a U.S. Army Air Force captain, having served his country, but he struggled to be an American in a traditional Chinese home.

In the play, the captain brings home a tragedy that occurred on his last mission.

White Sky, Falling Dragon

Written and directed by Steve “Spike” Wong

A co-production from Soaring Dragon Endeavors & Santa Cruz Actors’ Theatre Center Stage

1001 Center Street, Santa Cruz

April 19-May 5

General admission

$35. Senior/student: $32

Tickets: https://ci.ovationtix.com/35410/ production/1173181

Learn more: https://soaringdragon.net

Message and directional signs will be posted.

These scheduled work dates, which come before an earlier than usual Good Friday and Easter, depend on weather.

Updates are to be provided in case of inclement weather.

The contractor, Granite Construction of Watsonville, expected to finish the project in 2026.

One more component of the project: Build a bicycle/pedestrian overcrossing on Highway 1 at Mar Vista Drive in Aptos. The start date has not been announced.

The new Capitola Avenue overcrossing, expected to open in the summer/fall of 2025, will have bike lanes and sidewalks for use by people on foot or bicycle to access schools, parks, beaches, and businesses.

Another component is construction of

Somehow the past holds the key to his future.

Spike said while he was thinking of the ending, he thought his grandfather would “save the day,” but instead his grandmother “took over.”

The play, “White Sky, Falling Dragon,” which got its premiere with an all-Asian cast in Mountain View in 2022, was embraced by his family, wife Debbie, and their son and daughter who saw it.

“They were completely and utterly blown away,” he said.

The audience was moved as well.

One woman, an immigrant from Chile, told him, “The story on that stage is my story.”

a pedestrian and bicycle overcrossing on Highway 1 near Chanticleer Avenue in MidCounty. That project is well underway, with the frame already in place,

“Highway 1 Roadwork” page 8

Now local audiences, his former students from 23 years of teaching at Watsonville High, his Aptos High classmates, his former neighbors when he lived in Aptos Seascape, his current neighbors in Soquel, and friends of his daughter who lives in Seacliff have an opportunity to see this drama close to home.

It will be staged April 19 through May 5 at Actor’s Theatre, 1001 Center St., Santa Cruz --with the original 2022 cast.

This will bring together actors from Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area and Santa Cruz.

One of them is Spike himself, who takes the role of “Pop.”

Could a film be next?

Curtain is at 7:30 p.m. with 2 p.m. matinees on Saturday and Sunday.

Tickets are: $35, seniors/students $32 at https://ci.ovationtix.com/35410/ production/1173181

In case you wonder how Spike got that name, it happened when he was 18.

He and his friends were going to a ShaNaNa concert.

He got the idea to go as a bowling team, wearing shirts with their names on the back.

He got sequins and glue, and made a big “S” on his when he realized Steve was a dorky name.

Out came “Spike” and that’s been his nickname ever since. n

•••

Cover Photos: Center: Captain Ernest Wong • Top to Bottom: Actor Winston Wang as Ernest • Actress YinYin Liow as May • Actress Cynthia Dear as Ma • Steve “Spike” Wong as Pop.

Michael Oppenheimer, Camisa Composti

Michael Oppenheimer website

photography

Ernest Wong in boot camp During World War II.

Searching for Joy & Meaning in Life Fundraiser for Treasure Cove Playground Taking Place March 22

By Jondi Gumz

Diane Deaver is an Aptosian who loved to bike ride, travel, walk with friends and make beautiful quilts of her own design.

She and her husband Doug once hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon National Park. They also liked to go for long bike rides. They enjoyed visiting their daughters and families in Alaska and Mexico and they enjoyed family vacations in places like Alaska and Yellowstone.

Her last trip, with Doug to Italy, was a memorable one.

Diane enjoyed working with children, especially ones with special needs. Her career was teaching young children in nursery school.

Diane has a lot of good memories, but she’s no longer able to travel.

The reason she can’t travel is because she has Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, or Steele-Richardson-Olszewski syndrome, named for three medical doctors in Toronto who described the condition in 1964. They

believed it was nerve cell degeneration in the brain stem.

This is a rare brain disease similar to Parkinson’s and ALS that can cause

problems with balance, movement, vision, speech and swallowing. Medical doctors say there is no cure and no way to slow it down.

In spite of this, Diane still wants to make a difference for others.

Helping Others

She was patient number one in a clinical trial, and she, with Doug, helped establish protocols on a clinical trial just beginning.

She helped her great-niece, Shannon Patterson, write a book, titled “Raising Puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind,” based on Shannon’s experience starting at age 8.

Diane thought it was an important message to send to other kids.

She’s written poetry, one of which won first place in the Aptos Times Valentine’s Day contest.

She’s volunteered for Friends of CASA, and for Jacob’s Heart Children’s Cancer Services.

When she organized parties for foster children, supporters called her “the party girl.”

“Diane Deaver” page 6

Rail Trail EIR Goes To Supervisors March 26

Supervisors Santa Cruz County supervisors are scheduled to consider the 2,308-page final environmental impact report for the Coastal Rail Trail Segments 10 and 11 at a public hearing on Tuesday, March 26, at 9 a.m. or thereafter, at 701 Ocean St. Room 525, Santa Cruz.

This is a 4.5-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail proposed to extend along the Santa Cruz Branch Line rail corridor from 17th Avenue in Live Oak to State Park Drive in Aptos.

This project excludes a .5-mile section on Capitola streets from Opal Street/Cliff Drive Plaza to Monterey Avenue/Park Avenue.

The final EIR evaluates the “Ultimate Trail Configuration” (Trail Next to Rail), as well as an “Optional Interim Trail” (Trail on the Rail Line) in which the railroad tracks would be removed and the trail would be located on the rail bed.

There are 3 volumes: Volume 1: all comments received during the Draft EIR public review period and Responses to Comments, Volume 2: the Draft EIR with minor revisions made to provide additional information in response to comments received or for general clarification, and Volume 3: the Draft EIR appendices with supporting technical documentation.

The county of Santa Cruz as the lead agency, prepared a draft, circulated it for

“Diane Deaver” from page 5

In 2016, she and Doug supported LEO’s Haven in Mid-County, buying two pieces of equipment to make the playground accessible to all children, including those in wheelchairs.

It was the first inclusive playground in Santa Cruz County.

She helped present that project to the Capitola-Aptos Rotary, which resulted in a very successful fundraiser.

Mysterious Falls

When she began experiencing falls and bruises in 2018, she wasn’t sure why.

In 2019, she fell off her bike. Then at a family event, a doctor suggested she see a neurologist.

She thought it could be arthritis.

She ended up seeing a neurologist at

60 days until Dec. 15, and got 321 comments, most of them from individuals, all of which appear in the final report.

The County is required to prepare responses to all comments.

In many instances, the response is: “The comment does not relate to the adequacy of the Draft EIR or CEQA process. However, the comments are noted and forwarded to decision makers for consideration. No revisions to the Draft EIR are necessary.”

For comments on these nine issues, county staff developed “master responses.”

In the final report, the phrase “master response” appears 362 times.

For example, the report found the Ultimate Trail next to the rail line would require removing 803 of 1,883 trees bigger than 4 inches in diameter, and the Optional Interim Trail next to the rail line would require removing 957 trees.

Railroad Education and Preservation Society, Train Riders Association of California, Santa Cruz Climate Action Network, and Friends of the Rail Trail.

The report notes: “Many comments are similar or address the same issue.”

These include:

• Tree removal and mitigation,

• Measure D clarification,

• Right-of-way encroachments,

• Capitola trestle and Measure L clarification,

• Rail operation and railbanking,

• Capitola Village safety and accessibility concerns,

• Privacy, noise, and security concerns,

• Width of Alternative 1 (Trail Only) and Alternatives Analysis, and

• Requirement to include all 3 parts of Optional Interim Trail.

UC San Francisco where she was diagnosed. After diagnosis, she demanded that she and Doug travel to Ital7, since she knew it was his dream, that this would be thri last big trip.

She and Doug decided to make Italy their last big trip.

After she fell in a crosswalk while walking, she bought a cane for the trip.

In 2020, she got a formal diagnosis: Progressive Supranuclear Palsy.

Now, three years later, she is unable to quilt, she can’t walk, she has trouble seeing, and she can’t read or white.

Today, at 79, she requires assistance for all daily activities.

The way she deals with this:

“I count my blessings every day and try to find meaning in what I do,” she said in a 29-minute YouTube video explaining her journey.

Her new dog, part-Pomeranian, gives her a lot of joy, especially when they take a wheelchair trip in their neighborhood.

“She is so cute,” Diane said, “She makes us laugh a lot.”

She said she enjoys watching the ocean and participating in a global support group via Zoom.

When Diane heard about Treasure Cove, the Jade Street Park universally accessible playground project in Capitola, she really wanted to support it.

It’s ironic that with her passion for special needs kids, she is now the one who

Replacement trees are required but “the majority of the rail corridor is too narrow to restore mature trees without encroaching on the trail or rail line,” the report said.

Limited plantings could occur where there is adequate space next to the trail such as where the trail crosses Rodeo Gulch, extends along Jade Street Park and along New Brighton State Beach.

The tree inventory appears in Volume 3, Appendix A.6.

The California Public Utilities Commission, California Department of Fish & Wildlife, Monterey Bay Air Resources District and the city of Capitola provide comments.

So did Millennium Housing, Marianne’s Ice Cream of Seacliff, Seacliff Improvement Association, Roaring Camp Railroads,

This Notice has been issued to notify interested parties that the Final EIR has been prepared and is available for review. The County Board of Supervisors (Board) will consider the Final EIR prior to making decisions on the Project at a public hearing scheduled during the Board of Supervisors meeting on March 26, 2024. The Board will also consider the recommended Findings of Fact and Statement of Overriding Considerations and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program.

Information on the timing and public participation of the hearing will be at the Board of Supervisors website: santacruzcountyca.iqm2. com/citizens/default.aspx.

There will be livestreaming.

Remote participation is available via Zoom or via Phone. n

Copies of the final EIR are available for review Monday through Friday, between 8 am and 5 pm except holidays, at the County of Santa Cruz, Planning Department, General Information Desk, 701 Ocean St., 4th Floor, Santa Cruz, and the Santa Cruz County Parks Department, 979 17th Ave., 2nd Floor, Santa Cruz, and online, at: https://www.santacruzcountyca.gov/RailTrail.

is handicapped and knows how important accessibility is.

March 22 Fundraiser

Capitola-Aptos Rotary will sponsor a dinner and auction recognizing two retiring county supervisors, Zach Friend and Bruce McPherson, at 5:30 p.m. Friday, March. 22, at Seascape Golf Club, 610 Clubhouse Drive, Aptos.

Tickets are $150 per person at https:// www.eventbrite.com/e/rotarys-dinnerauction-honoring-zach-friend-bruce-mcpherson-tickets-819329545727?

Proceeds benefit County Parks Friends

for Treasure Cove at Jade Street Park and the Rotary community grants programs.

“When I don’t need my brain any more, I want to donate my brain to science,” Diane said.

That’s because the only way to know for sure if someone has Progressive Supranuclear Palsy is with an autopsy.

“I just want to help people whatever way I can,” she said. n •••

Aptos Cannabis Input Session March 18

By Jondi Gumz

Samuel LoForti, Santa Cruz County’s cannabis licensing manager since December 2018, announces a series of four cannabis policy listening sessions, starting in Aptos March 18.

Cannabis Licensing has operated in the red for two years, with expenses exceeding revenues by $250,000 to $625,000 each year and a $700,000 deficit projected for this year.

Elected officials had hoped taxes on cannabis after legalization on 2016 would provide a new infusion of revenue but sales have fallen from $17.4 million in 2021 to $15.6 million in 2023.

The same downward trend is seen in Santa Clara, Monterey and San Mateo counties.

The state’s licensed retailers reported $5.1 billion in taxable sales in 2023, down 4.7% from 2022, according to data from the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration.

This included pipes, rolling papers, grinders and T-shirts, along with actual cannabis products.

Actual cannabis sales in 2023, as reported by dispensaries totaled $4.4 billion – far shy of the assumed $6 billion market for the state.

Cannabis businesses have been hampered by federal law that for decades has categorized cannabis as an illegal drug, which could be addressed by the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act (S. 2860), which would green light financial institutions to serve the cannabis industry.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer Schumer (D-Brooklyn) could call for a floor vote, but he hasn’t. According to a cannabis lobbyist, negotiations focus on the language about “safe banking” and a Obama era policy to investigate banks providing services to firearm dealers and payday lenders who were said to be at risk of money laundering.

According to MJBizDaily, some local elected officials in California are acknowledging a longtime cannabis industry

grievance — legal companies’ taxes are too high — and cutting local levies on retail sales, business operations or both.

Hirsh Jain of Ananda Strategy, a Los Angeles consultant, reports 14 cities and counties– including San Francisco, and Humboldt, Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties — have reduced or eliminated local sales, business or cultivation taxes over the past year.

Cannabis sales in California require a 15% state excise tax as well as state sales taxes.

Santa Cruz County imposed a 7% tax on cannabis businesses, then dropped the tax for cannabis distributors in 2021.

However, the tax for cultivators and manufacturers has risen from 5% in 2018 to 6% in 2020 and 7% in 2023.

Care that keeps advancing.

Commitment that never changes.

At Dominican Hospital, we proudly embrace technological advances and pioneer best practices that continually raise the standard for our award-winning care. And we strive to provide that care with a seamless respect for mind, body and spirit. From our innovative Wellness Center programs, to our Level III Neonatal ICU, to our nationally recognized cardiac care, Dominican Hospital maintains a long-held commitment of innovation that has put patients first for generations of Santa Cruz County families. Learn more about us at DignityHealth.org/Dominican.

With five years’ experience under the same licensing manager, the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors directed the Cannabis Licensing Office to seek input from the public regarding policies related to:

• Cannabis sales

• Limited sales of cannabis from cultivators directly to consumers

• Consumption • At existing retail businesses • At farms

• Cultivation • Changes to canopy limits (total area where cannabis can be grown on a parcel)

• Increases to cultivation limits • Within Greenhouses • Outdoors • Co-location The Aptos session will be from 5:30 – 7 p.m. Monday, March 18, at Aptos Village Park, 100 Aptos Creek Road, and also via Zoom at https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83724157530

Other sessions will be:

• Tuesday March 19th at the Watsonville Community Room from 5:30 to 7:00 pm at 275 Main St., Watsonville, fourth floor.

• Wednesday March 20th at Highlands Park from 5:30 to 7:00 pm

• Wednesday March 27th at the Sheriff’s Office Community Room from 5:30 to 7:00 pm at 5200 Soquel Ave., Live Oak. n

Ruth Bates

831.359.2212

ruthbates1@gmail.com

CalBRE#01799929

HOT SPRING MARKET? — Santa Clara County real estate is hot! In February, 447 homes sold, the Median Sales Price hit $1,800,000 (up from $1,550,000 a year ago). Average Days on Market (DOM) was only 20, and Sales to List Price was 106%. In Santa Cruz County 68 homes sold, the Median Sales Price was $1,232,500, AVG DOM was 42, and Sale to List Price was 101+%. We usually follow Santa Clara county metrics, so we shall see.

In Aptos in February, 12 homes sold. 429 Seaview was the high sale, sold at list price $2,850,000 in 4 days. 1805 Cabo Ct sold for $1,926,000 on a last list of $1,999,000. 133 Via Novella sold for $1,850,000 in 7 days on list of $1,799,000. 117 Victoria Lane sold for $1,710,000. 317 Arthur sold for $1,555,000 on list of 1,480,000. 179 Ramada sold for $1,475,000, 205 Sand sold for $1,410,000 on list of $1,275,000, 8 Windmere sold for $1,375,000 on list of $1,299,000, 417 Hillcrest sold for $1,350,000 on list of $1,399,900, 140 Huntington sold off market for $1,346,500, 617 Cedar sold for $975,000 on list of $949,000 and lastly 140 Baker sold after 162 DOM for $830,000 on last list of $849,000.

There are 25 homes for sale in Aptos as of 3/05, huge price points for 422 Seaview –$13,000,000 – 7 DOM and 160 Pleasant Valley –$10,850,000 – 14 DOM. There are only 3 homes for sale for <$1M. 113 Glen Drive – $999,999, 245 Spreckles – $999,500, and 3221 Redwood – $789,000.

