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OUR ORIGINAL SANTA CRUZ PUBLIC LIBRARY. With funds donated by Andrew Carnegie this great structure went up in 1908 and being Santa Cruz, it was destroyed in 1966.Obviously it was replaced by what we have now.

photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection.

Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE March 13, 2017

DALI & DISNEY. Talk about your odd couple…yet these two guys had some dreams in common..

ROBIN WILLIAMS MEETS GORILLA

MAGIC . Tons of slight of hand on You Tube but this one really got to me…

FIRST THE BEACH FLATS, NOW THE POST OFFICE. I’m guessing many of us are wondering about the chain link fence that was put up last week around the U.S. Post Office, Santa cruz branch. Is this another Trump government /police tactic against the homeless like last month’s raid on Beach Flats against immigrants? Did our Santa Cruz Police put up the fence…which branch of what government is responsible. The post office is Federal property, and just exactly what laws were the homeless breaking when they slept and hung out there? It’s been days and still I haven’t seen a word in the Santa Cruz Sentinel…am I missing something here? By the way now that the Santa Cruz police have admitted to having a permanent Homeland Security office and official in their building and since they said they would be “evicting” him soon…just when will that be?

MORE POST OFFICE FENCE NEWS.

The NAACP Santa Cruz County Branch, and the Santa Cruz chapter of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom invite you to take part in a community reading of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Beyond Vietnam” speech. It’s where he connected militarism, capitalism, and racism – an electrifying speech. We will read it from 1 – 3 pm on April 2nd – close to the 50th anniversary of the speech (April 4th) – on the steps of the downtown Post Office. There are many more questions and opposition to that fence. The Post Office Building is a designated Historic building and to alter or deface or erect new additions is illegal. Who’s in charge of all this, who’s behind it?

RUNNING FOR CITY COUNCIL? Just like Bruce McPherson gave up the Republican Party just in time, and Ryan Coonerty and Mike Rotkin ditching de-sal in split seconds we are seeing our local Santa Cruz City Council future being re-shaped. First J.M Brown who lost his first City Council campaign, now attending The People’s Democratic Club (PDC) meeting trying to score new left – progressive votes!!! Then we have Mike Rotkin almost a guaranteed council candidate, actually agreeing and having his name associated with Rick Longinotti’s in The Sentinel. Another topic worth mumbling about is whether or not Cynthia Mathews would run again. She’s lost big popularity according to the last election results and insiders say she’s also lost some of her usual force and drive. WRITE THIS DOWN… Cynthia Chase and Richelle Noroyan are up for re-election, and David Terrazas is out after 8 years.

WELLS FARGO & SANTA CRUZ CITY MONEY? Our city apparently has millions invested in Wells Fargo Bank for various purposes and tasks as well as in other financial institutions. How can we citizens (voters) get the city to stop Wells Fargo… and their crooked business deals and screwing their customers? Plus the no less serious investing and supporting the Dakota Access Pipeline project? Both Seattle and Davis, California pulled their accounts with Wells Fargo. If we are really, really going to be a world class city we need to join them.

SANTA CRUZ …. A “WORLD CLASS CITY”?

As the U.S. Edition of The Guardian stated….”While housing shortages and homeless epidemics have afflicted communities up and down the west coast, a major crisis has emerged in Santa Cruz, the liberal seaside city 80 miles south of San Francisco, known internationally for its surfing and laid-back boardwalk attractions. With a swelling presence of Airbnb short-term rentals and university students, Santa Cruz has increasingly become unaffordable and inhospitable to many longtime low-income workers and middle-class families, and experts say the tech boom and housing crunch in nearby Silicon Valley is exacerbating the displacement”.

The Guardian continues… ‘Least affordable’ housing in the US. Santa Cruz, which was originally controlled by Mexico, was incorporated as a California town in 1866. The city is constrained by mountains and the ocean but has steadily grown since the gold rush, attracting agriculture and commercial fishing along with a vibrant resort community and tourism industry. Housing development has not kept pace with the growth of the population, which is now 62,000 in the city and 270,000 total in Santa Cruz County. The county has added roughly one housing unit for every 10 new residents in recent years, according to county housing manager Julie Conway”. AND in spite of this we are hearing and seeing the usual Business suspects like the Chamber of Commerce and developers up the gazoo clamoring to bring in more big business, build more high rises and so on. They use the same old numb & dumb slogan ” Growth will bring in the taxes which support our civil services’ which has been disproven eons ago. Stop the growth, stop the development. It’s never too late. Look at San Jose por ejemplo.

CABRILLO MUSIC FEST’S BIG NEW SEASON. The new music director Cristian Macelaru has lined up some guaranteed big attractions for this years Cabrillo Music Festival. When you have names like Lou Harrison, John Adams, Evelyn Glennie and Jake Heggie you know some serious planning has been done. This season’s highlights include seven world premieres, one US premiere, three West Coast premieres, plus 11 composers in residence. They are… Karim Al-Zand, Clarice Assad, Gerald Barry, Michael Gandolfi, Aaron Jay Kernis, David T. Little, Cindy McTee, Christopher Rountree, Gabriella Smith and James Stephenson. Special guest artists include Dame Evelyn Glennie (percussion), Jennifer Frautschi (violin), Gemma New (conductor), Clarice Assad (piano/vocals), Keita Ogawa (percussion), Jason Hardink (piano), and Jonathan Lemalu (bass-baritone). Go here for more details and figure ways to get your tickets early. http://cabrillomusic.org/2017-season-announcement . Also IF you have an extra room or space and want to partake in the extra fun of the Festival, share a space/ bedroom with a Festival musician…especially if you live near the Civic auditorium. Then too you could volunteer to be an usher or donate $$ or help out at the street Fair. Remember, no more concerts at San Juan Bautista Mission!

