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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 9h

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors has hired a new county executive officer following Carlos Palacios’ retirement announcement in June. The new executive will be formally announced either Wednesday or Thursday.

Board of Supervisors makes decision on new county CEO, announcement imminent

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors has hired a new county executive officer following Carlos Palacios’ retirement announcement in June. The new executive will be formally announced either Wednesday or Thursday.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 11h

Businesses operating in Santa Cruz County must register with the county clerk. Lookout Santa Cruz reviews the public filings from local businesses to report on new businesses starting in the area.

Santa Cruz County business filings: Week of Oct. 7

Businesses operating in Santa Cruz County must register with the county clerk. Lookout Santa Cruz reviews the public filings from local businesses to report on new businesses starting in the area.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 13h

Los funcionarios del condado de Santa Cruz enfrentan presión para hacer más que prometer proteger a la comunidad inmigrante del área de las acciones federales de inmigración.

La Comisión de Asuntos Latinos del Condado impulsa convertir la promesa simbólica de santuario migratorio en ley vinculante

Los funcionarios del condado de Santa Cruz enfrentan presión para hacer más que prometer proteger a la comunidad inmigrante del área de las acciones federales de inmigración.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 14h

Smelling smoke? State Parks is doing prescribed burns this week at Wilder Ranch.

California State Parks plans prescribed burns at Wilder Ranch

California State Parks is planning to conduct prescribed burns at Wilder Ranch State Park over the next two weeks after the first significant rain event of the season.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 14h

In her Tuesday newsletter, Lily Belli has word on Mane Kitchen & Cocktails taking over the former Betty’s Eat Inn on Pacific Avenue and Switch Bakery coming to Café Limelight's Cedar Street spot, highlights upcoming events and shares a recipe that's been a recent hit.

Lily Belli on Food: More food businesses coming to downtown Santa Cruz, Alice Waters at the Rio and a ranch dressing recipe to try

In her Tuesday newsletter, Lily Belli has word on Mane Kitchen & Cocktails taking over the former Betty’s Eat Inn on Pacific Avenue and Switch Bakery coming to Café Limelight's Cedar Street spot, highlights upcoming events and shares a recipe that's been a recent hit.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 16h

The county’s sanctuary resolution “lacks enforceable mechanisms to ensure consistent implementation across departments,” the letter reads. “Without codification, the protections it promises remain vulnerable to administrative changes, misinterpretation, or uneven application.”

County’s Latino Affairs Commission pushes to turn symbolic immigration sanctuary pledge into binding law

Santa Cruz County officials are facing pressure to do more than promise to safeguard the area’s immigrant community from federal immigration actions. Latino affairs commissioners are working to urge…

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 17h

Hungry for the latest in Santa Cruz County food & drink? Lily Belli has a newsletter for that – Lily Belli on Food is coming soon, and you can subscribe for free at the link below.

Newsletter & Text Center

Get the best of Lookout delivered to your inbox or cell phone. Sign up for a variety of free newsletters to never miss a headline.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 18h

TONIGHT: Lanier will lead a program at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center titled “Music & the Future of Humanity,” which will also include musician friends Harper Simon, Tim Jackson, Zack Olsen and others.

Tech prophet Jaron Lanier, now a Santa Cruz local, returns to a primary passion – music

Jaron Lanier is known for both his accomplishments in high tech and his criticisms of its effects. But he also maintained a rigorous career as a musician. Back in Santa Cruz, he's returning to his…

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 19h

OPINION: Santa Cruz could lead the nation in safe, active transportation — yet city leaders keep stalling, writes local bike enthusiast Brooke Secor. While e-bikes boom and collisions rise, officials have not added even basic protections for cyclists and pedestrians.

Santa Cruz says it wants fewer cars. So why is it making biking so dangerous?

Santa Cruz could lead the nation in safe, active transportation — yet city leaders keep stalling, writes local bike enthusiast Brooke Secor. While e-bikes boom and collisions rise, officials have not…

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 19h

The Santa Cruz Film Festival returns for the first time in three years, just in time to mark its 25th anniversary. Opening with an absurdist sex comedy, the festival runs the gamut from hard-hitting documentaries to bizarre and experimental shorts, from Wednesday through Sunday.

Santa Cruz Film Festival to occupy local movie venues this week

The Santa Cruz Film Festival returns for the first time in three years, just in time to mark its 25th anniversary. Opening with an absurdist sex comedy, the festival runs the gamut from hard-hitting…

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 20h

Chef Desmond Schneider and bartender Julianna Mireles, longtime fixtures on Santa Cruz’s hospitality scene, are joining forces to open Mane Kitchen & Cocktails in the former Betty’s Eat Inn space on Pacific Avenue by Halloween.

Hospitality veterans team up to open Mane Kitchen & Cocktails in downtown Santa Cruz

Chef Desmond Schneider and bartender Julianna Mireles, longtime fixtures on Santa Cruz’s hospitality scene, are joining forces to open Mane Kitchen & Cocktails in the former Betty’s Eat Inn space on Pacific Avenue by Halloween.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 20h

Santa Cruz County officials are facing pressure to do more than promise to safeguard the area’s immigrant community from federal immigration actions – such as passing a legally binding ordinance.

County’s Latino Affairs Commission pushes to turn symbolic immigration sanctuary pledge into binding law

Santa Cruz County officials are facing pressure to do more than promise to safeguard the area’s immigrant community from federal immigration actions – such as passing a legally binding ordinance.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 21h

As Santa Cruz County’s mosquito control program seeks more funding from voters, an invasive species of disease-carrying mosquito is resurfacing in Boulder Creek, two years after it was eradicated from the area.