APTOS CHAMBER — Did you know that the Aptos Chamber puts the 4th of July parade on for our entire community, serves over 10,000 people annually who come through the Chamber doors, supports our local businesses, coordinates on our behalf with county government, is an outreach arm for natural disasters such as fires, floods, and earthquakes, holds the Annual Tree Lighting and Halloween Parade events to name a few, and provides great networking opportunities for all. If you are a business owner or an Aptos citizen and are not yet a member, please consider joining. If you want to help keep our annual 4th of July “World’s Shortest Parade” alive, please become a “Parade Supporter”. Your $250 donation will get you 4 t-shirts, an entry to march in the parade, and your name in the program. Go to www.aptoschamber.com or call 831-688-1467 to join the Chamber ($350 annual fee for individual, $550 for business) or click the button to Support the Parade. I am currently a Board Member and Treasurer, and having reviewed the books, know that they need more community support. Thank you.

Call, email, text anytime and Get Results With Ruth!

TO THE EDITOR

Our Community Reads: Another Successful Season

Hello dear friends of Our Community Reads!

The 2024 Season of Our Community Reads, our most successful to date, has come to a close.

We thank all of you members of the community who attended, as well as the sponsors who contributed resources to bring you such a variety of interesting, thought provoking, and entertaining events. To share your comments or suggestions, please click this link and complete a very short survey.

We’ve enjoyed collaborating with the

You are invited to a Community Meeting Will Highway 1 Auxiliary Lanes Work? A Look at Transportation Alternatives

Sat, March 30, 10:20am Aptos Public Library (not a library-sponsored event)

Friends of the Libraries of Aptos, Capitola, La Selva Beach, Felton, and Scotts Valley to bring you a variety of events based on the book The Monk of Mokha, by Dave Eggers.

If you are interested in joining our planning group, or wish to participate in the Voting Party to select the book for the 2025 Season, please contact us at: friendsoftheaptoslibrary@fscpl.org

Meantime, stay up to date with Our Community Reads! And, do show us your support for the continued success of this program where all events are free and open to the public.

Donate here to support Our Community Reads and keep it vibrant in the future! We are a 501 (c) 3 non-profit and all donations are tax deductible.

Thank you for being a supporter of Our Community Reads and of the Santa Cruz County Public Libraries.

We hope that you will join us again for our next season! n

— Friends of the Capitola Branch Library Friends of the Scotts Valley Library Felton Library Friends

Monk of Mokha Book Cover Winners

As part of the 2024 Our Community Reads, co-sponsored by the Friends of the Aptos Library, students in Graphic Design classes redesigned the book cover of The Monk of Mokha and entered their creations in a competition judged by staff from Bookshop Santa Cruz.

Aptos High School Winners (from left)

1. Rose Lockwood

2. Anais Gonzalez-Paredes

3. Colby Saunders Students at Scotts Valley High also competed.

For a slideshow of the book cover entries, got to www.friendsofaptos library.org/art-exhibit-2024.html n

The Final EIR predicts more delay in the morning (northbound) and short-lived congestion relief in the afternoon (southbound).

Sponsored by Campaign for Sustainable Transportation

The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission, which has championed this project, believes that promoting the use of alternative transportation modes will increase transportation system capacity and reliability.

The RTC is leading completion of this project in partnership with Caltrans, the County of Santa Cruz, City of Capitola, and the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District.

The project is funded by 2016 Measure D

funds and RTC discretionary funds that used to complete prep work necessary to ready the project for construction.

Construction is being led by Caltrans and is fully funded through a combination of Measure D and Senate Bill 1 Solutions to Congested Corridors and Local Partnership Program grant funds. n

•••

For updated project information, see: https:// sccrtc.org/projects/streets-highways/hwy1/ bayporter-statepark/.

The project would axe 1,112 trees including this redwood grove.

“Highway 1 Roadwork” from page 4

Photo Credit: Jondi Gumz

Boys Basketball All-League 2023-24

Sharing Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League honors as Coach of the Year are Lawan Millhouse, Santa Cruz, whose Cardinals finished first in the league with a 9-1 record, was runnerup for the Central Coast Section title and made a run at the CIF State Championship with two wins; and Brian Bowyer, Aptos, whose Mariners were the only team in the league to defeat Santa Cruz and came in second with an 8-2 record.

Ben Dotten, Santa Cruz senior, and Isaiah Ackerman, Aptos junior, were co-MVP.

Dotten, a 6-6 center, scored 417 points, averaging 16 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists and 1 block per game.

Ackerman, a 6-4 guard, joined the varsity as a sophomore and scored 443 points this season and 719 overall. This season he averaged 14 points, 5.9 blocks and 1.5 assists per game.

Johnny Cornejo, a 6-0 senior at Aptos, was named to the first team. He scored 243 points this season, averaging 9.3 points per game.

Mateo Calfee, a 6-0 senior at Aptos, was named to the second team. He scored 192 points, averaging 7 points, 3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.

Two Aptos seniors got honorable mention:

• Luke Garvey, a 6-2 foot forward, scored 120 points, averaging 3.4 points per game, plus 2.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.

• Lawrence Ingram, a 6-foot forward, scored 118 points averaging 4.3 points per game, plus 3.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.

Here is the complete list:

•••

First Team

Kirby Seals - Santa Cruz - Jr.

DeMarco Hunter - Santa Cruz - Soph. “Boys Basketball” page 11

SCCAL All League Boys Soccer 2023-24

Player of the Year

Eduardo Álvarez, (Sr.), Aptos

Offensive Player of the Year

Romeo Marin, (Sr.), Harbor

Defensive Player of the Year

Nami Banks, (Jr.), Aptos

Goalkeeper of the Year

Andrew Bucio (Jr.), Soquel

Coach of the Year

Roberto Zúñiga, Aptos

First Team Aptos

Esteban García, Defender, (Sr.)

Andrew López-Rameño, Defender, (Sr.)

Carlos Gutiérrez, Midfielder, (Sr.)

Noah Curran, Goalie, (Jr.)

Harbor

Jeo Linares, Forward, (Sr.)

Alex Aparicio, Midfielder, (Jr.)

Javi Calles, Defender, (Jr.)

Santa Cruz

Triton Dew, Midfielder, (Sr.)

SLV

Aiden Nounnan, Midfielder, (Sr.)

Soquel

Esteban Gonzalez, Defender, (Sr.)

Scotts Valley

Rex Denger, Forward, (Sr.)

•••

Second Team Aptos

Kaleb Plascencia, Forward, (Sr.)

Ulises Valdéz, Forward, (Sr.)

Love Granström, Defender, (Jr.)

Daniel Lozano, Defender, (So.) Harbor

Danny Garcia, Midfielder, (So.)

Brandon Jimenez, Defender, (Jr.)

Moi Hernandez, Defender, (So.)

Santa Cruz

Christopher Vasquez-Vargas, Defender, (Jr.) SLV

Jac Chisler, Forward, (Sr.) Soquel

Antonio Plaza, Forward, (Jr.)

Scotts Valley

Cooper Wickum, Midfielder,(Sr.)

Honorable Mention Aptos

Josiah Siqueiros, Forward, (So.)

David Sebastian-Killpatrick, Defender (So.)

Damián García, Midfielder, (Fr.)

Harbor

Juan Lara, Defender, (Sr.)

Johnny Campbell, Forward, (Sr.)

Maury Martinez, Forward, (Sr.)

Santa Cruz

Omar Porter y Ramirez, Defender, (Sr.)

Luc Stanfield, Midfielder, (Sr.)

Nicolas Aladro-Wolf, Forward, (Sr.)

SLV

Owen Garrahan, Midfielder,(Sr.)

Thomas Moberg, Midfielder, (Sr.)

Francisco Rocha, Defender, (Sr.)

Soquel

Jack Leiva, Midfielder (Jr.)

David Moya, Defender (Jr.)

Kai Reyes, Midfielder (Jr.)

Scotts Valley

Mars Davis, Midfielder, (Sr.)

Jacob Berman, Midfielder, (Jr.)

Lukas Bloom, Defender, (Jr.) n

Roberto Zuniga Eduardo Álvarez

Isaiah Ackerman • Photo Credit: Jondi Gumz

Groundbreaking March 27 for Affordable Rentals

By Jondi Gumz

CRP Affordable Housing & Community Development plans a groundbreaking at 2:30 p.m. March 27 for a 36-unit affordable complex, The Bluffs on 44th, which is at 4401 Capitola Road, Capitola.

This is the largest development in Capitola in 10 years.

Ryan Andrusz of CRP said, “We are excited for this new development in the community and looking forward to the positive impact that it will generate.”

The San Diego-based developers qualified for a density bonus to reduce parking requirements. Instead of the standard 2.5 parking spaces per unit, residents will get parking space for one car.

And 42% of the parking will be for compact vehicles instead of the usual 30%.

Side setbacks will be 5 feet instead of 11 feet.

Formerly commercial offices that housed California Realty and other tenants, the site will have two 3-story buildings.

They will provide 36 affordable housing units catering to families and individuals with 30% and 80% of area median income.

Ten one-bedroom units will target those

jected at $2,252.

Another 25 units will target those at 30% of median income. Projected rents are $793 for one bedroom with income limit $34,995; and $938 for a 2-bedroom unit, with income limit of $42,000; and $1,069 for a 3-bedroom unit with income limit of $48,525.

second quarter of 2025.

Sellers Claudia and Don Caudle sold the property for $4.565 million.

Facilitating the transaction was Alberto J. Guardado from Real Estate Collective Group.

CRP Affordable is new in the housing

small company with about 11 employees. The founders of CRP Affordable say they have owned, operated, developed, and managed over 2,500 rent-restricted units and have significant experience providing housing to at-risk, special needs, seniors, and other vulnerable populations. n

Rendering of The Bluffs at 44th

Good Friday Paddle Out

Capitola Beach Esplanade • Friday March 29 • 5:30-7:30 p.m.

In a beach community — when a loved one passes away, surfers paddle out to honor their impact & express gratitude for the life they lived.

In Santa Cruz tradition, local churches in our community including Tradewinds in Aptos are gathering to paddle out — honoring the life of Jesus & His sacrifice on the cross on Good Friday, March 29 from 5:307:30 p.m. at Capitola Beach Esplanade.

There will be baptisms and a worship concert by Kokua.

Come to the beach or in the water — all are

Jobs in Santa Cruz County

*Includes commuters out of the county

Source: California Employment Development Department •••

Unemployment in Santa Cruz County was rose in January to 7.4% as the labor force grew from 130,100 to 131,600.

During 2022, unemployment hovered around 3.8%, compared to 17+% in 2020, fueled by pandemic restrictions.

With winter rains and the holidays over, retail jobs are down, so are farm jobs. And professional services jobs are down, which may be spillover from tech layoffs. Private education and health jobs are up 1,100.

Hospitality gained 1,000 jobs but many of these are entry-level, not high-paying.

Unemployment rate 7.4% 6.3%

Count is on the 12th of the month

“Boys Basketball” from page 9

Johnny Cornejo - Aptos - Sr.

Will Shilling - Scotts Valley - Jr.

Nico Ramirez - Soquel - Jr.

•••

Second Team

Demeke Smith - Santa Cruz - Sr.

Guerande Houssin - Harbor - Jr.

New Leaf Community Market is seeking a prepared foods manager, paying $23-35 an hour. Seascape Beach Resort is seeking a parttime housekeeper. Allen Property Group is seeking a front officer agent, paying $16.75 and up. Aegis of Aptos is seeing a part-time concierge, paying $18 an hour. n

Mateo Calfee - Aptos - Sr.

Taylor Knox - Scotts Valley - Jr.

Braylon Noble - Soquel - Sr.

Honorable Mention

Michael Bogaard - Santa Cruz - Sr.

Mosiah Cumberbatch - Santa Cruz - Jr.

Lawrence Ingram - Aptos - Sr.

Luke Garvey - Aptos - Sr.

Chase Welle - Scotts Valley - Sr.

Kit Deforest - Scotts Valley - Jr.

Jacob Sanders - SLV - Jr.

Aiden Nounnan - SLV - Sr.

Cody Rupp - Harbor - Sr.

Markus Mitchell - Harbor - Sr.

D’Rell Hopkins - Soquel - Jr.

Tyler Haraway - Soquel - Jr. n

County Sales Tax Hike, Hospital Bond Leading

Brown, De Serpa Head for November

By Jondi Gumz

Santa Cruz County residents in the unincorporated areas such as Aptos, Corralitos and Soquel can expect to pay more sales tax starting July 1 as 54.3% of the voters in the March 5 election approved Measure K to raise the sales tax from 9% to 9.5%.

A few more votes have yet to be counted, but the measure needs only 50% plus one to pass.

The County estimates it will get $5 million to $7.5 million this fiscal year and $10 million in future fiscal year.

The supervisors’ budget priorities for this year include $1 million for housing and essential work force retention, $1 million for Countywide homeless services, $1 million to support climate resiliency and County parks, $1 million to fund road repair and infrastructure projects, and the reminder unspecified. As of June 30, 2022, the county was liable for $403.1 million for pension benefits and $198.1 million for other retirement benefits.

Sales tax in Capitola is 9%. In Scotts Valley and Watsonville, it’s 9.75%. The city of Santa Cruz asked voters to approve raising

Runoff

its sales tax from 9.25% to 9.75% and so far, 61.18% votes have been counted in favor. These vote tallies are as of 4 p.m. Tuesday.

The Pajaro Valley Health Care District’s $116 million bond to purchase the Watsonville Community Hospital property from the out-of-town owner and upgrade the facility requires a 2/3 yes vote to pass. The district extends from Aptos into Pajaro.

In Santa Cruz County, 14,270 votes have been counted, with 68.42% yes and 31.58% no.

In Monterey County, 639 votes have been counted, with 63.22% yes and 36.78% no. County elections officials must complete their count by April 4. n

March 5 Election Update

Supervisor, 1st District

Candidate Total

Lani Faulkner 6,612 (46.51%)

Manu Koenig 7,526 (52.94%)

Supervisor, 2nd District

Candidate Total

Bruce Jaffe 2,104 (16.48%)

Tony Crane 519 (4.07%)

Kristen Brown 4,182 (32.76%)

David Schwartz 2,611 (20.45%)

Kim De Serpa 3,285 (25.73%)

Supervisor, 5th District

Candidate Total

Theresa Ann Bond 1,612 (11.98%)

Christopher Bradford 2,903 (21.57%)

Tom Decker 2,665 (19.80%)

Monica Martinez 6,194 (46.02%)

K – Santa Cruz County Sales & Use Tax Increase

Majority to pass

Vote Total

Yes 33,401 (54.40%)

No 27,997 (45.60%)

N – Pajaro Valley Health Care District 30-Year Bond 2/3 to pass

Vote Total

Yes 8,091 (68.59%) No 3,705 (31.41%)

For state offices, the top two vote-getters move on to the general election regardless of party preference or whether one candidate receives a majority of all votes cast in the primary election.

Here are the Santa Cruz County results as of 4 p.m. Monday at www.votescount.us

State Assembly 28th District

Liz Lawler REP 7,303 20.18%

Gail Pellerin DEM 28,758 79.46%

Total Votes 36,191

State Assembly 29th District

Robert Rivas DEM 6,985 74.28%

J W Paine REP 2,388 25.39%

Total Votes 9,404

State Assembly 30th District

Dalila Epperson REP 5,068 21.10%

Dawn Addis DEM 18,861 78.52%

Total Votes 24,022

State Senate District 17th District

Tony Virrueta REP 9,356 13.30%

Eric Tao REP 4,843 6.89%

John Laird DEM 54,519 77.52%

Michael Oxford LIB 1,432 2.04%

Total Votes 70,328

U.S. Congress 18th District

Peter D 1,944 25.82%

Hernandez REP

Zoe Lofgren DEM 4,003 53.17%

Charlene Concepción 1,135 15.08%

Nijmeh DEM Luele N Kifle DEM 177 2.35%

Lawrence Milan DEM 242 3.21%

Total Votes 7,528

U.S. Congress 19th District

Jason Michael 10,670 16.73%

Anderson REP

Sean Dougherty GRN 4,894 7.67%

Jimmy Panetta DEM 48,071 75.36%

Total Votes 63,790

Kim De Serpa Kristen Brown

County Supervisor Races

In District 2, where the incumbent did not run, Capitola Mayor Kristen Brown has 5,243 votes of 16,031 cast for 32.71%.