LOSING THE SANTA CRUZ IDENTITY.

I urge you to take a walk to the new construction site at 555 Pacific Avenue to view the future of Santa Cruz if development interests are left unchecked. It is just around the corner from the first roundabout. You can’t miss it. It towers over and dwarfs every other familiar landmark. Its bulk and scale transform the area into an unrecognizable urban wind tunnel. Soon, its 99 rental units will be occupied, with maybe 4 to a unit, and this formerly quiet stretch of the town will lose its identity. If it were the only example there might be less concern. However, such developments are on track for approval (or have already been approved) across Santa Cruz, particularly for downtown and the eastside although the far westside has its share of dense new ugly.

This transformation of Santa Cruz has its supporters. Of course those who stand to make money from the growth are first in line. City planners seem to like it, either because it brings in money to hire more planners or they don’t live in town. Otherwise one would expect the staff reports to temper such growth and require developers to keep to height and zoning ordinances rather than continuously requesting variances, which the council majority approves. Newcomers who have no feel for what gives this town its character don’t seem to mind the growth and urbanization so long as they can get their new downhill mountain bike trails pushed into Pogonip and De Laveaga. Some progressives see this as “smart growth” and as long as folks get out of their cars and onto their bikes, see no problem with density and loss of identity. Tethered to smart phones and whatever new technology is around the corner, more and more people are losing connection to and seeing value in the human landscape from the past.

Local historian Ross Gibson as quoted in the Sentinel of 2/28/17 said it best: “Santa Cruz is constantly renewing itself and always pretending that there was never anybody there before them. They’re taking over a neighborhood without any identity as far as they’re concerned. We have a tough time in Santa Cruz on the historic end, trying to pass down from one generation to the next, the things that are of value to us and an identity that made the community what a wonderful place it is today.”

Examples of such local loss are legion. La Bahia was a big one. Curious how deliberate neglect on the part of the Seaside Company and some peeling paint sent many into the “tear down and transform” camp. There is little we can do about such losses now. But there is much that remains that is worth fighting for. The Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf is a big one. There are many who see that effort as worthwhile as evidenced by the 2500 people who signed the “Don’t Morph the Wharf” petition, both locals and visitors alike. Another is the Downtown Recovery Plan, the transformation of downtown with up to 85 feet high buildings, especially along Front Street adjacent to the San Lorenzo River. This Plan is currently wending its way through the approval process and comments on the Initial Study are due Friday March 17th. You can find it here

Proponents of this new urbanization like to label those of us who oppose it as “out of touch” or “nostalgic”. “Get over it”, they say. Or that growth is inevitable and this is the best way to accommodate it. Nothing is inevitable about human action. It’s a struggle; its political; its difficult but nothing is pre-determined. Far from being nostalgic, we see the human value in what is left of the unique character of Santa Cruz in a rapidly homogenizing, urbanizing world. We also see the finite nature of natural resources that cannot accommodate the bottomless pit of demand on the part of the wealthy to live in Santa Cruz, nor the town’s ability to cater to the unfettered growth of UCSC. The future of Santa Cruz is at a tipping point. Money, power and influence heavily weight one side. Ordinary folks speaking out can as always tip the scales.

~Gillian Greensite is a long time local activist, a member of Save Our Big Trees and the Santa Cruz chapter of IDA, International Dark Sky Association http://darksky.org Plus she’s an avid ocean swimmer, hiker and lover of all things wild).

majority report #8 March 13, 2017

“PSYCHO-S**T, TEAM-BUILDING AND TAKING BACK THE POWER”

First, some good stuff that happened at the city council.

A two-way bike path on Pacific Avenue from Church to Cathcart Street was recently approved by the city council. This measure has been a long time in coming and…might this action be the preface for what residents have been crying out for ever since I arrived in 1980: a car-free Pacific Avenue?! This undertaking by the council should be a boon for cyclists wanting to go toward the beach through downtown. In addition, the council also voted to look for a vendor to run a “Bike-Share” program. Think Portland or Minneapolis or NYC where bike-share programs are enormously popular and really work. I have my fingers crossed that it will be successful. It will begin with a modest fifty bikes and five stations.

The council also passed a “Declaration of the City of Santa Cruz as a Sanctuary for all its Residents.” We are a real, affirmative, legislatively-approved “sanctuary city” now. Which by the way, does mean something, despite what mainstream media pundits might say. It means that we welcome immigrants here to Surf City, and we will go out of our way to offer you protection and no one should make no mistake about that! (Gawd, I love double negatives.)

All these decisions were unanimous.

Also, once again it was reiterated by certain city authorities that it’s just a vicious rumor, spread by “certain people,” that public parking will actually be taken off of the Soquel and Water Street corridors anytime soon. That is good news too for many Eastsiders. No ordinance yet to preserve the parking, but we’re working toward that!

