Rent Deal Could Help Tenants, Landlords, By Jondi Gumz • Santa Cruz County Fair Returns September 15-19

Good news for renters and landlords — a state deal announced June 25 extends the eviction moratorium until Sept. 30 and pay landlords all the back rent that went unpaid during the pandemic.

But the deal isn’t final and must be voted on by the Legislature, which could happen June 28.

The deal is in AB832.

Some tenants lost their jobs, others had COVID-19 medical bills or other financial hardship and thus didn’t pay rent. Tenant lawyers say evictions for other issues are still happening.

Landlords were offered another deal earlier to pay to 80 percent of back rent, requiring them to forgive the remainder. But it wasn’t popular, perhaps due to bureaucratic requirements. The state paid out only $61 million of the $659 million counties requested in aid, indicating a need was not met.

Both deals relate to residential properties; it’s not clear whether there will be additional aid for small businesses or restaurants/food trucks that did not get forgivable loans or outright grants from the federal government.

The Santa Cruz County is doing better as of May with unemployment at 6.8 percent and a big jump from April in farm jobs and hospitality and food service jobs, though those categories often are low-paying.

Capitola Produce is looking for a clerk, paying $13 an hour to start.

The city of Capitola is surveying residents about accessory dwelling units: Budgeting, style preferences, and the amount of time to permit and build. To view that survey, visit www.cityofcapitola.org/

The Santa Cruz County will return Sept 15-19 at the county fairgrounds in Watsonville, after a year in which the infectious new coronavirus COVID-19 squelched all gathering events.

“We intend to gather in person and put on a full and joyous celebration of community,” said Santa Cruz County Fair CEO Dave Kegebein in an announcement June 21 after Gov. Newsom opened the state for business as normal since COVID-19 case spread was down dramatically across the state as 40 million vaccines were administered and close to 19 million people were fully vaccinated.

“The 2021 fair will look a lot like the last fair we put on in 2019,” Kegebein added.

That includes the animals, the rides, Fair food, strolling through the exhibit halls, motorsports on Wednesday and Thursday nights, music on the main stage, everything fairgoers love will be back, according to Kegebein, who said volunteers are eager to get started.

Tickets will be available soon along with updates on the Fair website as the army of volunteers build their departments around the theme of “Cool Shades and Tractor Parades.” n •••

Those updates and the link to online tickets will start appearing over the next few weeks at santacruzcountyfair.com