Kim De Serpa, a member of the Pajaro Valley Unified School District board, has 4,055 votes for 25.29%.

David Schwartz, who owns a tax services business, has 3,248 votes for 20.26%.

Bruce Jaffe, president of the Soquel Creek Water District board, has 2,752 votes for 17.17%.

Tony Crane, who ran to bring attention to a mental health facility in his Aptos neighborhood, has 659 votes for 4.11%.

no candidate got a majority of votes. Monica Martinez, CEO of the nonprofit Encompass, got 7,723 of 16,635 votes cast for 46.43%.

So there will be a runoff.

Christopher Bradford, a software engineer, is in second place, with 3,569 votes for 21.45% and builder Tom Decker, who has 3,312 votes for 19.91%.

The supervisors’ budget priorities for this year include $1 million for housing and essential work force retention, $1 million for Countywide homeless services, $1 million to support climate resiliency and County parks, $1 million to fund road repair and infrastructure projects, and the reminder unspecified. As of June 30, 2022, the county was liable for $403.1 million for pension benefits and $198.1 million for other retirement benefits.

If no candidate gets a majority of the vote, the top two — Brown and De Serpa go to a runoff in November.

In District 1, the incumbent Manu Koenig has 9,153 votes to 8,181 for nonprofit founder Lani Faulkner and 101 write-ins. That’s 52.50% to 46.92%, so it looks like he will get four more years.

In District 5, where four candidates ran to succeed an incumbent who chose to retire,

Theresa Ann Bond, a member of the Los Gatos Saratoga Joint High School District board, has 1,929 votes for 11.66%. And there were 92 write-ins.

All school tax measures passed, including Live Oak School District’s $44 million bond measure, which needed 55% to pass and has 64.53% voting yes.

In Happy Valley, a one-school school district, 83.71% of voters said yes to a $99 parcel tax for six years. A 2/3 yes vote is needed.

Voters in the Pacific Elementary School District in Davenport passed two bonds, which needed 55% to pass, one for $1.3 million, with 60.28% yes and one for $675,000 with 66.51% yes. n

Wanted: Grand Jury Volunteers

The Superior Court of Santa Cruz County is seeking volunteers to become members of the 2023-24 Civil Grand Jury, a historic institution that offers county residents an opportunity to make a significant impact on the local community.

The 19 members of the Civil Grand Jury are an independent body empowered to investigate the operations of city and county governments as well as other taxsupported agencies and special districts. They also respond to citizen complaints about government issues.

The 2022-23 Grand Jury investigated the short-staffing crisis in behavioral health, housing for essential workers, the future of the aging Main Jail, and county code compliance, which had a backlog of 1,500 cases due to short staffing, lack of procedures, and inconsistent interpretation of rules. To read those reports, see Candidates for the grand jury must be United States citizens, at least 18 years

From a House

old, have a working knowledge of the English language, and have lived in the county for at least one year. The Superior Court of Santa Cruz County is seeking a volunteer pool that represents the ethnic and cultural diversity of the county. Last year’s pool had 73 people, 46 being 65 or older, 47 women, and 56 white. Jurors were selected from a pool of 30, 19 being 65 or older, 19 women, 22 white.

All qualified citizens interested in serving are invited to apply. There will be two informational meetings, Wednesday, April 19, at 1 p.m. and Thursday, April 20, at 5 p.m., via Zoom, providing details about becoming a member of the grand jury. The link will be posted on the Court’s website. Applications must be received by April 29. For applications, visit the Court’s website at https://www.santacruz.courts. ca.gov/divisions/civil-grand-jury n For questions, email the Superior Court Jury Commissioner’s Office at jury.information@santacruzcourt.org.

New School: 30 Years of Changing Lives Alternative Education Program Helps Teens Catch Up

Beneath a temporary canopy, New School Community Day School’s 30th anniversary celebra-tion was warmed by an

outpouring of love from alumni, illuminated by youth services and community partners. New School was established in Watsonville in 1994 by gang intervention specialist Albino Gar-cia and then Renaissance Principal Don Eggleston, “just to keep kids above ground,” as Garcia put it in his speech Friday night.

Garcia became a Kellogg Fellow, addressing social issues throughout the United States and founding La Plazita Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he lives, and returned to cel-ebrate the anniversary.

Eggleston remained as New School’s principal until 2008.

Local business owner Nuy Anaya, New School’s first graduate, was called up unexpectedly by Garcia at Friday’s gala and asked to speak.

“The courts and the system were just going to throw away the key on me. Thanks to New School and Albino and Don, believing in me and giving me a second chance, I have a beautiful wife, kids and my own business.”

Eggleston spoke of the love, community and independent thinking it took to make New School work in the beginning and to have continued for 30 years.

“When you speak to folks who work at New School or with New School, they use the word ‘love’ for what they do,” he said. “The word ‘love’ is not in Ed. Code. It’s not part of the pro-gram. The reason that many young people are successful after passing through New School is because somebody here cared about them.”

New School Junior Itzell Anaya, said “Friday night was a good way to connect with Don and Al-bino and to learn that New School is really a well-thought out place for youth to go and catch up on credits, safely.”

Her mother, Elizabeth Anaya, attended New School in 2006-07.

Other longtime community partners and contributors to New School’s success in attendance were Pajaro Valley Unified School District Superintendent Murry Schekman, Assistant Superin-tendent of Secondary Lisa Aguirre, Santa Cruz County Probation Officer Aztecas Soccer founder and Aptos High Girls Soccer Coach Gina Casteneda, former Environmental Science Workshop directors Curt Gabrielson and Darren Gertler, Digital NEST founder Jacob Martinez, Santa Cruz Community Credit Union representatives

•••

New School Community Day School was founded in 1994 to keep displaced high school stu-dents off the streets of Watsonville. Students typically come to New School with truancy is-sues, credit deficits, disciplinary records or with stipulations of their probation to attend.

Today, New School serves 51 students, that are 100% Latino/Latina, 80% English Language Learners, 80% of whom come from families that qualify as low-income.

Most of our students are here for credit recovery. Prior to admission, they must acknowledge responsibility for their mistakes and commit to changing unproductive habits. Our goal is to help our youth correct behaviors so that they can become more productive at school, at home, at work, and in the community.

More About New School: https://new-pajaro-ca. schoolloop.com/

Kim Love and Laura Owen, FoodWhat?! Programs Di-rector Reyna Peralta, former New School principal Rafael Ramirez, past teacher and current Principal Susan Graulty. n

From left: New School alum Elizabeth Anaya and Don Eggleston, with New School junior Itzell Anaya and cofounder Albino Garcia.

New School co-founder Albino Garcia, speaking about the 1994 beginnings of New School.

Friend Named Friend of Agriculture

The Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau with AgriCulture will again host the National Agriculture Day spring luncheon Wednesday, March 20, at Heritage Hall at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds.

Friend

Sarah Hulick, the newly named Cabrillo College horticulture department chair, will speak on the topic of “We Grow College Graduates, Cabrillo Horticulture & Agriculture Technology Center.”

Tickets are $65 per person. Reservations are at http://www.sccfb.com/news/ national-agriculture-day-spring-luncheon/ or call (831) 724-1356.

One highlight will be the presentation of the Al Smith Friend of Agriculture Award, named for the founder of Orchard Supply Hardware who donated 3,000 acres (Swanton Pacific Ranch) in the North Coast to Cal Poly. The ranch has row crops, timber and even a one-third-scale railroad, which was Al’s hobby.

The award is presented annually to an individual, business or organization not

Sarah Hulick

involved in production agriculture but one who has done much for the industry.

This year’s award will go to outgoing Santa Cruz County Supervisor Zach Friend (District 2) for his dedicated support of agriculture over 11 years on the Board of Supervisors. Last year’s honorees, Randy Repass and SallyChristine Rodgers, will present the award. Farm Bureau and Agri-Culture cosponsor a poster contest (grades K-6) and poetry contest (grades 7-12) in Santa Cruz County and Pajaro Valley schools. Winning entries will be on display, and contest winners will be introduced.

The winners of the six 2024 Agri-Culture scholarships will be announced: the Jimmie Cox Memorial Scholarship, the Jeannie Witmer Memorial Scholarship, the Laura Brown Memorial Scholarship, the JJ Crosetti, Jr. Memorial Scholarship, the Frank Prevedelli Memorial Scholarship and the Lou & Carol Calcagno Memorial Scholarship. n For information call (831) 724-1356 or email sccfb@sbcglobal.net.

Caltrans Unveils Equity Index for Funding Projects

On March 4, Caltrans launched the Equity Index, an online tool designed to identify communities most negatively impacted by the transportation system, which results in high rates of traffic, crashes, and air pollution.

This EQI tool will be used to help inform project selection, program evaluation, and policy decisions to align the transportation system to state environmental and equity goals and address transportation inequities, according to Caltrans.

potential in this tool to help achieve an equitable transportation future for all,” said Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin.

Caltrans Director Tony Tavares added, “We need to identify the ways our transportation infrastructure has negatively impacted our communities and neighborhoods. Better data lets us build equity into our transportation system from the ground up.”

Caltrans will use data to identify priority populations to help end harms created or made worse by the state’s transportation system.

The goal is to advance equitable outcomes during project planning, development, and design phases, for both the department and partner public agencies.

“By more easily identifying and prioritizing communities with the greatest transportation needs, there is tremendous

Caltrans began developing the EQI in 2021 to deliver on the Climate Action Plan for Transportation Infrastructure, which acknowledges the communities in California that experience fewer benefits and shoulder a greater burden from the state’s transportation system. These disparities often reflect a history of decisionmaking that “…quite literally put up barriers, divided communities, and amplified racial inequities.” according to Caltrans.

“Caltrans” page 18

Zach

FEATURED COLUMNIST

Fragrant Flowers Have Ulterior Motives

By Tony Tomeo

Many who enjoy gardening appreciate fragrant flowers. Many grow particular flowers specifically for their fragrance. Yet, not many consider why so many flowers are fragrant. Plants can not enjoy their own alluring floral fragrances any more than they can enjoy their own delightful floral colors and forms. They do not expect people to enjoy their bloom either. Human appreciation is incidental.

Floral fragrance is merely intended to attract pollinators. Flowers are inanimate, so rely on either wind or animate pollinators to exchange their pollen among other flowers. Animate pollinators are mostly insects, but may be birds, bats or other animals. Flowers do what they must to attract their preferred pollinators. Many use color and floral form. Many use fragrance. Some use both tactics.

Flowers that use both color and fragrance to attract pollinators are mostly endemic to densely forested ecosystems. There is more competition for pollinators within such ecosystems than there is within ecosystems of sparser vegetation. Otherwise, fragrant flowers are generally not as colorful as those that are not as fragrant. Likewise, the most colorful flowers are generally not so fragrant.

Angel’s trumpet is striking in bloom because the flowers are so large. Wisteria and lilac that bloomed last spring were spectacular because they were so profuse. The

pastel hues of their blooms are no problem that their fragrance does not compensate for. Pink jasmine and mock orange are about as fragrant, even if their color range is more limited. Star jasmine is not always so profuse.

Pittosporum tobira and Pittosporum undulatum are even less visually impressive in bloom, but can be surprisingly fragrant. The tiny but richly fragrant flowers of sweet osmanthus, sweet box and night blooming jasmine are so obscure that other bloom is often credited with their fragrance. As the name implies, night blooming jasmine is powerfully fragrant after sunset during warm weather.

Freesia, hyacinth, narcissus, lily and some bearded iris are both colorful and very fragrant.

Angel’s Trumpet

Human intervention has sustained the seven species of angel’s trumpet, Brugmansia, since their prehistoric extinction from the wild. They were likely endemic to tropical regions from Venezuela to Chile, and southeastern Brazil. Their extinction was likely a consequence of the natural extinction of animals that dispersed their seed. Most garden varieties are hybrids of the various species.

Angel’s trumpet is either a big shrub or small tree, with rather herbaceous stems. The more popular cultivars can get more than eight feet tall. Cultivars that might get twice as tall are rare. The soft leaves get about six inches long and half as wide. Leaves might get almost twice as long on vigorous growth. Some cultivars have slightly tomentous (fuzzy) foliage. A few have variegated foliage.

Although generally sporadic, and pastel hues of pink, orange, yellow or white, bloom is impressive. The pendulous trumpet shaped flowers are commonly longer than six inches, and half as wide. Double flowers are frilly. Several cultivars are delightfully fragrant, particularly in the evening. All plant parts are very toxic. Plants damaged by frost in winter are likely to regenerate from their roots. n

Horticulturist Tony Tomeo can be contacted at tonytomeo.com.

daphne bloom is richly fragrant.

Powerful fragrance combines with docile color.

Habitat Monterey Bay Women Build 2024

For Habitat for Humanity of Monterey Bay, March is Women Build Month and the focus is Rodeo Creek Court, 2340 Harper Street. Habitat has been building this 11-home development since ground-breaking in August 2020.

Women Build, sponsored and presented by Bay Federal Credit Union and Granite Construction, celebrates and uplifts women’s roles in construction and affordable housing development.

So far, 10 families have moved into their homes at Rodeo Creek Court.

Volunteers will continue work on the remaining ADA-compliant home as well as other aspects of the development. Prior experience is not required.

Volunteers work alongside a professional construction crew, and future homeowners earning sweat equity towards the purchase of their home. Women and men are encouraged to participate.

Business sponsors have selected days for their employees to pitch in. n

Presenting Sponsors:

• Bay Federal Credit Union (3/29)

• Granite Construction (3/27)

Signature Sponsors:

• City of Santa Cruz Economic Development (3/15 and 3/22)

• HP (3/6)

• Santa Cruz County Bank (3/16)

• Teichert Construction (3/13)

Build Level Sponsors:

• 1st Capital Bank (3/8)

• Housing Trust Silicon Valley (3/23)

Supporter Level Sponsor:

• Kasavan Architects

The Ron Buswell Community Garden

Satish Rishi, CEO of Habitat for Humanity Monterey Bay, sent out this message on March 11: Ron Buswell lives on in our hearts, beloved and remembered for being an inspirational leader and the most dedicated volunteer Habitat Monterey Bay has ever known. Referred to by many as a gentle giant, he was warm and encouraging, supporting other volunteers while becoming a master of all aspects of building.

In his 11 years with Habitat, Ron served in multiple roles, as board member, board chair, and interim executive director for six months while the board searched for a new leader. Serving on almost all committees, he showed his dedication, commitment, and selflessness. He worked on multiple Habitat construction sites, learning as he went, becoming a trusted member of the crew.

development since August 2020, and it would not have been possible without Ron steering the project in the early days and supporting the work until his passing in September 2021.

As we complete this project, we invite you, our community, to help us dedicate the Ron Buswell Community Garden at RCC and be a part of history by buying a brick engraved with your name to lay the pathway to the garden. Bricks are $150 for 4X8 or $300 for 8X8. Please click below to design your brick today and we will make sure your name is part of Rodeo Creek Court history in honor of Ron for all time.

Deadline to design and buy your brick is April 15. n

Rodeo Creek Court has been under

“Caltrans” from page 16

The tool has three indicators: the first focuses on household income and federally recognized tribal lands; the second measures traffic proximity, volume, and crash exposure; and the final considers access to destinations, measuring gaps in transit, bicycle, and pedestrian networks.

Some examples of adverse effects: Higher exposure levels to dangerous crashes, lower access to jobs and education, and reduced environmental and health outcomes.

Got to: https://www.engravedbricks.com/ campaign/HHMB

transportation decision,” according to Caltrans.

Pasadena residents fought expansion of the 710 Freeway, where diesel big rig truck traffic accounts for 20% of health-harming air pollution in Southern California, according to LA Metro Transportation Authority, and 83% of the more than a million people living closest to the 710 Freeway identify as Black or Hispanic.

With the EQI, Caltrans easily identify transportation projects to prioritize for state and federal funding programs.