Now, the psycho-S*** and navel-gazing part of council life (it’s important though)

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Met up with Shawn Spanos this past week. He calls himself, a “community engagement” expert. He’s been hired by city manager (CM), Martin Bernal to do some “team-building.” Shawn says he will facilitate a city council meeting-retreat, dubbed “norms and values.” He wants to go over some questions that he’d sent out earlier to all councilmembers. This meeting-retreat is for the entire city council and it’s scheduled for March 21st at an as yet, undisclosed location. On April 1st (April Fool’s Day) the council will be present at another all-day conversation, this one will be about public policy I am told.

These encounter sessions must be disclosed seventy-two hours in advance as a “publicly noticed meeting.” If more than four councilmembers are to be present and will be discussing city business, according to the Ralph M. Brown Act that governs how public officials are to conduct official city business, any gathering or meeting is then open to the public. An exception to this might be when six out of the seven current Santa Cruz city councilmembers all showed up recently, for example, to celebrate “Brian Murtha Day,” and to recognize his enormous talent and service to this community. It was okay because the six councilmembers did not discuss city business as a group. (There was a lot of heartfelt talk about Brian though.)

Shawn and I encountered each other for the first time inside the center of city hall-dom, the CM’s conference room. It’s a narrow rectangular slice of our Spanish-style city hall that is more show than function. It is a room that’s completely filled by an enormous oval hardwood table and at least fourteen high-back leather chairs. There are two doors to this room and so little space that people will often come in one door and have to exit through the far one lest they become trapped by others given the room’s restricted space. But on the morning I met Shawn it was just the two of us and we had plenty of room to roam.

Spanos is a professor in Communication Studies at San Jose State University. His bio on the SJSU web site claims that he “teaches courses and applied research in interpersonal and small group communication.” He tells me he’s planning to meet all seven councilmembers for one hour each today. Before the meeting, he sent out a two-page questionnaire to get us thinking about this interview “prep” session and the actual norms and values meeting next Tuesday from 3-7pm. His first question was, “What inspired you to become involved in public service?”

“Well,” I responded, “I was on the council from 1998-2002, and that was almost enough,” I say. “No. It was enough, but what brought me back were a kind of tripartite series of political vicissitudes on the part of the then-council. First, the city council voted to buy a BearCat tank from Homeland Security for the Santa Cruz police department. Then a large parcel on Laurel Street was rezoned from housing to a hotel and then given over to the Marriot Corporation. Finally, the Seaside Company wanted to repossess the 26-year old Beach Flats Community Garden, and the city council at the time did not want to buy it and keep it as a green space forever for the people of the Beach Flats neighborhood, even when their own city attorney informed them that it was within the council’s purview to buy it since it would constitute a clear public benefit.”

Shawn Spanos was quick to smile during our session. He sported an empathetic curled-lip-of-great-concern about whatever I said. He nodded often and sprinkled his sentences with “great,” and “wonderful,” and “terrific.” These short bursts of enthusiasm came in-between my long paragraph responses to his prepared questions.

“And what do you want to achieve in the next two years?” he asked. So, I pulled out my two-pages of typed responses, a laundry list really, of what I heard from residents during three months of walking Santa Cruz neighborhoods and knocking on doors this past fall: create truly affordable housing, address homelessness and mental health issues, redo the “corridor plan,” and place a $15 an hour minimum wage on the ballot. I also included items I’ve heard during my first two months in office: a curbside residential and business compost collection program, an ordinance reigning in gas-powered leaf blowers, getting a general fund-destined housing bond on the ballot, move oral communication back to 7pm on the city council agenda, and withdraw city money from any banks that are funding DAPL, the Dakota Access Pipeline that runs through the Standing Rock Sioux reservation.

[Spanos] “specializes in bridging social construction and dialogue theory with practical skills…”

Our time actually became quite short. The hour flew by, another councilmember was soon waiting in the hallway, so Shawn began to push hard on only two more of the eight questions he had us prepare for. These concerned “how have you or will you approach your work on the council?” And, “what principles, norms, and behaviors should guide communication between councilmembers?”

I glanced across the table and felt his hopeful energy. His eyes twinkled as a slight smile filled his lips. In that instant I saw past him and looked out the window at the city hall courtyard and fixed my eyes on the once-upon-a-time working fountain in the center. I recalled a September day in 2002 when cable news trucks surrounded city hall and CNN went live covering a thousand-plus crowd that had come to witness the Santa Cruz city council support for WAMM’s weekly distribution of medical marijuana right out there on the steps of city hall as a DEA helicopter whirred overhead.

Suddenly, overcome with tears, I looked back at Shawn and related that episode to him and added, “The city council holds the potential to wield great power. And with that comes great responsibility.”

This city has led the way before in combatting off-shore oil drilling, modeling how to preserve green spaces, and on that September day protecting the most vulnerable in our community from the predatory reach of the federal government. (We are doing it again with our sanctuary city ordinance, if coming somewhat late to the party.) We can do it again, I told him. That is what I would like the council to take from this meeting…leave perhaps with a sense that we have the ability to do great things if we think big, and work together.