Vector control ballot measure takes on new urgency as invasive mosquitoes resurface in Santa Cruz County

As Santa Cruz County’s mosquito control program seeks more funding from voters, an invasive species of disease-carrying mosquito is resurfacing in Boulder Creek, two years after it was eradicated…

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 21h

A free child care program serving low-income families in Santa Cruz County will remain open through October after securing $362,000 in emergency funding from local agencies, following a sudden loss of federal support.

Free child care program Head Start secures enough funding to remain open through end of October

A free child care program serving low-income families in Santa Cruz County will remain open through October after securing $362,000 in emergency funding from local agencies, following a sudden loss of federal support.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Lupulo Craft Beer House in downtown Santa Cruz is betting that a spelling contest for grown-ups on Wednesday will stump contestants with words that are "outrageous, inappropriate, and downright unhinged."

Spelling bee for grown-ups promises orthographical entertainment

Lupulo Craft Beer House in downtown Santa Cruz is betting that a spelling contest for grown-ups on Wednesday will stump contestants with words that are "outrageous, inappropriate, and downright unhinged."

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

The City of Santa Cruz plans to temporarily close part of the trail from the California/Bay entrance to the Depot Park trestle from Oct. 13 to Oct. 20 for vegetation control.

Section of Coastal Rail Trail in Santa Cruz to be closed starting next week

The City of Santa Cruz plans to temporarily close part of the trail from the California/Bay entrance to the Depot Park trestle from Oct. 13 to Oct. 20 for vegetation control.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Lookout politics & policy correspondent Christopher Neely bids farewell to Santa Cruz County in his final Monday newsletter.

In the Public Interest: A farewell

Lookout politics & policy correspondent Christopher Neely bids farewell to Santa Cruz County in his final Monday newsletter.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Before the end of the year, Switch aims to open its first brick-and-mortar location in downtown Santa Cruz, in the former Café Limelight on Cedar Street, offering savory treats like sandwiches and salads, pies and fine pastries and its familiar lineup of breads and cookies.

Switch Bakery to open Santa Cruz café focused on gut-friendly baked goods

Husband-and-wife bakers Joshua Bradley and Amanda Frazier, founders of Switch Bakery, are opening their first brick-and-mortar café in downtown Santa Cruz before the end of the year, expanding beyond…

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Two years ago, new owners purchased the property the Windmill Cafe sits on, and have since filed plans with Santa Cruz County to redevelop it to include two three-story residential units. The two units will include six apartments, with parking underneath at least one of the buildings.

Pending development prompts longtime Windmill Cafe owner’s retirement as she prepares to put business up for sale

"It's with a heavy heart that I leave," says Mary Apra of putting the Windmill Cafe on the market. The major development planned for the Live Oak property aims to maintain the historic building as a…

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Get your local politics fix with In the Public Interest, Christopher Neely's weekly newsletter. It's coming later today, so hit the link below to subscribe for free.

Newsletter & Text Center

Get the best of Lookout delivered to your inbox or cell phone. Sign up for a variety of free newsletters to never miss a headline.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Scotts Valley's Clay Hausmann is a marketing professional and a family man. But he's now an aspiring performer as he's written and performed a one-man show called "Empty Nest and the Rest" that he hopes to spread to more audiences.

One man, one plan: At 54, Clay Hausmann moves boldly into making art about his family experience

Scotts Valley's Clay Hausmann is a marketing professional and a family man. But he's now an aspiring performer as he's written and performed a one-man show called "Empty Nest and the Rest" that he…

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Kindergartners repeat worries heard at home. Older kids text to check on parents during class. As the Trump administration's immigration crackdown continues, therapists say mental health is at risk now and in the long term.

As immigration raids shake families, school counselors help students cope with fear and loss

Kindergartners repeat worries heard at home. Older kids text to check on parents during class. As the Trump administration's immigration crackdown continues, therapists say mental health is at risk now and in the long term.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Husband-and-wife bakers Joshua Bradley and Amanda Frazier, founders of Switch Bakery, are opening their first brick-and-mortar café in downtown Santa Cruz before the end of the year, expanding beyond their popular farmers market stalls.

Switch Bakery to open Santa Cruz café focused on gut-friendly baked goods

Husband-and-wife bakers Joshua Bradley and Amanda Frazier, founders of Switch Bakery, are opening their first brick-and-mortar café in downtown Santa Cruz before the end of the year, expanding beyond their popular farmers market stalls.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

"It's with a heavy heart that I leave," says Mary Apra of putting the Windmill Cafe on the market. The major development planned for the Live Oak property aims to maintain the historic building as a cafe.

Pending development prompts longtime Windmill Cafe owner’s retirement as she prepares to put business up for sale

"It's with a heavy heart that I leave," says Mary Apra of putting the Windmill Cafe on the market. The major development planned for the Live Oak property aims to maintain the historic building as a cafe.

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Lookout Santa Cruz @lookoutsantacruz.bsky.social · 1d

Despite implementing cost-cutting measures, UC Santa Cruz is projecting another year of deficits: nearly $80 million. Last fiscal year, the university said it was on track to close with a similar deficit.

UC Santa Cruz projects $80 million deficit for 2026 fiscal year

Despite implementing cost-cutting measures, UC Santa Cruz is projecting another year of deficits: nearly $80 million. Last fiscal year, the university said it was on track to close with a similar deficit.

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