Other examples includes Pasadena and Stockton, which have been hurt by “unfair

The EQI’s first application will be to deepen the analytical capabilities within the Caltrans System Investment Strategy to guide transportation investments. n

Ron Buswell

Second Harvest Honors Crowe, Mosier

On March 7, Second Harvest Food Bank’s Holiday Food & Fund Drive awards dinner celebrated raising enough to provide 4,695,069 meals and honored Richard Crowe of St. Francis Catholic Kitchen in Santa Cruz and Ray Mosier of LiUNA Local 270 in Santa Cruz, as Hunger Fighters of the Year.

Crowe, program director for over two decades, ensures that 26,000 meals a year are served, providing a welcoming haven for 100 guests daily.

Mosier, 90, a beacon of volunteerism, has

served Santa Cruz County for 22 years with a heartwarming spirit.

Both men received proclamations from government officials.

The dinner at Hotel Paradox in Santa Cruz was a sold-out affair, buzzing with excitement as the holiday campaign is the food bank’s largest annual fundraiser.

Co-chairs were Susan True, Community Foundation Santa Cruz County CEO, and Dr. Faris Sabbah, Santa Cruz County superintendent of schools.

The campaign ran from Nov. 3 to Jan. 15.

Every dollar raised went toward feeding food-insecure residents of Santa Cruz County, making a tangible impact on their lives.

Local businesses and organizations played leadership roles.

They include: Central Coast Alliance for Health, Twin Lakes Church, UC Santa Cruz, Freedom Rotary, and Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County, Santa Cruz Warriors, Driscoll’s, Dominican Hospital, and Park Avenue Fitness.

While their larger contributions made a substantial impact, Food Bank acknowledged the collective effort of numerous smaller organizations and individuals was equally vital to the fundraiser’s success.

As food bank staff see it, this united effort exemplifies the spirit of community and compassion that defines Santa Cruz County.

The co-chairs of the 2024-25 Holiday Food & Fund Drive will be returning chair Dr. Faris Sabbah, Santa Cruz County superintendent of schools, and Chris Murphy, president of the Santa Cruz Warriors and senior vice president of the Golden State Warriors. n

Add Light In Your Home With A New Skylight

Matt Huffaker, City of Santa Cruz manager, presents Watsonville City Manager Rene Mendez with a yellow duck float and a pair of swim trunks. They competed was to see who would raise the most funds and the loser would jump in the ocean, and Huffaker won, so Mendez must jump.

Ray Mosier & Richard Crowe

Everyone gathers to celebrate the successful season.

Youth Poet Laureate Finalists

Judges To Reveal Choice at April 10 Celebration

Santa Cruz Public Libraries and the Santa Cruz County poet laureate, with Urban Word, announce the inaugural group of five finalists for Santa Cruz County youth poet laureate, and a celebration to announce the winner at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 10, at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. The finalists are:

• Madeline Aliah (Cypress High School)

• Simon Ellefson (San Lorenzo Valley High School)

• Sylvi Kayser (Aptos High School)

• Dina Lusztig (Pacific Collegiate School)

• Gregory Souza (San Lorenzo Valley High School)

All finalists receive a $100 cash honorarium with the Youth Poet Laureate receiving $500. All finalists will receive a gift card donated by Two Birds Books in Pleasure Point.

“I was delighted by the caliber and passion of all our applicants this inaugural year, and I’m especially gratified that we

were able to name these five youth poets as our cohor,” said Santa Cruz County Poet Laureate Farnaz Fatemi, who facilitated the development of the Youth Poet Laureate program.

The selection process took place over the last several months, along with drop-in workshops on writing, resume-crafting, and poetry performance, all sponsored by Santa Cruz Public Libraries and with support from the Watsonville Library.

Applicants submitted five original poems and a resumé or brag sheet.

Four judges read the entire applicant pool, and selected the finalists by committee.

On March 23, each finalist will be asked to read one of their poems in person for the judges.

Joining Fatemi as judges are: Jennifer Ruby, poet and San Lorenzo Valley High

School teacher; Julia Chiapella, poet and educator; and Tashi Liem, Santa Cruz High grad and 2023 Poetry Out Loud Santa Cruz County champion.

The Youth Poet Laureate is an advocate and county ambassador for poetry, social action and civic engagement. They will champion their own poetic practice while encouraging their peers to take part in the artform through readings, workshops and appearances at events throughout the county.

Finalists will have opportunities to read and support their peers along with the Youth Poet Laureate — to nurture a community of young poets.

“It is clear they have each found ways to use poetry to make their own lives more meaningful, and that they will serve, in individual ways, to support their peers and our

broader community,” Fatemi said. “I’m so excited to see how that will unfold.” She added, “I am also deeply grateful to a host of local organizations who have given or pledged support for this program as we build it. This includes, of course, the Santa Cruz Public Libraries for housing the program longterm, but also the County Office of Education, Arts Council Santa Cruz County and the Rotary Club of Santa Cruz. All these organizations share the vision of sustaining a community of civic-minded teen poets who can support each other countywide.” n

The April 10 event is free. Reserve a seat at www.eventbrite.com/e/inaugural-santacruz-county-youth-poet-laureate-celebrationtickets-765867489277

PVPSA CEO Jasmine Nájera Invited to State of the Union

When President Joe Biden gave his State of the Union address on March 7, Jasmine Nájera, CEO of Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance and a local Licensed Clinical Social Worker, was there as the guest of U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-Carmel Valley).

A lifelong resident of Santa Cruz County, she has worked with Panetta to meet the growing mental and behavioral health needs of young people.

Last year, suicide rates in the United States were the highest since 1941. From 2007

through 2021, suicide rates for Americans ages 10 to 24 rose 62%. In 2022, almost 45% of high school students experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people ages 10-24.

These issues have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic school switch to online classrooms and chronic staffing shortages for school counselors, psychologists, and social workers.

A 2019 study led by Dr. Robert Gibbons at the University of Chicago of 922 drugs and 146 million patient records found 10 drugs that showed a statistically significant increase in suicide attempts, including the opioid painkiller hydrocodone bitartrate and acetaminophen (Vicodin), anti-anxiety drugs alprazolam (Xanax) and diazepam (Valium), and prednisone, a corticosteroid.

He also found 44 drugs showed a decrease in suicide risk, including the vitamin folic acid, a large group of antidepressants with black box warnings like fluoxetine and escitalopram (Lexapro), and gabapentin (Neurontin), an anti-convulsant used to treat seizures.

“Behavioral health leaders like Jasmine are not only instrumental to providing students in our community with care and support, but also figuring out and driving forward innovative solutions needed by today’s youth,” Panetta said. “I’m proud to continue my work in fighting for the federal support that is needed by our community to address this crisis head-on.”

“No matter their background, income level, or zip code, families deserve access to treatment, services, and programs that promote their overall wellness. It is an honor to attend the State of the Union as Representative Panetta’s guest to highlight the work happening in our community to provide behavioral health services to our young people. Working alongside Rep. Panetta, we look forward to expanding our treatment and workforce development initiatives to confront the growing mental health crisis.”

— Jasmine Nájera, CEO of Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance

“No matter their background, income level, or zip code, families deserve access to treatment, services, and programs that promote their overall wellness,” said Nájera.

“It is an honor to attend the State of the Union as Representative Panetta’s guest to highlight the work happening in our community to provide behavioral health services to our young people. Working alongside Rep. Panetta, we look forward to expanding our treatment and workforce development initiatives to confront the growing mental health crisis.”

Since 1991, PVPSA has provided comprehensive health education, mental health services, substance abuse services, and direct counseling to the students and families of the Pajaro Valley. The nonprofit agency uses an upstream public health approach to promote community health and wellness.

Jasmine has served as PVPSA’s CEO since October 2022, tapping her over two decades of experience in behavioral health expertise. Jasmine is passionate about creating workforce development pathways

to support the behavioral health clinicians needed in the community.

Panetta secured $1 million in federal funding to help Santa Cruz County expand services for students through two new school-based wellness centers. As part of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, Rep. Panetta supported more than $2 billion to expand mental health services in schools nationwide.

As a member of the Mental Health Caucus, Panetta leads the annual effort to provide federal support for mental health professionals in schools. He is fighting to secure $214 million in federal funding to increase the number of well-trained school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists, or other mental health professionals.

He also leads the bipartisan National School Psychology Week resolution, which honors the more than 35,000 practicing school psychologists in the country providing a supportive and encouraging learning environment for all students. n

Farnaz Fatemi

Jasmine Nájera

Santa Cruz Metro’s New CEO Corey Aldridge

Corey Aldridge is tentatively to start April 29 as the CEO of the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District, succeeding Michael Tree.

He has been a general manager in public transit for over a decade, most recently at Mountain Line Transit in Missoula, Montana.

There he focused on overseeing a successful ballot initiative, implementing zero emission vehicle procurements and infrastructure projects, implementing a free fare

program, obtaining sizable state and federal grants, successful ridership growth initiatives, implementing strategic planning and rebranding initiatives, and leading transit-oriented developments.

There, Aldridge launched a 30% increase in service, after a successful ballot initiative, and secured almost $40 million in federal funds for the construction of a new maintenance,

Soquel Creek Water District General Manager Ron Duncan to Retire

Ron Duncan, who joined the Soquel Creek Water District in 2003 as the conservation coordinator and has been general manager since 2016, will retire Sept. 30.

He has been at the helm as the water district pushed for the $160 million Pure Water Soquel project to treat wastewater for groundwater recharge to create a barrier against seawater intrusion. The project, which has gar-

nered nearly $100 million of federal and state grants, is under construction and is expected to go into operation this year.

The project is designed to address the critical overdraft of the Mid-County groundwater basin – more water pumped out than the average supply, leading to saltwater moving into aquifers.

When Duncan joined the district, he was tasked with implementing the Water Demand Offset program to conserve water to reduce the impact of new development on the groundwater basin.

New developments — any new construction project — were required to pay a fee to offset their impact on groundwater. Fees funded water conservation projects such as low-flow toilets, new water main flushing technologies, and automated metering infrastructure. In 20 years, the water district reported significant progress in reducing water demand and protecting the groundwater basin.

The district reports some of the lowest water use levels in the state.

Between 2000 and 2021, the district’s water production decreased by 43%, even as new service connections increased by 6%.

The offset program was initially launched as an interim program while the district searched for a way to create a sustainable water supply, increase groundwater levels and prevent further seawater intrusion. Those chosen solution was the Pure Water Soquel

project, due to come online in 2024, which is expected to allow groundwater levels to recover.

After 20 years of “water demand offsets,” the Soquel Creek Water District board agreed to suspend the program and in five years, evaluate if it should be restarted.

Soquel Creek Water District Board President Dr. Bruce Jaffe expressed gratitude for Duncan’s many contributions, saying, “Ron has been instrumental in shaping the District’s success, and we wish him a welldeserved retirement. His professionalism, leadership, and tremendous abilities have empowered the District, enabled us to meet the water supply challenges of today and the future, and brought us great respect within the water industry.”

Duncan is a registered California geologist with three master’s degrees in hydrology, business administration, and positive leadership and strategy. He was a hydrologist at Woodward-Clyde Consultants in Oakland and dredge coordinator for 7 years for the Santa Cruz Port District before joining Soquel Creek Water District.

When he was appointed general manager and under his leadership and with support from the board, Duncan took on the challenge of finding a way to replenish the groundwater basin and prevent seawater contamination of the sole source of water for the district’s customers.

Colleagues say his collaborative partnerships, deep technical knowledge, and sheer perseverance helped him become a leader among local and state water providers.

Duncan serves on the American Water Works Association Water Utility Council and on the WateReuse California Board of Trustees.

In his letter to the board, announcing his impending retirement, Duncan wrote, “This has been my dream job. I believe the organization will continue on its journey of being an exceptional and distinguished agency as it implements Pure Water Soquel and broadens its efforts to help the entire Santa Cruz region.” n

administration, and operations base, paving the way for future growth.

This led to the agency being awarded the American Public Transit Association’s System of the Year Award for North America in 2021.

He is also reported to have a record of building trusting relationships with employees, unions, leadership, and the community.

Metro Board Chair Kristen Brown said his “experience aligns perfectly with our ongoing initiatives like Reimagine Metro, and his track record in overseeing ballot initiatives, implementing green projects, and fostering ridership growth will be invaluable.”

Aldridge will guide the rollout of Phase 2 of Reimagine Metro this summer with full implementation this September.

He said, “At the heart of every successful transit system is its people—both our employees and the community we serve. As the new CEO of Santa Cruz Metro, I am committed to fostering a work environment where every employee feels

valued, supported, and empowered to excel. Moreover, I look forward to being an active part of the Santa Cruz community and continuing the great work already underway at Metro and beyond. Our collective success hinges on our ability to work as a unified team dedicated to serving our community’s mobility needs, ensuring we not only meet but exceed the expectations placed upon us.”

The Metro Board hired a recruitment firm to conduct a nationwide search of candidates resulting in dozens of applicants. The Board actively collaborated with a long list of stakeholders, union leaders, and Metro Advisory Committee members in the process.

Shawn Donaghy CEO of the North County Transit District in San Diego called Aldridge an “amazing transit leader.”

Aldridge started out as a bus driver while studying at Arizona State University.

After he got his degree, he was operations manager for Link Public Transit in The Dalles, Oregon, and then general manager of RiverCities Transit in Longview, Washington, before joining Mountain Line in 2015. n

Ron Duncan

Corey Aldridge

Mount Madonna Seventh Graders Get a Look at College Science Labs

Recently, Mount Madonna School seventh grade students visited science classrooms and research laboratories at Cabrillo College and UC Santa Cruz to see their research, and get a glimpse of what lies beyond high school.

At UCSC, the students visited three working science labs and talked with professors and graduate students about their research. The first, a stem cell lab, used brain organoids, brain cells derived from stem cells, to study brain function. In the second lab, the students learned about research on the effects of environmental toxins on the human body.

At the Environmental Studies Department, they learned about living solar panels made from cacti.

“Creating energy from cacti? Charley, one of the graduate students at UCSC, told us that researchers were trying to make ‘living’ solar panels from a particular type

of cacti,” said seventh grader Giavanna Iacocca. “She explained that bird strikes on reflective solar panels are a significant problem, and through photosynthesis and the cacti, they may be able to avoid this. Although their research is still in a testing stage, it’s so interesting to consider what may someday be possible.”

“While visiting researchers at UCSC, students learned that scientists have to solve problems they have never seen before, and they often get stuck or frustrated along the way,” said teacher John Welch, who accompanied the students and middle school science teacher Hilary Alvarado on these field trips. “In their MMS coding class following the trip, the seventh graders were given robots they hadn’t worked with before and had to figure out how to make them do useful tasks. They experienced the combination of excitement, creativity and frustration that scientists often go through, and they did really well.”

Nolan McKibbin, a seventh grader, said, “I liked hearing about the interesting study of brain organoids at UCSC, and learning how with technology you can see different parts of a brain firing.”

Classmate Felix Alvarado added, “It was really cool to see the electron microscopes, and hear that researchers use these to look at how different parts of the organoid are firing and the frequency.”

In December, students toured chemistry and physics classrooms at Cabrillo College, where they observed and participated in several visual science demonstrations, including seeing marshmallows “squished” by air pressure and gasses less dense than the surrounding air lit on fire in the chemistry classroom.

“The chemistry demonstration at Cabrillo was really cool to watch,” said seventh grader Eva Melton. “Besides seeing the effects on the marshmallows, when we

asked the professor what would happen to a balloon in the vacuum chamber, he said ‘let’s try it!” I liked that he let us ask questions and expand on things.”

“At Cabrillo, the science teacher lit the element Strontium on fire and it made sparks!” observed seventh grader Leyla Klosinski. “Strontium is white, but when it burns, it turns red!”

The students met with members of Women in Science and Engineering (WiSE), watched engineering student presentations and visited the science, technology, engineering and mathematics lab, where college students study and seek out tutoring. They also ate lunch at Cabrillo’s cafeteria.

“We really paid attention

to the chemistry presentation at Cabrillo,” said seventh grader Cadence Barr. “It was so interesting and easier to understand because we could see it up close, as it happened and not just read about it.” n

New Twist for Mount Madonna School Career Forum

High school students at Mount Madonna School will brush up on their sleuthing skills and question “suspects” to learn about their “crimes”

– actually career paths -- at CSI: Mount Madonna, a career forum event March 13.