The public, guaranteed by the Brown Act, can view these council retreat exercises, and weigh in during a mandatory public comment period. Remember, councilmembers just might disclose how some of their “norms and values” inform the votes they cast on the council. I for one am looking forward to these two sessions. Stay tuned for the location”.

~(Chris Krohn is a father, writer, activist, former Santa Cruz City Councilmember (1998-2002) and Mayor (2001-2002). He’s been running the Environmental Studies Internship program at UC Santa Cruz for the past 12 years. He was elected last November to another 4-year term on the Santa Cruz City Council).

THE BOARD ROOM WAS FULL AND OVERFLOWING…
Last Tuesday’s (3/7) Soquel Creek Water District Board meeting drew another standing-room-only crowd from the neighborhoods near the District offices. The District has been seriously considering the installation of a sewage treatment plant in that location, immediately adjacent to a quiet residential neigborhood. Those people feel the District staff has not been forthright in the information presented and are paying little attention to the neighborhood concerns. They are not happy. Here is a link to the neighborhood online petition.

The Board started off by discrediting nearly all of the Water for Santa Cruz information. I had already been publicly accused by Ron Duncan at the previous meeting of speaking false information, but without any substantiation. He never responded to my message asking for clarification on exactly what I said that was false. The Board then made all the people wait for the item on the agenda relative to the Carollo Engineer presentation on contaminants. I had seen this presentation before at the Secondary Supply Subcommittee meeting, and I noticed that this time, there were no charts or information about what contaminants persist through various stages of treatment process. I was still outside in the hallway at that point but tried to look in to see the presentation screens. He also addressed the issue of high energy demand that is inherent with the reverse osmosis process. He quickly said that it takes less than desal, so it is a good choice.

By the time the Board finally let people speak, many had left. Many talked about the lack of clear and honest communication that the District has had with the community. Many are worried about their property values. I raised the issue of the later item on the agenda where the Board would consider a draft agreement with Santa Cruz City for wastewater. The Board insisted it is not a draft contract, just a memorandum of understanding. I also talked about NDMA and the fact that it makes it through the reverse osmosis process about 50% of the time. The presenter insisted that it is all removed by UV, but that is not what the presentation showed at the Subcommittee meeting… NDMA was there, but below State health levels. There were 17 other contaminants that made it through R/O, but were shown to be removed by UV disinfection.

The Board then took a break, at which nearly all of the audience left. There was then, albeit out of order for the agenda listing, a very interesting presentation by Mr. Vind from Denmark, representing a company that has sponsored him to live in Los Gatos for three years to promote the use of Electro-Resistivity Technology (ERT) to map salinity in groundwater supplies, including areas UNDER the Bay. He mentioned Dr. Knight from Stanford, who has recently published her work using this technology to assess the sea water intrusion along the beaches from Seaside to Capitola. It is the same technology, but Mr. Vind insists that his company can use it to get information about the aquifer areas that are beneath the seawater interface. Director Bruce Daniels pointed out that Dr. Knight has said the technology does not work reliably for that situation.

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The Board is considering hiring this Danish company to conduct some studies. I asked how this would dovetail into the current model that HydroMetrics is working on (and it seems like to me that they will never complete but continue to need more funding for upgrades). In fact, Soquel Creek Water District is proposing that the Mid County Groundwater Agency approve $100,000 for this study when that group meets this Thursday March 16 (7pm at Simpkins Swim Center).

So, then the talk came back to the issue of Item 6.3 Receive/provide direction on PureWater Soquel Project and re-evaluation of treatment facility locations. There were very few people left in the audience, but some from the neighborhood group were still there. Ms. Melanie Schumacher presented the Board with a list of 24 locations they could consider. Some had been suggested by members of the public. Someone had rated them and the area near the District offices still came out on top. New to the list were the Capitola utility yard area that Capitola City Councilmember Ms. Stephanie Harlan talked about during her earlier public testimony. Another location is the Par 3 Golf area in Aptos.

The Board still wants the location near their office, but voted to remove the bio-reactor option for a raw sewage treatment plant from the EIR study in progress. That will be welcome news to the residents near the District office however, the District is still actively pursuing the idea of the plant being there, along with the Capitola yard area. The Board assured one remaining resident that the District office area property was pretty much empty…just one vacant house and another structure. They did NOT admit publicly that the house is vacant because the District evicted the elderly man who had been living there many years. My neighbor knows him from Grey Bears and told me he had no idea where he would go.

There will not be another District Board meeting until April 4, due to the big water convention in San Diego during the week of March 20. Rosemary Menard, Santa Cruz City Water Manager, will be at the April 4 meeting. I suppose the talk will focus on the agreement for receiving treated sewage water and the contract to study the contaminants found therein this summer.

MIDCOUNTY GROUNDWATER AGENCY MEETING… MORE MONEY FOR STUDIES?
The collaboration of Soquel Creek Water District, Central Water District, Santa Cruz City Water Department, and representatives of private well owners and small water companies compose the MidCounty Groundwater Agency (MGA). This group must, under a state mandate, devise a plan for managing the critically-overdrafted Purisima Aquifer. That Board will meet Thursday, March 16, 7pm at Simpkins Swim Center.

On the agenda is a proposed conflict of interest statement required of all Board members. I wonder if the consulting firm, HydroMetrics, needs to consider this issue. Former Soquel Creek Water District General Manager, Ms. Laura Brown, is a senior owner of the company. Her husband, Mr. Jess Brown, is a member of the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau. Former Santa Cruz County hydrologist, Mr. Mike Cloud, now works for HydroMetrics. Hmmmm…..

Also on the agenda will be whether to approve an additional $107,070 for the consultant company, HydroMetrics, to continue working on the groundwater computer model that Soquel Creek Water District hired them to do well over one year ago. Last year at this time, the MGA approved $356,000 for HydroMetrics to continue developing the model that would provide information necessary for the MGA Working Group to develop the sustainable plan required by the State. Then, in September, the Board approved an amount not to exceed $239,085 for further modelling studies. Now, HydroMetrics wants an additional $107,070??? HydroMetrics also recommends the MGA hire Mr. Barry Hecht, to act as a private technical advisor for the groundwater model (another $1,840).

HydroMetrics also wants $8,000 for delivering quarterly reports to the MGA Board on the model’s progress. Last year, consultant Mr. Cameron Tarmo gave two such reports for $4000. Wow.

I wonder why Santa Cruz City Water Department has hired a different consultant, Kennedy-Jenks, and sub-consultant Trussell Technologies, Inc to study groundwater problems and using treated wastewater?

Soquel Creek Water District is asking the MGA to also approve $100,000 for the Danish company to do evaluations of where the salt water interface might be in the areas of the Purisima Aquifer that are beneath the Monterey Bay.

The MGA has an annual budget of $1.3 million, with the focus of developing the plan by 2018. Thursday’s budget meeting will consider hiring a legal consultant, Mr. Russ McGlothlin of Brownstein, Hyatt, Farber & Schreck to handle legal matters that the Santa Cruz County Counsel cannot handle. But wait, the newly-hired MGA Senior Water Planner, Ms. Darcy Pruitt, is an attorney with specialty in land use and water law. She was hired at $148,000/year to oversee the legalities of the sustainability plan that the MGA Working Group develops. Does the group need so much redundant legal counsel? Hmmmm…..

Well, I suppose the good news is that the MGA Working Group has met four times since last December. Notes state that the group supports the notion that the sustainable water plan they are charged with developing must interface with the County Planning Department to acknowledge that the land uses issues must coordinate with the water availability. Also, discussion notes state that the Purisima Aquifer users must protect the Basin structure by pumping within the sustainable yield levels while preventing contamination of the water supply.

So, why hasn’t Soquel Creek Water District and the County of Santa Cruz declared a moratorium on new connections until this can all get resolved? The District declared a groundwater emergency in June, 2015. I asked the Board of Supervisors over one month ago for the County to hold a public hearing to discuss the issue and the 2016 Water Resources Report, and whether or not the criteria for declaring a groundwater emergency have been met. No response. The Board has the legal right and responsibility to take this action under the 1987 County Well Ordinance.

Maybe they hope to continue to ignore the issues, and hope curious, concerned citizens will just go away….

WHAT IS A CURIOUS CITIZEN TO DO???
The County is planning to begin major road and railroad track construction on Trout Gulch and Soquel Drive in Aptos. Supervisor Zach Friend recently stated that the contract agreement with John Madonna Construction, of San Luis Obispo, started on March 6. I think there are a number of problems with that project….such as public safety and fiscal responsibility.

The 1928 Aptos Creek Bridge was inspected in 2013. The report advised that the bridge be monitored during heavy storm events, and possibly closed. The report noted serious erosion at the abutments. So, is the bridge that my family and community depend on for safe ingress/egress to the Aptos Village area safe? The crumbling status of other local bridges of similar vintage due to storm damage made me wonder.

The online information that I found stated that the bridge must be inspected every two years. I could not find any inspection reports done since. Since the report stated that the County has jurisdiction on the matter, I submitted a Public Records Act (PRA) request for all inspection reports for the Aptos Creek Bridge.

You see, County Public Works Department staffmember, Ms. Peggy Ducey, informed me that I am NOT ALLOWED to talk directly with any staff in her department, and that she will not answer any questions that I ask. She has informed me that I must submit PRA requests for documents and find my own answers. Last week, her department refused to accept my PRA, and said I must submit them only to County Counsel. Those attorneys are paid at least $250/hour…is that responsible and wise use of taxpayer money when departmental clerks cost MUCH less?

I received no response from Public Works regarding the PRA and bridge inspections. However, I did happen to see Public Works Director Mr. John Presleigh in the elevator at the County Building, so I asked him about the bridge.

He said the bridge was inspected in 2015 and “it was great.” I wondered how that could be, given the notes in the 2013 report. I do not recall seeing any work done on the bridge in recent years. I asked if it had been inspected since recent major storms? He said “we’ll get somebody out there.”

Meanwhile, Aptos Village Project developer Barry Swenson Builder has been hauling in large earthmoving equipment…did it come over the uninspected Aptos Creek Bridge or the only other entry, on Soquel Drive coming from Rio del Mar Boulevard, which has been reduced by storm damage to nearly one-lane at the railroad trestle?

I just want to know that my family and neighbors will be safe traveling into and out of the Village area. Valencia Road remains closed at Trout Gulch (although the federal government just awarded $4 million for repairs). There isn’t an alternate route.