The annual career forum is coordinated by parents; the 2024 parent organizing team is Kevict Yen, Abbie Zands and Nicole Chiala.

While the intent behind the career forum – to share with high school students the many diverse (and sometimes non-linear)

paths people take to find their careers, as well as introducing them to some lesser-known career options – is serious business, the event’s new “CSI” theme is meant to be a fun backdrop for learning.

The students will play the role of detectives for a cheesy prime time television show called CSI: Mount Madonna. Their docket for the event is to interview 10 suspects. While students will have no prior

knowledge of who the suspects are, they will be provided with a list of 10 crimes (actually career paths), and working together will “interrogate”/interview the suspects. Students are invited to dress the part and come disguised as their favorite gumshoe!

Among the careers represented are cyber security and threat defense, Software as a Service managers, restaurateurs and investors.

“One of the foundational pillars at MMS is creative self-expression and to me, that extends to career as for many of us, our jobs are a significant way in which we identify ourselves,” said Yen. “I approached adult panelists with the specific intention of seeking a diverse field of careers. I feel it’s important for our students to discover that there are infinite viable options for careers, and that being passionate and proud of what they choose is a key ingredient to personal success and happiness.” n

Students learn UC Santa Cruz researchers are trying to make solar panels from cacti.

Students watch Cabrillo College instructor light the element Strontium on fire.

Mount Madonna seventh graders wore lab coats for their UCSC lab tour.

Mass Die-Off: Salmon from New State Hatchery

On March 2, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced that fall-run Chinook salmon fry released for the first time from its $35 million state-ofthe-art Fall Creek Fish Hatchery in Siskiyou County died.

On Feb. 26, CDFW released 830,000 fall-run Chinook salmon fry into Fall Creek, a tributary of the Klamath River above Iron Gate Dam.

The salmon fry, one to two inches long, experienced a large mortality based on monitoring data downstream, according to CDFW.

CDFW staff theorize the cause of mortality is “gas bubble disease” -- physical trauma associated with severe pressure change.

This may have occurred as the fry migrated though the Iron Gate Dam tunnel, which is targeted for removal along with the Iron Gate Dam itself later this year. The 173-foot-high dam was built in 1962 by PacifiCorp. of Oregon to provide electricity.

To treat gas bubble disease, the source of the excess gasses must be identified and removed, because bubbles trapped inside the fish may or may not resolve when gas saturation normalizes.

CDFW did not provide more specific information about the source of the gas bubbles.

CDFW staff said there is no indication the mortality is associated with other Klamath River water quality conditions such as turbidity and dissolved oxygen, which were at suitable levels on Feb. 26 and the days prior to release.

The visual appearance of the dead fry detected by monitoring equipment points to gas bubble disease, which often causes the eyes to bulge.

The upgraded Fall Creek Fish Hatchery, built to support and restore Chinook and coho salmon runs on an undammed Klamath River, replaced a hatchery built in 1962.

Last year, when the North Coast Water

Board approved the permit for an upgraded hatchery, state officials were optimistic about the result being better water quality, better habitat for fish, and “a new era for fish,” with a chance for these species to thrive, according to CDFW Director Chuck Bonham.

Monitoring equipment documented healthy yearling coho and Chinook salmon downstream of the dam.

CDFW called the problems with the Iron Gate Dam tunnel “temporary and yet another sad reminder of how the Klamath River dams have harmed salmon runs for generations.”

To preserve salmon fry, CDFW will

plan all future salmon releases below Iron Gate Dam until it is removed. Removal is scheduled for summer 2024.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved the hydropower license surrender to remove four dams from the Klamath River in 2022 after lobbying by the Tribes that live along the river, and the nonprofit American Rivers.

Last year, scientists recommended a comprehensive research and monitoring program to capture changes during and after river restoration, and to address information gaps concerning transmission of bacteria and parasites.

CDFW has a practice of releasing hatchery fish at various life stages – due to poor habitat conditions.

The Fall Creek Fish Hatchery holds 3.27 million healthy, fall-run Chinook salmon. Additional releases are planned later in March.

The fall-run Chinook salmon production goal for the hatchery is to raise and release 3.25 million fish – 1.25 million released as fry, 1.75 million as smolts, and 250,000 as yearlings.

The stock of fall-run Chinook salmon remaining in the hatchery exceeds the annual production goal and will help offset losses in the initial release, according to CDFW. n

AG, FTC Sue Cancer Recovery Fund: Alleges Only 1% Funds Went to Patients

On March 12, California Attorney General Rob Bonta joined the Federal Trade Commission and a bipartisan, multistate coalition of 10 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit seeking a permanent injunction against Cancer Recovery Foundation International, Inc. and president Gregory Anderson for operating sham charities that collected millions of dollars from donors but provided little monetary assistance to cancer survivors and their families.

In the lawsuit, the coalition alleges that Cancer Recovery Foundation filed false and misleading financial reports and conducted deceptive solicitations to consumers across the country by using telemarketing scripts, direct mailers, and pledge letters. They say these deceptive business practices violated Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act and the state statutes regulating charitable solicitations and prohibiting deceptive and unfair trade practices.

Cancer Recovery Foundation also operates under the names of Women’s Cancer Fund, Pink Diamond Women’s Cancer Fund, New Era Cancer Research Fund, and Nutrition as Medicine.

The coalition seeks a permanent injunction to ban the charity and its president from operating and prevent future violations of the law.

“Cancer Recovery Foundation solicited and misused generous donations from

hardworking families – in California and across the nation — who wanted to help battle cancer, and support cancer patients and their families. In reality, the foundation’s president solicited donations unscrupulously to pay his salary, expenses, and benefits,” said Bonta. “This type of behavior is unacceptable. Charities like Cancer Recovery Foundation that mislead individuals will be held accountable.”

Between 2017 and 2022, the Women’s Cancer Fund collected $18 million from generous donors, promising them that their donation would go directly to assist cancer patients with basic living expenses such as rent, utilities, and food for their children. Instead, a large portion of the funds were spent to benefit Cancer Recovery Fund’s president, Gregory Anderson.

Cancer Recovery Foundation only spent $194,809 – about 1% of funds raised on financial support to cancer patients, according to regulatory filings. At the same time, Anderson paid himself a salary of $775,139 nearly four times as much as Cancer Recovery Foundation collectively gave to all the cancer patients it supported.

Anderson also used donated funds for hotels and travel.

Meanwhile, Women’s Cancer Fund gave the vast majority of the funds it collected from donors, about 85%, to for-profit

fundraisers that Anderson hired to make deceptive pitches on behalf of the Cancer Recovery Foundation.

Cancer Recovery Foundation falsely fundraised by lying to donors stating that “50% of all money… goes to support women in treatment and recovery overcome their financial difficulties.”

Anderson solicited donations from donors despite knowing only a small percentage of the funds would be spent on financially supporting women battling cancer. Anderson recruited and negotiated contracts with fundraisers who solicited contributions from donors.

In numerous instances, Anderson signed contracts with fundraisers that specifically indicated that the fundraisers would receive 85% to 90% of total funds raised. Anderson approved and authorized fundraisers’ use of the scripts, pledge letters, and mailers with these misrepresentations included.

In early 2020, Anderson also sent a handwritten letter to donors that he signed on behalf of Women’s Cancer Fund assuring donors that their donations would directly help thousands of women battling cancer with “basic living expenses.”

Pledge letters made false promises and manipulated donors into thinking that their gifts were getting to cancer patients and their families. Instead, only about a penny of every

dollar donated went to provide such support, while the overwhelming majority went to pay for-profit fundraisers and Anderson.

Charities are required to report their donations and program expenses to the California Department of Justice, which include information about how much support a charity received from the public or other sources, how the charity is spending the money, and information on its assets and liabilities.

The California Department of Justice works to regulate charities and the professional fundraisers who solicit on their behalf.

The oversight protects charitable assets for their intended use and ensure that the charitable donations contributed by Californians are not misapplied and squandered through fraud or other means. Charities are required to register and file annual financial reports with the Attorney General’s Registry of Charities and Fundraisers.

Donors are urged to research charities on the Attorney General’s website at https:// oag.ca.gov/charities before deciding to donate.

In filing the lawsuit, Attorney General Bonta joined the FTC and the attorneys general of Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin. n

The complaint is at https://tinyurl.com/ CRFI-charity-lawsuit.

Camp Capitola’s 150th Anniversary: Little City Under Canvas

By Deborah Osterberg

Throughout 2024 the Capitola Historical Museum will celebrate the history of Camp Capitola, considered “… the oldest camping ground on the Pacific Coast” and one of the earliest seaside resorts in California. The museum’s new annual exhibition, which opens on March 16, is entitled, “Little City Under Canvas — The 150th Anniversary of Camp Capitola.”

Officially opened by ship carpenter — turned farmer — turned entrepreneur Samuel Alonzo (S.A.) Hall, on June 18, 1874, the camp was initially located on land he leased from Frederick Augustus (F.A.) Hihn at the base of Soquel Landing wharf (built 1857).

Hall quickly noticed that farm families from the sweltering inland towns of Stockton, Fresno, and San Jose came each summer to pitch their tents along the beach for a cool, refreshing vacation. Hall realized that providing services for the campers could be a lucrative alternative to farming and he began to provide them meals and board their horse teams. Soon he began renting tents and building beach cabins for his growing number of seasonal visitors.

Though Hall left the resort in 1879 when Hihn raised the rent, Hall’s inspiration left a lasting imprint upon the Capitola we know today, including the very name of our community. The new exhibition, which runs through the end

of the year, traces the beginning of Camp Capitola and its evolution from a rustic seaside campground to an elegant coastal resort between 1874 and 1900. Exhibits will show how S.A. Hall got the idea for the resort, what he sold to pay for its establishment, why we believe he named it Capitola, and how he, and later F.A. Hihn, built Camp Capitola into one of the most popular seaside resorts on the West Coast.

The exhibition will also recount the history of the seaside resort idea.

According to his book, The Lure of the Beach — A Global History, Robert C. Ritchie, contends that though the first beach resort dates back to the second century Roman town of Baiae on the Gulf of Naples, it was not until the latter 18th century in England that the lasting concept of the beach as a place of leisure for the masses truly emerged.

In the 1770s, cultural, economic, and social upheavals fostered a broader prosperity in England. This greater economic security, much of which was based upon the financial benefits of slavery, allowed many in the British middle and upper classes the opportunity and the means to enjoy more leisure time. The exhibition follows how the new saltwater cure advocated by 18th century physicians, sparked the creation of the first seaside resorts such as Brighton and Margate.

The salt-water prescription led to the popular practice of surf bathing which was said to cure everything from poor circulation to melancholy. Surf bathing at seaside resorts became an affordable treatment as well as an escape from fastpaced, over-crowded, and increasingly polluted cities.

The new exhibition shows how the seaside resort idea evolved to meet

American needs and tastes and in what ways Camp Capitola followed, or, in what ways it diverged from the model of those first “modern” seaside resorts and how it compared to some of the other early American seaside resorts.

The Camp Capitola story is presented through a large array of historic images, including stereo views which give a three-dimensional view of the camp in the 1870s. Camp Capitola was a lively place. Visitors enjoyed a wide variety of amusements from almost nightly dances and roller-skating parties to sea moss collecting along the beach and fern collecting up Soquel Creek. Groups of campers gathered round beach bonfires nearly every night, playing music and singing. The superior ocean and creek fishing at Capitola drew sportsmen from around the state.

Perhaps one of the most frequent camp activities was to indulge in gossip. Since the time of Jane Austen, seaside resorts were the place of flirtation and escape from societal constraints. According to the Sept. 1, 1892, Sacramento Union “[E] verybody flirts in Capitola, from the machine-like flirtation of the old campaigner to the gushing flirtations of the young folks just from school.”

“Little City” page 26

Canoeing past the Venetian Court, circa the late 1920s.

View of the Venetian Court under construction in 1924.

S.A. Hall

FEATURED COLUMNIST

New Soquel Creek Water District Board President Outlines Goals

Protection from Further Seawater Contamination Still the Top Priority

Dr. Bruce Jaffe has taken the leadership helm as Soquel Creek Water District’s board president for 2024.

Dr. Jaffe has been a longstanding District board member for 22 years and last year served as the agency’s vice-president. In this interview, he discusses the board’s priorities, his goals as board president, and the challenges the District faces in the future. •••

What are your top priorities as Board President?

The top priority is to protect our groundwater basin. We have to keep seawater in the Monterey Bay, and not in our drinking water. To do that we need to raise protective groundwater levels, so they are high enough to push the seawater water back into the bay. It’s very simple. We must use water efficiently and develop a new water supply.

The new water supply is Pure Water Soquel (PWS), which will purify recycled water and replenish our aquifers. The purified water will recharge into the groundwater basin to raise the levels enough to push the seawater into the bay.

If the seawater gets into our aquifer, it will pollute the basin for dozens or even hundreds of years. The State of California has declared our basin as critically overdrafted and mandated that it be sustainable by 2040.

The overarching goal is to continue to provide clean, safe water to our customers.

What is your proudest moment as a board member?

There are a lot of them. I would have to say the proudest moment was when — after gathering information and being sure about the safety of water recycling and purification we committed to the Pure Water Soquel project.

The reason it is a proud moment is that with the project, we were on the road to a solution to the problem of seawater intrusion into our aquifer.

Another point of pride is that we have such a great staff working at the water district. It allows us as a board to do more than we would be able to normally. I hear nothing but positive feedback from our customers about our staff. It’s an exceptional group.

What are your goals for collaboration and relationships with other agencies and groups?

My goal is to collaborate where it makes sense. The saying “a rising tide floats all boats” applies to our groundwater basin. If our section of the groundwater basin is healthy, it is a benefit to the adjacent areas of the basin, and vice versa.

An example of this type of collaboration is the Santa Cruz Mid-County Groundwater Agency (MGA), which I was instrumental in its formation, and I was its first chair. I am most proud of the MGA bylaws that say all members of the agencies that are under its operation need to agree unanimously on any budget item.

There may be opportunities with Pure Water Soquel to share water with other water agencies. As we monitor PWS when it’s operational and its benefits, the facility could be expanded after environmental review, if needed. We also have interties with adjacent agencies where we can transfer water in emergencies when one agency can’t meet short-term demands.

with replacing our infrastructure as it reaches the end of its useful life.

What is some personal information district customers would be interested in knowing?

I recently retired and am looking forward to staying actively involved in local issues within Santa Cruz County.

I love the outdoors and the ocean. I play beach volleyball competitively … though not

as competitively as I used to. I love to ride my bike, both in the mountains and as transportation from point A to point B. n

March Madness

What was the most challenging experience?

The most challenging experience was when we didn’t have a solution to seawater intrusion, and we were considering a moratorium on new water hookups. I really did not want to have to do that, and the Pure Water Soquel Project came about and we were able to put off a moratorium by adopting the Water Demand Offset Program.

That program required new development to offset their water demands with retrofits and low-flush toilets and other low water use measures. It was a tremendous relief when we had a plan for protecting our aquifer that did not involve a moratorium on new hookups.

What is the district’s biggest challenge in the future?

The biggest challenge is to provide safe, reliable, sustainable drinking water as inexpensively as possible.

And part of that challenge is we have an aging infrastructure, and we have to replace mains so that they don’t break, and we not only lose water but it also impacts reliable service to our customers. It can be more expensive to do a repair when you are in crisis mode.

Here’s an example: We dug up some very old redwood pipes in our district about a dozen years ago.