So, why did Public Works Director Mr. Presleigh accost me at my place of employment, publicly accusing me of twisting the facts and misrepresenting his Department? I tried to calm him and ask for discussion, but he shouted “You were wrong about the bridge! CalTrans did the last inspection, so that’s why our files didn’t include it!” He caused such disturbance, my supervisor rushed over to quiet things down. Mr. Presleigh walked away.

Well, at least I got some information, even though it was under very upsetting circumstances and public personal attack. I can only think that Mr. Presleigh is under great stress and forgot professional conduct etiquette. Maybe we should all offer him some calming tea?

AVOID APTOS VILLAGE AREA BEGINNING MARCH 20
According to the Santa Cruz Sentinel’s Coast Lines announcement on March 7, the County’s $2 million project to help Aptos Village Project developers Barry Swenson Builder and Joe Appenrodt will begin March 20.

According to the Sentinel: “These delays and potential lane closures are necessary for roadway and storm drainage improvements for the Aptos Village Project, according to John Presleigh, the county public works director. The motoring public is asked to avoid this area if possible or be prepared for delays of up to 20 minutes.:” Wow. .

What if you are among the 1200 rural residents of Aptos Knolls Mobile Home Park, Trout Gulch, Quail Run and Cathedral/Redwood communities who have no alternate route to avoid the Aptos Village area? I wonder how the existing Aptos Village merchants will survive financially if customers DO avoid the area?

Do you think it is the best use of precious County road maintenance money to spend $2 MILLION to move the bus stop for the Aptos Village Project developers and add a traffic light and turn lanes to their businesses?

Write Mr. John Presleigh, Director of Public Works: <John.Presleigh@santacruzcounty.us> 454-2160

and Supervisor Zach Friend <zach.friend@santacruzcounty.us> 454-2200 He loves to hear from you.

ARTIFACTS, ANYONE?
As mentioned earlier, Barry Swenson Builder is doing major earth work at the Aptos Village Project these days. One of the County Planning Department’s requirements of Swenson is that there be a qualified archaelogist observing all earth disturbance work. This is because of the rich historic significance of the Project area.

No archaeologist has been there watching over the auger drilling holes for the steel I-beams that will support a 17′ tall retaining wall near Granite Way. No archaeologist has been there watching over the massive amount of grading work going on in the area where Mr. Lam Pon, the grandfather of George Ow, Jr., partnered with Mr. Ralph Mattison and ran a very significant apple drying business. No archaeologist has been observing at all….even though the County requires it.

Residents of the area report observing scavengers visiting the Project site almost nightly. It is easy to push through the chain link fence perimeter, and many do. I would think the County Planning and Building Department would enforce their own requirements to ensure significant historic artifacts are preserved for the public to view.

That is what last year’s ‘We Are Aptos’ legal action was all about….a Writ of Mandate to insist the County enforce their own rules. However, even though Judge Paul Burdick agreed that the County was in violation of upholding their own requirements of the Aptos Village Project developers, and requested that the County and Aptos Village Project developers sign an agreement that they WOULD follow the rules in the future (they refused), he denied our request for a Writ of Mandate. County Counsel Ms. Brooke Miller said the County would “probably enforce” requirements in the future, but must allow the developer flexibility for maximum feasibility.

So, why even pretend to have Codes and requirements if the County will not enforce them?

By the way, Judge Burdick afterwards disclosed that he is a long-time neighbor and friend of Aptos Village Project developer Joe Appenrodt. Hmmm….shouldn’t that have warranted his recusal? In the words of County Counsel: “Probably”.

I wonder why We Are Aptos Counsel, Mr. Bill Parkin, thought that recusal issue was “silly”? Hmmmmm…….

COUNTY TO HIRE CONSULTANT TO FIND NEW CAO…
County Administrative Officer (CAO) Ms. Susan Mauriello will retire from her job this July. She has been directing all levels of local government for the past 28 years.

The County has yet to advertise for her replacement. County Personnel Director, Mr. Michael McDougall, told me that the County has hired a consultant in Santa Rosa to find Ms. Mauriello’s replacement. That consultant will cost well over $20,000. Mr. McDougall said the job description will be advertised beginning April 1, 2017. No kidding. It seems to me that date allows very little time to advertise for, select and interview potential candidates nationwide. I wonder if Ms. Mauriello has really already chosen Mr. Carlos Palacios, her Deputy CAO, for her job? Hmmm…..

By the way, Mr. McDougall mentioned that any consultant contracts under $35,000 do not have to be approved publicly by the Board of Supervisors. Wow.

Here is the link to the County Personnel website. Take a look at the link there for “salary schedule/job specs” for some interesting reading.

IS THE COUNTY HIRING A SECOND PLANNING ASSISTANT DIRECTOR?
Postcards on the Planning Department front desk advertise the County is hiring an Assistant Planning Director, as well as a couple of more planners. Is current Assistant Planning Director, Ms. Wanda Williams retiring? Nope. Apparently, future business is looking up, so the County will be hiring a SECOND Assistant Director, maybe with starting salary of $170,000/year.

Hmmmm….could this be connected to the massive in-fill development plans outlined in the “Sustainable Santa Cruz County Plan” that are coming down the pike?

Water? What water?

~WRITE ONE LETTER. MAKE ONE CALL. MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE.

BUT DO SOMETHING.

Cheers, Becky Steinbruner (Becky Steinbruner is a 30+ year resident of Aptos. She has fought for water, fire, emergency preparedness, and for road repair. She ran for Second District County Supervisor in 2016 on a shoestring and got nearly 20% of the votes).

Sunday, March 12, 2017 #71 / Article II

“WE THE PEOPLE”

The Constitution of the United States is organized into seven different “Articles.” The first three Articles outline the duties of the three branches of government that the Consitution establishes:

Article I – Legislative
Article II – Executive
Article III – Judicial

This is pretty basic, and most of us understand the concept pretty well. Each branch of the government has its own assignment, or assignments, and to the degree that the government is going to be able to act at all, the three branches have to “agree,” or at least not “disagree.” The fact that each branch can (and is supposed to) act as a “check and balance” on the other branches is one of the ways we make sure that our democratic government doesn’t turn into despotism.

Speaking about despotism, I sense some concern about the potentially despotic tendencies of our current president. Some are calling him “erratic” (raise your hand if you agree), but despotic or erratic tendencies shouldn’t cause any terminal hysteria among the public, if our governmental system is, in fact, operating as it’s supposed to. To have any chance of enduring over time, a governmental system must be robust enough to survive an “erratic” period, once in awhile.

click here to continue (link expands, click again to collapse)

~Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney for indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmental issues. The opinions expressed are Mr. Patton’s. You can read his blog at www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. DeCinzo depicts Danged UCSC students facing reality…or Santa Cruz!!! Scroll below just a bit…

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. See Tim Eagan’s “The President Who Cried Wolf” down a few pages. As always, at TimEagan.com you will find his most recent Deep Cover, the latest installment from the archives of Subconscious Comics, and the ever entertaining Eaganblog.

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “Childhood is not for sissies. But marginalized kids on the fringes of the social norm get their story told with humor an compassion in the charming animated featutre, My Life As a Zucchini, this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com).” Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

MUNCHING WITH MOZART. Every third Thursday Carol Panofsky presents… “MUNCHING WITH MOZART & FRIENDS” it’s this Thursday, March 16th, 12:10 – 12:50 at the Santa Cruz Public Library Downtown Branch – in the upstairs Meeting Room. It’ll feature Mozart and Chopin played by Carol Panofsky and Ben Dorfan, solo pianists. Carol will be playing Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Sonata in A Major, K. 331 and Ben will play Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) Ballade in G Minor, op. 23. Get there early, the good- but few seats fill fast.

JEWEL THEATRE’S “The Dance of Death” a play by August Strindberg plays March 16-April 9 at the Colligan Theatre over in the Tannery Arts Center. Wikipedia says it has black humor. It’s about a soured marriage and reviews have almost always said it has overtones of George and Martha in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf”. Tickets and more information here.

PATRICE VECCHIONE’S ONE—WOMAN SHOW. Author, artist, teacher, poet and performer Patrice Vecchione has created and will perform her newest one –woman show “Words Dressed & Undressed:Women, Aging & Identity” Friday March 17 and Saturday March 18 at the Center Stage Theatre 1001 Center Street. With humor, fashion and flair she’s put together a performance that reveals much of her most surprising personal history. Get tickets at Brown Paper Tickets online.

LAND OF MINE. Denmark’s entry for best foreign film 2017. Subtitled and deeply magnificient. Pefrectly acted, 100% engrossing, and for me it was a deep as any Greek tragedy. It’s 1945, the Germans lost the war and Denmark has forced 1000’s of young Deutsche POW’s to defuse and de-activate the millions of land mines that they buried along the miles of Denmark’s beaches. Human, realistic, painful, If you like films that make you think AND re-consider what you hold deeply, go see this one… as quick as possible.

KONG:SKULL ISLAND. Kong is back and after his appearance about 45 minutes into the film I figured why Kong is always mad. Unlike all gorillas, Kong has hair all over his butt and he has no penis! He does have his usual minute or two with a beautiful blonde…that’s Brie Larson (playing Faye Wray). Samuel. L. Jackson is a very bad guy, Tom Hiddleston is the big hero John Goodman gets killed before you expect it and John C. Reilly saves the movie from being just another numb & dumb box office smash. It beat Logan at the ticket office so that proves it. Truthfully though, it isn’t all bad IF you like monster gorilla movies.

LOGAN. Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart lower themselves considerably by playing the lead roles in this last of the Wolverine series. I’ve tried hard and failed to stop thinking that this is exactly the kind of film I’ll bet that Donald Trump likes. Even though the Wolverine (Jackman) is a comic book character and the special effects are just about 90% of the picture, the cruelty, killing, blood, evil, are all so typical of today’s biggest boxoffice hits, it’s too over the top for me. No plot, no emotions, no humanity…just more blood and more killing. Even the ending when Wolverine is in a stone covered grave I kept worrying and watching to see if some of the stones didn’t start shaking, meaning we’ll be tortured by an even worse Wolverine # 10. Yes Jackman has played the part nine times!!! Go if you like Donald Trump type movies.