The way our district formed was an amalgamation of smaller water purveyors, and when they joined the district, you inherited what they had in terms of infrastructure. It will be an ongoing challenge to keep pace

6. *Delta Center location:

____ Lake City

7. Hole-in-one

pro

65. Chocolate substitute

66. Hot temper

68. Derived from oats

69. Cuckoo

70. Sir George Ivan Morrison’s stage name

71. Baby at a recital

72. Have supper

73. Young newt

74. Many affirmatives

DOWN

1. Brush alternative

2. Culture-growing turf

3. Long forearm bone

4. Satyr

5. City in Poland

8. Type of polyhedron

9. Raisin’s breakfast companion

10. Denim innovator

11. Port in Yemen

12. Toker’s pipe

15. Professional reviewer

20. Not pathos

22. Not hers

24. Shoulder rank display

25. Winnowing leftovers

26. Chicken in Mexico

27. Farewell in Paris

29. *School with most NCAA basketball titles

31. Back of the neck

32. Search blindly

33. Lightsaber beam

34. Olden days anesthetic

36. *____ player

38. Garden starter

42. D.S. in sheet music

45. Dance club light

49. Female chicken

51. Speech at a funeral

54. Lacking guile

56. What speakers do

57. LSD. e.g.

58. Indian princess

59. Turkmenistan’s neighbor

60. *Type of defense

61. One tenth of a dime

62. Airline postings. acr.

63. Type of pool

64. What means justify

67. Churchill’s “so few”

Bruce Jaffe

Why State Testing Matters

Measuring Student Performance and Rating Schools

By Dr. Alison Hanks-Sloan, aka Dr. AHS, Aptos High Principal

Testing has become a bad word. With state testing scheduled for our grade 11 and 12 students between March 20-22, we need everyone’s help to shift that connotation.

Our interim superintendent Murry Schekman knows that testing matters. He has been interrogated about our test scores, as the outside world doesn’t see our grades, celebratory moments, or the skills that prepare our students for life after high school. They see the annual test scores and draw conclusions about who we are and who is not mastering content math or reading based on one to three days of testing in March.

Recently, Schekman was visiting us at Aptos High School and spoke to a group of students at lunch. He asked the grade 10 boys what they would do if they were given a state test in math or reading. He asked if they would try their best and take the test seriously. There was a unanimous “NO” from the students.

Schekman then asked the same question to another group of students, which happened to be grade nine. Once again, he got an emphatic “NO” unanimously. When he asked why, they said why does it matter if it is not part of our grade.

While standardized testing in itself can be an entire discussion, we need to figure out how we can embrace the annual state testing that measures student performance and shapes our California dashboard. It also is a measurement on our real estate and our school’s rating.

Our own attitude about testing is infectious. Our teens often reflect our own attitudes about these exams. Please help our students take it seriously. It’s a brief window of time, but our support and messaging make a difference in how our students perform.

We know that our teachers have been focusing on the content and skills; now, we

“Little City” from page 24

Around 1888, F.A. Hihn fashioned a tree-lined path upon Depot Hill which followed Grand Avenue along the eastern bluff. The popular scenic and secluded walkway soon became known as Lovers’ Lane or Lovers’ Retreat.

From the beginning of seaside resorts, it was important not only to be seen but to know who else was there to be seen. One of the most popular pastimes was sitting on the beach to watch young ladies wading in “modern very short-skirted bathing-dress …” which some thought scandalous.

”… the whole population of Capitola turns out, and those who do not bathe lie on the sand and ‘take in’ the bathers. The spectators ‘make no bones’ in commenting on dresses (or rather the lack of them), forms, etc. It is quite entertaining to get within hearing distance of a couple whose modesty forbids their donning a bathing dress and listen to their comments on the scantily-robed bathing procession …”

Evening Mail [Stockton], July 16, 1889

The exhibition features historic photographs showing the evolution of Victorian bathing styles including an exhibit of a rare 1880s bathing costume for a lady.

The exhibition follows the changes Camp Capitola underwent from a seasonal tent campground to a year-round

need our students to take the testing moments to heart. Encourage our Mariners to show up and do their best that week!

Our juniors will be taking the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) exams in reading and math.

When taken seriously, these exams have

resort of vacation homes and to a growing residential community. The exhibition also explores the stories of some who came to live and work in the camp under limitations and restrictions based upon their race.

This year the Capitola Historical Museum is also celebrating a second anniversary: The 100th anniversary of the construction of the Venetian Court.

Completed in 1924, the colorful Venetian, built in the Mission/Spanish Revival style of architecture, is perhaps the most iconic symbol of Capitola today. The Venetian was part of the modernization of the resort by oil entrepreneur Henry Allen Rispin, who purchased much of Capitola from the daughter of F.A. Hihn in 1919.

been valuable measuring points of areas of strength and growth prior to going to college or moving into the career world. The seniors take the California Science Test (CAST) which is required before graduation.

“Testing” page 27

This unique cluster of multi-colored stucco dwellings, along the mouth of Soquel Creek, was built upon the former site of the 1870s Italian fishing village at the base of the wharf.

In 1987 the Venetian Court, which consists of both a motel and individually owned units, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places because of its significance in the historical development of the region. Historic images and stories about the Venetian Court will be featured in the museum as well as in rotating exhibits throughout this year at the Capitola Library located at 2005 Wharf Road. n

“Little City Under Canvas The 150th Anniversary of Camp Capitola” will open on Saturday, March 16, with a public reception from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. A presentation will be given about the history of the Venetian Court by Melanie Shaffer Freitas, author of the book, Venetian Court Capitola’s Unique & Charming Seaside Resort. Capitola Historical Museum Curator Deborah Osterberg will speak on the history of Camp Capitola. The admission-free Capitola Historical Museum will be open every Friday through Sunday from noon until 4 p.m.

•••

The museum is at 410 Capitola Ave., next to Capitola City Hall. For information, call 831464-0322 or send an email to capitolamuseum@ gmail.com.

View of early Camp Capitola circa 1879. The reality of a seaside resort with tourist cabins and privies built on the beach did not quite match up to the resort’s image in advertisements.

“Testing” from page 26

The CAST is shorter than the SBAC, so seniors will get their graduation caps and gowns as well as attend a senior assembly about graduation. The big day is June 5 at 5 p.m.

Our grade nine and ten students will not be testing. There will be a variety of learning opportunities in their tutorial, including presentations from the Sheriff’s Office and Monarch Services.

WASC Accreditation April 14-17

Speaking of assessments, Aptos High School will undergo its own assessment through the official accreditation process next month. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (ACS WASC), a world-renowned accreditation team that verifies and validates all the schools on the West Coast is sending a WASC team to AHS. The team, which consists of educators from throughout Northern California, will spend four days at our school.

For over a year, our school team has been involved with our educational partners and team members in a selfstudy process. Madeline Swift, one of our science teachers, took on the huge task of leading our focus groups, collecting and analyzing data, and developing our 100page report.

The visiting team will validate that what we identify as the school’s purpose and the schoolwide learner outcomes match the WASC criteria. During their visit, they will visit classrooms; interview a variety of staff, students, and community partners; and develop a schoolwide action plan that addresses identified areas for improvement, as well as celebrates our strengths.

They are looking at how we involved all of our educational partners, including our families, students, and community.

There are five areas of focus:

1) Organization for Learning — which includes our vision, staff, and resources;

2) Curriculum — including rigor and equity;

3) Learning and Teaching — such as student centered classrooms and teaching strategies;

4) Assessment and Accountability — examining how we measure high achievement; and — including community involvement, school environment, and social-emotional/multi-tiered supports.

School accreditation is what makes our diplomas count. It also helps us celebrate our high points and identify areas of improvement. We thank you in advance if you are on campus during the WASC visit and one of the WASC team members asks you about our school.

Reach out to us if you would like to be a part of a focus group or review our selfstudy. We hope to SAIL with you through all of our assessments in the upcoming weeks. n

Spring, New Zodiacal Year & International Astrology Day

On Tuesday, March 19, the sun, poised at the equator, enters Aries. Spring in our northern hemisphere begins and we enter a new zodiacal year, its first day is celebrated as International Astrology Day.

Preparing us for International Astrology Day and our new zodiacal year are the following quotes.

“Let there be Lights in the firmament of the Heavens, to divide the Day from the Night; and let them be for Signs, and for Seasons, and for Days, and Years.” Genesis I: 14-15

“There is an appointed Time for everything, and a Time for every Purpose under the Heavens.” Ecclesiastes III

astrology. The horoscope is the describes individual character and all components of the personality. The natal chart provides insights into what the patient’s soul intends for them to achieve.” Carl .G. Jung

“A child is born on a day and hour when celestial rays are in mathematical harmony with one’s individual karma. The horoscope is a portrait revealing one’s unalterable past, and probable future results. The message boldly blazoned across the heavens at the moment of birth is not meant to emphasize fate – but to arouse our will to love and action.” Swami Sri Yukteswar

“The celestial movements are the cause of all that takes place on Earth.” St. Thomas Aquinas

“A physician without a thorough knowledge of Astrology has no right to call himself a physician.” Hippocrates

“This world is inescapably linked to the motions of the worlds above. All power in this world is ruled by these options.” Aristotle

“Millionaires don’t use Astrology – Billionaires do.” J.P. Morgan

“We are born at a given moment in a given place and like vintage years of wine we have the qualities of the year and of the season in which we are born. I have used

ARIES

Creates the beginnings of things, has a fiery, quick mind, does not exhibit patience (especially for slower signs Pisces, Taurus, Cap.), is filled with enthusiasm which means filled with God. Using the “I” word constantly, Aries is always developing a sense of self or new identity, amidst initiating new ideas, being competitive, aggressive, and being an impulsive risk taker. The Hierarchy looks on to see if you’re a good risk for them. Can you change the world?

TAURUS

People often look upon and interpret Taurus as stubborn, but that’s not the true reality of the stabilizing earth sign. Taurus people must think deeply before responding to questions. Their mind is based upon sensibility and practicality. Give them time to ponder on all aspects of the question before answering. Taurus loves gold and beautiful (Venus) things because gold is valuable, and like Taurus, is a serious and long-lasting investment. Taurus is to illuminate the minds of humanity. They begin with themselves quietly, first.

GEMINI

Gemini eyes are different than the eyes of the other zodiacal signs except for the eyes of Aquarius. Gemini eyes curve into an almond shape, they sparkle and they ‘see” things others cannot see. Gemini gathers information in order to share that information to others. You’re the messenger (Mercury), quite imaginative, sometimes a gossip, can be charming when it’s important and absent when it’s not. Your purpose, after imparting information to the world at large, is to love beyond everyone else’s capacity. Sirius is your guiding star. Become acquainted.

CANCER

You’re called the crab of the zodiac and you truly are crablike, circling whatever interests them, never moving forward in a straight line. You’re circuitous in order to assess safety, protection and well-being. When safety is assured, you nurture and nourish all beings - people, kingdoms, babies, animals, gardens, the broccoli deva, etc. Shy and evasive in public, you’re lively and talkative with those close to you. And opinionated! You reflect moon cycles and ocean tides causing great sensitivity. Neptune summons you.

“…the entire Science of Astrology is, in the last analysis, the Science of Relations(hips). Inner-relation, inter-dependence, inter-communication, interplay – these words govern the scientific basis of astrology.” The Tibetan/Alice Bailey, Esoteric Astrology, p. 233

Imagine! People using astrology to bring about understanding, goodwill, and right human relations -- aiding in the spiritual unfoldment of humanity and all the kingdoms, leading to the new psychology, new understanding, goodwill, right relations and constructive changes between individuals, communities, kingdoms and nations.” From Night Light News Esoteric Journal (nightlightnews.org)

And renewing our understanding of the behaviors, gifts, talents and beauty of each zodiacal sign... n

LEO

You are the proud lion, a royal, a loving leonine parent, affectionate friend and creative artist. The world is your jungle. You have strong will, great intelligence, a high forehead, often big hair, can be generous, intense, over- confident, and at times a pain to everyone. You’re a leader, need to be in charge, very creative to the point of inspiring others and sensitive like Cancer. Your purpose is to unfold consciousness, become aware of your gifts, and offer them to humanity. You are a “child of the Sun.”

VIRGO

Known as a perfectionist, the reality is you hold, harbor, nurture and gestate new states of reality and in the end the reality of the Soul. However, before knowing this you can often fall into states that are critical, judgmental, opinionated and silently unappreciative. But this is just a stage and after awareness sets in, you reorient, becoming trustworthy, exploratory, loving and appreciative. Your purpose is to birth new realities for others so they come to know “love underlies the happenings of all life and of all times.”

LIBRA

Libra likes to play, have fun, be social, cooperate. Librans know drama, both tragedy and comedy. Libra, the ultimate sign of relationships, has a deep sense of justice. If justice isn’t apparent, they set out to change things in order to bring honesty and rightness to the situation. Librans often have many relationships. Because they are learning through relationships – how to choose, to be, to discriminate between partners, to be one (partner), to share and love and extend themselves so they can radiate Goodwill and Right Relations. Librans are mediators, servers and quite beautiful.

SCORPIO

The sign of mystery and inscrutability, of potent and emotional desires, aspirations and feelings, Scorpios also have strong and powerful wills and will power. Serious, deep and outstanding researchers, they’re always somewhat in a Halloween situation, they understand death and rebirth, ask others to walk with them, experience often a withdrawing, never show weakness, can be harsh and undiplomatic, they suffer and we find them deeply and unequivocally commendable, venerable, rather splendid, worthy and admirable.

SAGITTARIUS

Known as the truth seeking and speaking sign, Sagittarians are like an arrow of light flying through the air and this symbolizes them – they’re straightforward, uncomplicated, fiery and yet undemanding because they’re focused on what’s ahead and on the mountain top. Travelling over meadows and plains they ride towards a goal almost unreachable. They are adventurous, cultural, travelers, writers, publishers, musicians. They have a love of food, the need for freedom, often have horses and their companion is Jupiter which suggests Joy. But sometimes, for tiny moments, they can also be quite sad.

CAPRICORN

The sign of constancy, hard work and self-reliance, like Taurus but different, Caps never ask for help for they must prove to themselves they’re responsible, accountable, dependable and trustworthy. Often, no matter how much Caps accomplish, they have an underlying feeling of being unworthy and undeserving judging themselves as not having done enough. Caps need help understanding they are always good, they did enough, and that they are on the Path, having earned a starry place among their serving brothers and sisters. Caps need to know they are the “midday sun as well as the midnight sun.”

AQUARIUS

Honest and sincere, understanding brotherhood and seeking freedom, bringing the future into the present, always different, unique and slightly revolutionary, Aquarians are comforted by knowing everyone in town, being in their presence (gathering, parties, groups), being loyal and sympathetic (asking if everyone’s needs are met). These “waters of life” star children, thought of as eccentric, sometimes very determined, learn by being both alone and in groups and consider their life purpose, being a friend to everyone, with great seriousness. You’re the “light that shines on Earth, across the sea.” You’re the future

PISCES

Very sensitive (like Cancer), a delicate fish (actually two), most comfortable in water (ocean, pools, river, lakes, rain), Pisces can suffer tremendously, not quite able to withstand and/or understand life in form and matter. Sometimes the fish finds themselves in places and positions not quite right, sometimes with broken feet and bones. This is frightful for them. The Talmud says that “Every blade of grass has its angel bending over it, whispering, ‘Grow, grow.” Pisces has their angel, bending over them, too. It’s just invisible.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

APTOS LIBRARY ACTIVITIES

Mon-Thur: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. • Fri-Sat: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. • Closed

Sunday • 7695 Soquel Drive, Aptos

Sundays

First Sunday: ACT Advisory Council of Teens: 11 am to 1 pm

Mondays

Bridge Club, 10:30-noon, partnership with County Parks, except for Monday holidays

Writers Workshop, 1-3 p.m. 2nd & 4th

Mondays

Tech Help in person, 1-3 p.m. weekly. Make an appointment (831-427-7713)

First Monday: SciFi Flicks, 6-8 p.m. Snacks provided. Scheduled movies for 2024:

April: 2001: A Space Odyssey

May: Star Wars: A New Hope

June: The Sixth Sense

July: Independence Day

August.: Beetlejuice

September: The Truman Show

October: The Addams Family

November: Everything Everywhere All At Once December: Nightmare Before Christmas

Tuesdays

Storytime for ages 3-5, 11-11:30 am weekly

Aptos Youth Chess Club, 3:30-4:30 pm weekly

Wednesdays

First and Third Wednesdays: Tales to Tails: Kids age 6-17 read to dogs, 3:30-4:30 pm. Must make appointment:

831-427-7713 Through June 18

Minecraft for ages 8-18, 3:30-5:30 pm

March 27: Take part in the California Highway Patrol’s Age Well, Drive Smart Senior driver education class for drivers, 65 years of age and older, 9-11 a.m. Call (831) 219-0200 to get a spot.

Thursdays

Tai Chi, 10-11 am weekly

Mah Jongg 2-4 p.m. weekly

READ Help for Kids 3-5 pm weekly by appointment.

Ages 6 to 18 with credentialed teachers. Email elibrary@ santacruzpl.org

First Thursdays: Friends of Aptos Library Meeting, 5-6 pm. (Scheduled March 4 and April 4)

Second Thursdays: Book Discussions, 1-2:30 pm online and in-person. Register at https://santacruzpl.libcal.com/ event/11782362

April 11: Immense World by Yong.

May 9: Fantasyland: How America went haywire by Kurt Anderson

Fridays

Third Fridays: Bring Your Own Book Discussion, 11 am-12:30pm

HABITAT SEEKS CEO

Habitat for Humanity Monterey Bay is searching for a CEO to succeed Satish Rishi, who will retire July 31 after four-and-a-half years.

Board Chair Doug Yount, who will head the search, said, “Satish has expanded our impact over the past four years, increasing the number of homes we build each year and serving way more deserving low-income families. His extensive fiscal background has put HfHMB in a strong position moving forward.”

Rishi, who came from the tech industry, said, “It has been a rewarding experience, and together, we have enabled 18 low-income families to find permanent affordable housing.

As we complete our 11-home project in Rodeo Creek Court and embark on a new 13-home project in Watsonville, I think this is the right time to pass the baton to a new leader who can see the project to completion.”

Habitat for Humanity Monterey Bay is seeking a leader with a record of organizational leadership and community engagement, preferably in both Monterey and Santa Cruz counties. Habitat’s strategic plan calls for more affordable

home building, active volunteer engagement, ReStore sales, and fundraising with significant expansion into Monterey County in the next three years.

Apply at https://www.habitatmontereybay.com/ceosearch

CABRILLO COLLEGE STUDENT AID

California College Promise Grant is a fee waiver through FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid, which determines eligibility) or the California Dream Act Application.

Cabrillo Promise Program is a campus based free waiver through Cabrillo College that provides the first two years of tuition to first-time college students. Both programs cover the cost of tuition ($46 per unit).

Cabrillo Promise Program requires full time enrollment (12+ units) and California College Promise Grant does not. Students cannot receive aid from both programs. For state financial aid, submit your application by April 2.

For a CalGrant, a school-certified grade-point average must be submitted by March 2. Returning students must file a new application for the fall.

PROPERTY TAXES DUE

The second installment of 2023-2024 property tax bills is due April 10.

Bills are available to view and pay on the Santa Cruz County Treasurer-Tax Collector website at https://www. santacruzcountyca.gov/Departments/TaxCollector.aspx

Online, residents can view their bill, make payments, see if they have any delinquent property taxes, or learn about senior/disabled persons exemptions, and property tax postponements. Residents can pay property taxes online by E-Check at no cost, or by using debit/credit cards, where service charges apply.

Payments made or postmarked after April 10 will be assessed as a late penalty.

If you plan to mail a check, make sure your envelope has a U.S. Post Office postmark on or before the due date to avoid late penalties.

If bills have not been paid yet, the County recommends obtaining a hand-stamped postmark at the U.S. Post Office as proof of timely payment.

OMEGA NU

SCHOLARSHIPS

Omega Nu scholarships of $500 to $5,000 are open to students who plan to enroll in a California community

college, CSU, UC, or a California vocational school and show financial need.

The Cabrillo Thresher/Ted Bockman Memorial Aquatics Scholarship is open to students who have participated in at least 2 years of varsity swimming or varsity water polo and complete the Thresher/Bockman Addendum. Applications are at https://www.duckyderbysantacruz. org/scholarship-main-page and are due by March 27. Renewal applications are also due by March 27. Email the completed application to ormeganuscscholarships@ gmail.com

PVUSD TK AND KINDER ROUNDUP

Pajaro Valley Unified School District will host kindergarten and transitional kindergarten at the district Board Room, 294 Green Valley Road, Watsonville. Dates

Monday, March 18, 7am-2pm

Tuesday, March 19, 11:30am-5:30pm

Monday, April 15, 12pm-7pm

Tuesday, April 16, 7am- 2pm Bring

• Proof of address (Utility bill)

• IZ card (Immunization record)

• Birth certificate (For the child enrolling)

TK — Age: 5 years old, birthday between Sept. 2 through June 2

KINDER — Age: 5 years old on or by Sept.1. All incoming kindergarten students are required to register.

To expedite the process, complete the online registration first at https://www.pvusd.net/District/About-Us/Enrollment/index.html.

COUNTY SURVEY ON AGING

To initiate Age Well Santa Cruz County, a new county initiative, a local survey launched on Jan. 8 to collect community feedback focused on aging. The deadline to respond is March 31.

The survey is supported by a steering committee of engaged community members and outreach efforts to maximize community participation will take place widely. Results from the survey will inform the local master plan goals.

Age Well Santa Cruz County will partner with organizations, businesses, clubs, agencies and individuals throughout Santa Cruz County to ensure as many people as possible participate in the survey.

WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH: AUTHOR KATHRYN GUALTIERI

This Women’s History Month, Pilgrim’s Way Community Bookstore & Secret Garden spotlights Kathryn Gualtieri, a Capitola author whose deep connection to Carmel-by-the-Sea enriches her captivating historical mysteries.

Gualtieri’s series, set in the bohemian village of Carmel-by-the-Sea between 1921 and 1939, tells these tales through the eyes of Nora Finnegan, a fearless and inquisitive journalist.

Gualtieri, a former journalist for the Carmel Pine Cone, weaves her knowledge and love for Carmel’s history into each page of her novels. Her first novel (2011) in the Nora Finnegan series, “Murder in the Pines,” introduces readers to the spirited and ambitious Nora, who, fresh out of Mills College, aspires to a journalist’s career at a time when her peers are settling into domestic life. Hired by the publisher of the Carmel Pine Cone, Nora’s investigative journalism captures the spirit of the time and pulls her into a series of gripping mysteries that she is compelled to solve.

What sets Kathryn’s work apart is her meticulous attention to historical detail and her ability to make the past come alive.

The survey is online at www.wagewellsantacruzcounty. org and www.buenavejezcondadodesantacruz.org. For questions, email AgeWell@santacruzcountyca.gov

To request a paper survey in English or Spanish call (831) 454-4397.

HARTNELL SCHOLARSHIPS

Hartnell College announces general scholarship applications for the academic year 2024-25, assisting incoming first-year students and Hartnell’s continuing students. Applicants must have:

• A minimum grade-point average of 2.0

• Enrollment in at least 9 credit units for fall 2024 To apply, go to: www.hartnell.edu/students/scholarships/ The deadline to apply is Monday, April 8. Hartnell College is hosting scholarship workshops (at B110 in Building B on campus in Salinas):

• Wednesday, March 20 from 6-8 p.m. (with Cash for College)

• Wednesday, March 27, from 1-2 p.m.

NURSING MOTHERS: FREE HELP

Reva Raina Snyder shares that Nursing Mothers Counsel offers free breastfeeding support and education with classes, in-home, telephone and zoom or FaceTime. Plus breast pump rentals and supplies.

Information: Nursingmothers.org or call 831-688-3954.

OPPORTUNITY GRANT MUSIC SCHOLARSHIPS

Opportunity Grant Scholarships are awarded yearly to highly motivated young students whose families are financially unable to provide private music lessons. Applications are due May 15, for scholarships in the 2024-2025 school year. Applications are at the Santa Cruz County Music Teachers’ Association website: https:// sccmtac.org/scholarships/#grants

Students can study piano, voice, string (violin, viola), and wind instruments (flute, oboe, clarinet, saxophone, and trumpet) with distinguished teachers. Lessons for other string and wind instruments are subject to teachers’ availability, so students should apply if interested. Students must be enrolled in a Santa Cruz County school or be home-schooled residents in grades 2-12 during the ensuing school year. Students should have access to a practice instrument and transportation to weekly lessons. The application includes a brief financial statement. Families are responsible for a small co-payment and educational materials, $25 per year.

Since 1995, more than $130,000 in scholarships have been awarded to students, more than half from communities of color. Teachers have donated the same amount as reduced tuition. The Music Teachers’ Association of California called it a model for scholarship programs. To apply, see https://sccmtac.org/scholarships/#grants. To donate, email OpportunityGrants@sccmtac.org.

MAH 2024 EXHIBITIONS AND PROJECTS

She said she loves “the feeling of being ‘in the moment’ with my characters and watching their lives move forward in surprising ways.”

She began writing this series in her 70s and tells others, “It is never too late.”

Next: Her 9th novel, “Murder by Design,” which will focus on the controversy over architecture in the 1920’s. Kathryn’s books are not available on Amazon, but they are available at Pilgrim’s Way Community Bookstore & Secret Garden in Carmel, either in-store, and via the online ordering platform.

Website: https://www.pilgrimsway.com

The Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History (MAH) is pleased to announce its exhibition program for 2024, which includes solo and group shows, collaborative partnerships, and the return of its biennial, countywide multi-arts festival. Highlights from the season include: the return of the Rydell Visual Arts Fellowship showcase; a retrospective of renowned landscape painter Richard Mayhew; a group exhibition about Filipino migration and labor in the Pajaro Valley presented with UC Santa Cruz; an exploration of photographic media with Ansel Adams, Norman Locks, Karolina Karlic, Shelby Graham, Binh Danh, and Edgar Cruz; a touring exhibition of works by contemporary Black artists including Ed Clark, Tunji Adeniyi-Jones, Mickalene Thomas, Kara Walker, Tavares Strachan, among others; CommonGround, a 10-day festival of outdoor art and performance hosted across the county; and an in-gallery, immersive Afrospeculative experience featuring Bay Area muralists Timothy B, Zoe Boston, and Shogun Shido.

is

at 705 Front St. in Santa Cruz.

COUNTY FAIR BOARD MEETINGS

The Santa Cruz County Fair Board will meet each month in 2024 except September and November.

Remaining dates are March 26, April 23, May 28, June

25, July 23, Aug. 27, Oct. 22, and Dec. 3.

There is no meeting in September or November.

Meetings typically begin at 1:30 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday in the Heritage Building at the fairgrounds, 2601 East Lake Blvd., Watsonville.

For agendas, posted 10 days in advance, see santacruzcountyfair.com

ONGOING EVENTS

Ongoing thru May 12

RICHARD MAYHEW: INNER TERRAIN

Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History, 705 Front St.

A rare and timely exhibition of the artwork of Soquel artist Richard Mayhew (b. 1924) at the Museum of Art & History, feature works that speak to American arts, culture, and history.

Mayhew blends multiple genres including Baroque landscape, Impressionism, plein-air, Abstract Expressionism, and Color Field painting using mechanisms from each.

He calls his landscapes “moodscapes” as an introspective excavation of the terrain of his mind.

This exhibition — guest curated by Shelby Graham and Kajahl — is presented with support from Community Foundation Santa Cruz County and Santa Cruz County Bank.

Mondays

BRIDGE CLUB

10:30 a.m.-Noon, 7695 Soquel Dr, Aptos, CA 95003

The Aptos Branch Library will host Bridge Club sessions on Mondays (except holidays).

Bridge Club is a partnership between Santa Cruz County Parks and Santa Cruz Public Libraries. Register at scparks.com or in-person the day of the event.

Tuesdays and Thursdays

WALKING ADVENTURE GROUP

9:30-11:30 a.m., Various locations

Walking Adventure Group, offered by city of Santa Cruz Recreation, offers weekly coordinated walks at locations around the county.

Join this group of active seniors for a weekly walking adventure. Walks can be canceled by inclement weather:

Tuesdays: Smell the Roses

Thursday: Walking Adventure Group

To register visit www.cityofsantacruz.com/government/ city-departments/parks-recreation/senior-programs

For more information call 831-420-5180 or e-mail WalkingAdventureGroup@gmail.com.

First Wednesdays

SONS IN RETIREMENT

Time TBD, Elks Lodge, 150 Jewell St., Santa Cruz SIR (Sons In Retirement) is a nonprofit, nonpolitical public benefit organization of senior men. The organization’s mission is to enhance the lives of its members through social events while making friends.

The Twin Valleys, Santa Cruz Branch welcomes new members and meets the first Wednesday of each month. Contact Ray Disperati at 831-588-8876 for information.

Third Thursdays SIP AND STROLL

6-9 p.m. (check-in starts at 5 p.m.), Seacliff Inn, 7500 Old Dominion Court, Aptos

Come to the Seacliff Inn: Tapestry Collection by Hilton, for a Sip & Stroll event where local artists to show and sell their works. Wines are 30% off, and the featured winery will offer tastings of three varietals for $10 per person. Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wine30-sip-strolltickets-668910307737

Fridays (except First Friday of the Month)

LA SELVA BEACH LIBRARY BRIDGE GROUP

10:30-Noon, La Selva Beach Public Library, 316 Estrella Ave. Come for bridge from 10:30 to noon at the La Selva Beach library.

Call La Selva Library to reserve your seat: 831-427-7710.

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

TOP DOG FILM FESTIVAL

Saturday March 23

7 pm, Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz

The Top Dog Film Festival stops at the Rio Theatre, allowing dog lovers from all walks of life to experience the enchantment and deep emotional connections shared between humans and their furry friends.

From heart-warming stories to jaw-dropping adventures, this year’s film selection celebrates the bond shared between dog and human.

As an inclusive and family-friendly event, the Top Dog Film Tour provides a welcoming space for dog lovers of all ages.

A Yappy Hour will take place at Sante Adairius Midtown Portal before the show.

Movie tickets are $20 at EventBrite; a portion of sales will benefit the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter. Information: https://www.riotheatre.com/events-2/2024/03/23/topdog

Sundays

THE FARM & GARDEN MARKET

11 a.m., 3 p.m., Corralitos Cultural Center, 127 Hames Road

The Farm & Garden Market is a small, friendly, open air market made up of local farmers and gardeners who grow within a five-mile radius of Corralitos at the Corralitos Cultural Center.

Seasonally there are strawberries, blueberries, cherries, lemons, tomatoes, herbs, squash, potatoes, carrots, peas, beets, and avocados, as well fruits, vegetables, lettuces and salad greens. Bakers offer treats, and there may be beautiful potted flowers, handmade natural soaps, and homemade jams and preserves.

The market is open to those who grow anything from a garden to a good back yard fruit tree.

For a booth, a $5 donation is requested to the CVREA, the nonprofit that maintains the Corralitos Cultural Center. For inquiries, contact Wayne Miller: wayne@catalyst2001.com / (831) 724-1332

Third Sundays of the Month

ANTIQUE FAIR & FLEA MARKET

9 a.m.-2 p.m., Cabrillo College, 6500 Soquel Drive

Clark’s Auction presents a monthly Antique Fair & Flea Market on the third Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Cabrillo College, 6500 Soquel Drive, Aptos, starting March 17. Admission tickets are $8 at https://www.eventeny.com/ events/ticket/?id=9559&action=ticket&action_ticket=14707

Earlybird tickets are $15 to get in at 7 a.m.

DATED EVENTS

Saturday March 16

PARENT SUMMER RESOURCES

8:30 a.m.-1 p.m., EA Hall Middle School, 201 Brewington Ave, Watsonville

The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Parent Engagement team invites PV families to a half-day parent conference, Jump into Summer, at EA Hall Middle School. Parents and caregivers can get ideas on how to keep

Their vision is a democracy where elected officials and other leaders reflect the population, serving in roles that uplift all people in equity and justice.

No reservations are required.

Sunday March 17

ST. PATRICK’S DAY PARTY

3–6 p.m., Cork & Fork Capitola, 312 Capitola Ave.

Cork & Fork Capitola will host a St. Patrick’s Day party featuring performers Schoolcraft and Murray. Their acoustic music has a groove to make you move. They blend the best of their many heroes: Lyle Lovett, Carole King, Santana, Robbie Fulks, The Allman Brothers, Steely Dan.

No entry fee.

For more information about Schoolcraft and Murray, visit https:// www.schoolcraftandmurray.com/info.

ST. PATRICK’S DAY DINNER

12-2 p.m., St. John’s Episcopal Church, 125 Canterbury Drive, Aptos St. John’s Episcopal Church hosts a St. Patrick’s Day dinner, drive-thru pickup or come in an enjoy your meal with us. The price is $15 for corned beef and cabbage dinner or a vegan Irish vegetable stew both with soda bread. All proceeds support the ministries of St. John’s.

Pre-order online:  https://www.st-john-aptos.org/

Information: (831) 708-2278

Thursday March 21

CHAMBER MIXER

5-7 p.m., California Coffee, 9105 Soquel Drive, Aptos

The Aptos and Pajaro Valley chambers will have a networking mixer hosted by California Coffee. There will be beer, wine, coffee, appetizers, music and a raffle.

Price: $5 per person.

Friday March 22

their child engaged over summer break. Eight session are offered in English, Spanish and 2 in Mixteco. Topics include:

• Make fresh fruit salsa with your family! by PVUSD Food Services

• Community Safety by Watsonville Police Department

• Summer Tech Toolkit: Resources for Learning and Creativity by PVUSD technology teacher

• Quality time and connection before correction by Positive Discipline Community

• The Power of Gardens! by Life Lab

A Community Resource Fair where 20 local community agencies will provide useful information and resources for families. All conference participants, adults and children, will receive breakfast and snacks.

Childcare will be offered for children ages 3-11 at Mintie White school, across the street from EA Hall. PVUSD’s Expanded Learning Department will offer Zumba, African dance, Science my Way workshop, and art.

Every child registered at childcare will be entered into a drawing for free family passes to the soccer game at CSU Monterey Bay, the night of March 16. These will include ticket entrance, food, parking and transportation, if needed. Five families will win!

PVUSD JOB FAIR

10 a.m.-noon, PVUSD board room, 294 Green Valley Road, Watsonville

Pajaro Valley Unified School District will host a Job Fair at the PVUSD board room.

Bring copies of your resume and meet with recruiters. Infomation: 831-786-2145. Visit www.pvusd.net

SUPPORTING WOMEN RUNNING FOR PUBLIC OFFICE

10:30 am to noon, Capitola Library, 2005 Wharf Rd American Association of University Women (AAUW) is hosting a panel to discuss how Women in Leadership for Diverse Representation (WILDR) supports women running for office or appointed to positions in Santa Cruz County. They are nonpartisan and support progressive women who reflect the communities they serve through training, networking, and leadership development.

QINGMING FESTIVAL

10 a.m., Capitola Branch Library, 2005 Wharf Road

Santa Cruz Public Libraries will host author Sandy Lydon and philanthropist George Ow at Capitola Branch Library to discuss the Qingming Festival taking place on April 4, an im-portant event of the Lunar New Year.

Known as Tomb-Sweeping Day in English, this traditional Chinese festival is observed by ethnic Chinese in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

Lydon and Ow will discuss festival history and practices and guide attendees to make Chinese masks. The event is geared to adults, but all ages are welcome. Registration is advised as craft supplies may run out. Visit: https://santacruzpl.libcal.com/calendar/SCPL/Qingming

CAPITOLA/APTOS

ROTARY FUNDRAISER

5:30-8:30 p.m., Seascape Golf Club, 610 Clubhouse Drive, Aptos Capitola-Aptos Rotary will present a fundraiser at Seascape Golf Club.

The event will honor retiring County Supervisor Zach Friend, retiring County Supervisor Bruce McPherson and County Park Friends.

Proceeds will help to fund the Treasure Cove universally accessible playground at Jade Street Park in Capitola and the Capitola Aptos Rotary community grants program. Tickets are $150 per person. Register at: https://www.eventbrite. com/e/819329545727?aff=oddtdtcreator

Saturday March 23

APART: JUSTICE INVOLVED WOMEN:

2:30 - 4:30 p.m., Capitola Branch Library, 2005 Wharf Road In celebration of Women’s History Month, there will be a screening of a film “Apart” and a discussion of parenting during incarceration. Hosted by Capitola Branch Library, 2005 Wharf Road, Capitola.

“Calendar” page 31

Reducing Traffic Signal Congestion in Aptos

By Zach Friend, Supervisor, Second District

Recently, the Board of Supervisors approved the plans, specifications and engineer’s estimate for a key traffic flow improvement project in Aptos the Aptos Area Adaptive Traffic Control System Project.

What exactly is the proposed project, how will it be funded and what is the timeline?

•••

Aptos Area Adaptive Traffic Control System Project Roadway congestion throughout many of the main arteries (and collectors) in the county is a common occurrence and with construction along the Soquel corridor and Highway 1 congestion throughout Aptos has become even more pronounced.

In the Aptos Village area, there are five existing traffic signals along Soquel Drive that, due to their current inability to adapt to traffic conditions and phase together, can increase congestion.

As part of the Aptos Village Plan analysis, current traffic congestion issues were identified as a challenge in particular during peak morning and afternoon periods. One potential improvement identified by the County’s traffic engineers at the time was to implement adaptive traffic signal control at five intersections in Aptos.

What is Adaptive Signal Control?

According to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), adaptive signal control technology adjusts the timing of red, yellow and green lights to accommodate changing traffic patterns and ease traffic congestion.

The current, conventional systems, use pre-programmed, daily signal timing schedules.

FHWA notes the main benefits of adaptive signal control technology over conventional signal systems are that it can:

• Continuously distribute green light time equitably for all traffic movements

• Improve travel time reliability by progressively moving vehicles through green lights

• Reduce congestion by creating smoother flow

• Prolong the effectiveness of traffic signal timing

By receiving and processing data from strategically placed sensors, adaptive signal control systems can determine which lights should be red and which should be green. On average these systems improve travel time by more than 10%. In areas with particularly outdated signal timing, improvements can be 50% or more.

The Aptos Area Adaptive Traffic Control System project involves furnishing and installing In|Sync Adaptive Traffic Signal Systems, manufactured by Rhythm Engineering, at five traffic signal intersections in the Aptos area (along Soquel). The adaptive signal system will collect and process real time traffic data, then adjust signal timings to maximize efficiency - reducing motor vehicle emissions while also reducing fuel consumption, travel delay, and travel time.

The County is currently installing In|Sync’s Adaptive Traffic Signal Systems at the signalized intersections along Soquel Drive from 7th Avenue to State Park Drive as part of the Soquel Drive Buffered Bike Lane and Congestion Mitigation project. Using the In|Sync system from State Park to Trout Gulch will add another five intersections along Soquel Drive to this system.

To fund the project, the County applied for and received a Monterey Bay Air Resources District grant through the AB2766 Emission Reduction Grant Program.

CWhat is the AB2766 Grant Program?

alifornia Assembly Bill 2766 (AB2766) permits the Monterey Bay Air Resources District to allocate a $4 per vehicle registration fee towards grant projects that reduce motor vehicle emissions such as roundabouts, adaptive traffic signal control systems, medium to heavyduty vehicle electrification and light-duty zero emission vehicle incentives.

The grants focus on these key elements:

Clean Air Management Program, which generally include roundabout construction and adaptive traffic signal control system installation.

Projects in this category are scored based on calculated emissions reduced. In this case, the Aptos project scored well on vehicle emissions reduced and therefore was competitive for funding.

The Clean Vehicle Program, which provides incentives for public agencies to replace internal combustion engine pool and fleet vehicles with zero-emission, battery-electric vehicles. Lastly, the Electric Vehicle Incentive Program, which provides incentives to residents within Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties to purchase or lease plug-in hybrid, battery-electric, or hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.

Ultimately, the County received $400,000 from this grant program toward the project. Currently, the project is estimated to cost a little over $736,000.

What is the Timeline for the Project?

Bid opening for the project is expected at the end of March with contract award coming no later than late June. These modifications are hoped to be completed this year - adding another traffic improvement to our area.

As always, if you have any questions about the traffic signal improvements or any other matters in our district, please don’t hesitate to call me at 454-2200. I’m maintaining regular updates on social media as well at www. facebook.com/supervisorfriend. n

•••

Editor’s note: The city of Grapevine, Texas , is using this technology as is San Diego and Charlottesville, Va. The Rhythm Engineering describes the In Sync system as powered by artificial intelligence technology and claims it has 30-40% better results than legacy systems.

SCCAS Featured Pet

Kobe is Ready for Adventure!

Kobe arrived as a stray back in January. When reported to Animal Control, he was hanging out with another dog behind Shopper’s Corner and the restaurants nearby.

His friend (a larger Lab/ sharpei mix who’s ALSO still looking for a new home) was easy enough to round up, but Kobe was playful and thought our officer was just playing a game with him it took about 30 minutes and a slice of pizza to finally get him rounded up and safe!

Unfortunately, neither dog was wearing tags and neither of them had a microchip, so it was impossible for our officer to know where they belonged, and into the shelter they came… and they’re still waiting.

Kobe is a fun-loving, spirited young dog who loves treats, attention, and belly rubs. He does very well with other dogs and meeting all kinds of new people. He enjoys car rides and has nice manners — sitting patiently to have his harness put on and, after a walk or a hike, perfectly happy to hang out while his handler chats with friends.

He’s very food-motivated, which makes him quite trainable — the down-side is that it can get him into trouble. He WILL counter surf if he has an opportunity!

But if you’re an active person who likes to run, hike or ride and take your dog with you when you head to a local brewery or restaurant, Kobe may be your ideal companion!

The Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter is full of adoptable animals. Fostering animals is an awesome way to improve a Shelter animal’s life and fill your home with love and fun! If you are interested in fostering any kind of animal please email jillian.ganley@santacruzcounty.us. You can also Follow SCCAS on Instagram and/or Facebook to stay up-to-date on shelter news and where to find adoptable pets around town at breweries, stores and events.

Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter’s full-service, open-admission shelter 1001 Rodriguez St., Santa Cruz, 95062 • Hours: Daily 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. 580 Airport Blvd., Watsonville, 95076 • Hours: Tues.-Sat. 9:30 a.m. – noon; 1–5 p.m. (Closed Sun/Mon)

Website: www.scanimalshelter.org

SCCAS Main line: 831-454-7200. Animal Control: 831-454-7227. After-Hours Emergency: 831-471-1182 • After Hours: jillian.ganley@santacruzcounty.us

“Calendar” from page 29

The panel, moderated by Stacey Palau, Chief Executive of New Life Community Resources, will include formerly incarcerated mothers Aliyah Person, Angela Norman, and Crystal Ross who will share their experiences. Light refreshments will be provided. Registration is recommended but not required.

KIDS FUN RUN

6:30 – 10:30 a.m., Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, 400 Beach St.

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk hosts a Kids Fun Run.

There are two races: a 1K for kids 12 and under, and a 5K for kids age 4 and up. (and families).

The fee is $25 for the 1K and $40 for the 5K. Fees go up after Feb. 23.

Sign up at https://runsignup.com/Race/CA/SantaCruz/Boardwalk FunRun

Sunday March 24

VETS 4 VETS CHILI COOKOFF

11 a.m.-2 p.m., VFW Post 7263, 2259 7th Ave, Santa Cruz

The nonprofit Vets 4 Vets will host a chili cookoff at VFW Post 7263 with six teams vying for the “Best Chili of 2024.”

There will be live music, and corn hole. Minimum donation is $15.

Thursday March 28

CELEBRATING WOMEN: PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE

5-8 p.m., Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History, 705 Front St. Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History will host Celebrating Women: Past, Present & Future.

This event pays tribute to the stories of remarkable women who have left an indelible mark on our community.

SPECIAL NEEDS TRUSTS WEBINAR

5:30-7 p.m., Online seminar

Interim, Inc. is hosting a free virtual webinar, titled Leaving a Legacy You Can Depend On: Special Needs Trusts and Your Loved One

A question and answer segment follows the presentation.

Speakers:

Yvonne Ascher, Attorney at Law, Noland Hamerly Etienne & Hoss, specialist in estate planning and a member of the America College of Trust and Estates Counsel.

Stephen Dale, Esq., LL.M, The Dale Law Firm, a recognized disability rights advocate and attorney. He focuses on developing estate plans involving persons with disabilities to promote independence, while preserving eligibility for public benefits such as Special Needs Trusts and Limited Conservatorships.

Fiona McDonough, Licensed Professional Fiduciary, president of the Monterey Bay Chapter of the Professional Fiduciary Association of California, and a member of the Monterey County Women Lawyers Association and the Monterey County Bar Association. She is an advocate for children and adults with disabilities.

The webinar is free but registration is required at: https://specialneedstrust2024.eventbrite.com

For questions call the development officer at Interim, (831) 649-4522, ext. 205 or email development@interiminc.org.

Saturday March 30

WATERCOLOR JOURNALING WORKSHOP

10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Aromas Community Grange, 361 Rose Ave. Graphic designer Gay Kraeger and her daughter artist Elyse Fairweather will teach you ways to draw, watercolor and design to create your own illustrated journal at Aromas Community Grange. Your first journal will be provided. You can bring your own watercolors.

Fee: $115 per person. Sign up with Linda Bjornson@att.net or 831-291-6719.

Saturday March 30

Sunday March 31

EGGSTRAORDINARY EGG HUNT AT ROARMING CAMP Times below, 5401 Graham Hill Road, Felton Hop aboard Roaring Camp’s Forest Train for an Eggstraordinary Egg Hunt at Roaring Camp.

Upon arrival atop Bear Mountain, children can hunt for eggs, candies and special prizes; the Easter Bunny will be there, too.

Other activities include gold panning, games and crafts.

Trains depart at 10:30 am, 12, 1:30 pm. and 3 pm.

Tickets are $44.95 for adults, $29.95 for children (2-12 years); children under 2 ride for free. Reservations recommended.

For information and tickets, go to https://www.roaringcamp. com/events.

Sunday April 7

PICTURE THIS: REIMAGINING HOME

5 p.m., Hotel Paradox, 611 Ocean St., Santa Cruz

The nonprofit Housing Matters will host “Picture This: Reimagining Home and Belonging” to launch the Community Conversations series in the Sequoia Ballroom at Hotel Paradox. People with lived experience of homelessness will share their insights.

Headliners include:

New York Times best-selling author, educator and politician Julie LythcottHaims, member of the Palo Alto City Council. Her 2017 memoir, Real American, chronicled her experience of being Black and biracial in white spaces.

Thomas Sage Pederson, a Santa Cruz-based musician, composer, podcaster and community organizer known for his “Speak For Change” interview podcast.

Abi Mustapha, Housing Matters artist-in-residence, said, “The audience can expect to learn something new and possibly sit with some discomfort about how many of us have benefited from the historical systems of oppression leading to homelessness.”

Mer Stafford, chief impact officer at Housing Matters, said, “We must imagine the community that we wish to have and then join together to make it so.”

The event begins with a reception featuring live music, a cash bar and light snacks. Speakers will begin at 6 p.m. For the complete speaker list, see https://housingmatterssc.org/event/picture-this/

General admission tickets are $30/person at https:// housingmatterssc.org/event/picture-this/

A small number of tickets will be available at the door. Proceeds benefit Housing Matters, which helps stably house hundreds of people in Santa Cruz County each year.

Wednesday April 10

CABRILLO CAREER FAIR

10 a.m.-1 p.m., Cabrillo College, 6500 Soquel Dr, Aptos Cabrillo College will host a Career Fair with more than 55 employers offering jobs & intern-ships.

Employers can register in advance: https://forms.gle/ nFFtdwYDN6dySc4f6. Walk-ins are welcome.

Cabrillo career fairs are free for employers to participate in. Contact studentjobs@cabrillo.edu if you’re interested in participating in a recruitment event.

Employers are also invited to schedule an information session about their company, discuss the hiring process, and conduct on campus interviews with our students. To schedule an information session or interview email studentjobs@cabrillo.edu.

Saturday April 20

TELLING DIVERSE STORIES

10:30 am to noon, Capitola Library, 2005 Wharf Rd

The American Association of University Women (AAUW) is hosting K. X. Song, who will discuss the importance of representation in media, the publishing landscape today, and her own journey to the publication of her debut YA novel, “An Echo in the City,” published last year by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and named a Best Book of 2023 by Financial Times and Kirkus Reviews.

A writer with roots in Hong Kong and Shanghai, she enjoys telling stories that explore the shifting nat ure of memory, translation, and history.. Much of her work touches on the Chinese-speaking) experience. No reservations are required. n

Julie Lythcott-Haims

K.X. Song