MOONLIGHT. Best Oscar film 2017!!! For starters, Moonlight has a 98 % on Rotten Tomatoes, so it’s not just me who really not only enjoyed this tale of drugs, gangs, and love, but people who like deep, serious films loved it too. Set in Miami, this sharp, delicate, brilliant story of a Black man’s life is told in three parts. It’s best not to read too much about the plot and just watch with wonder as it unfolds. You’ve never seen a film like this one. Yes, It’s back again…many nominations and winning an Oscar did it!!

I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO. James Baldwin began writing a book in 1979 and this documentary uses the 30 pages his finished as continutity between the 6 chapters in the film. The links are stories of Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and Medgar Evans. It’s Baldwin working for unity and equality and we all need to see this film. It’s a lesson in humanity, and probably no Republicans or any of the 22, 438 Santa Cruz Trump voters will see this important film. It’s narrated by Samuel L. Jackson and got a 98 % on Rotten Tomatoes. Please see it!!!

A UNITED KINGDOM. “Based on a ture story” has almost become a law for movies lately…but this one really is. And It’s an excellent film. There’s a bunch of Black & White themed films out there now and that’s a good thing. This “historical” film about the King of Botswana land falling in love with and marrying a white Brit. woman is still deeper and more meaningful than most of the rest. (“Loving”, etc.) Recent award winner David Oyelowo and the brilliant Rosamund Pike star of Gone Girl (one of my favorite actors) grab hold of every scene and make you believe it. More than that you (we) become completely involved with the story. Somehow you’ll begin to wonder just how far you’d go in this “mixed marriage” thing. Rotten Tomatoes gives it an 85%.

GET OUT. Rotten Tomatoes gives this one an amazing 99%. Plus, it’s a huge box office hit !!! That’s surprising to everybody because it’s a low budget semi horror-comedy, black and white theme film. Probably released in February because that’s when they release films that aren’t expected o make much money. Catherine Keener is about the only actor whose name any of us might know. It’s a white girl brings home a black boyfriend topic. Only it goes into zones and situations that will amaze and get you laughing!! Wild, inventive, new, fine acting, twisted…you’ll love it.

LION. A true story of a little 5 year old boy getting lost in India. At last we get to see Dev Patel portray somebody serious and he does an excellent job. It’s a very cornball plot that you can guess every turn and twist, but still just because it’s India you do stay tuned in all the way through. Rooney Mara is his girlfriend for part of the plot and Nicole Kidman is the Australian wife who adopts him. It’s 100% feelgood and there are much better films out and around now, but it does have a certain charm.

HIDDEN FIGURES. A syrupy, Hollywoody much- altered story of three Black American women who did spectacular mathematical and technical work at NASA while fighting against a lot of racial and female prejudice. All to launch John Glenn into orbit. It’s both a cute and painful story at the same time. It’s a contender and still lacks something that could have made it a classic. It almost outdrew Star Wars on opening weekend!

LA LA LAND. It all depends on how much you remember the glorious and very bright and brilliant days of the Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Betty Grable, even Barbara Striesand, Judy Garland, and especially Ginger Rogers musicals. La La Land works very hard to convince us that the world hasn’t changed since those days and tries earnestly to recreate the innocence, and obvious genius of those performers. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone make La La Land fun and happy to a degree, but it’s not the same. The music and songs aren’t anywhere near as good and the photography of today’s LA doesn’t add much either, besides that Stone and Gosling are not professional dancers or singers like all of above. It’s like having Eddie Redmayne play Tarzan.

JOHN WICK Chapter 2. Keanu Reeves is back as the star of this sequel. That should be warning enough. One of the most splatteringly bloodiest films I’ve seen in years. Seems like all American made big studio films are violent nowadays, but this one is more than that. They justify the plot by adding sworn Mafia type family oaths , scenes in Rome, and just blood and more blood and as I said, most of it gets splattered on walls… a lot. However. I’m more than willing to entertain the possibility that it’s a generational thing. Most of my younger friends love it…and Rotten Tomatoes gives it 90%!! It’s in “THE SAME VEIN” as Logan and Jack Reacher movies.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or archived for two weeks… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. Patrice Vecchione returns March 14 to talk about her one-woman show “Dressed and Undressed” happening March 17 & 18, then Bruce Van Allen from the Affordable Housing Now and S.C. Tenant’s Organizing Committee will talk about short term vacation rentals. Espressivo conductor and artistic director Michel Singher talks about their March 30 concert on March 21 followed by Chip from The Downtown Association of Santa Cruz. Roy Malan discusses the Hidden Valley String Orchestra concert happening April 9. John Aird follows with an overview of UCSC growth, water, and our tourist driven wharf plans. On April 4 Linda Burman-Hall returns to talk about The Santa Cruz Baroque Festival’s spring concerts. After Linda, Ben Leeds Carson details the April In Santa Cruz concerts. Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always and only at bratton@cruzio.com

I absolutely love bellydancing, and this girl is great! Check her out.

NEW UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVE FEATURE. Stuff changes at KZSC a lot. If you missed either of the last two weeks of Universal Grapevine broadcasts go here… http://www.radiofreeamerica.com/dj/bruce-bratton You have to listen to about 4 minutes of that week’s KPFA news first, then Grapevine happens.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 9 years here’s a chronological list of some past broadcasts. Such a wide range of folks such as Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, UCSC Chancellor George Blumenthal, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011.

QUOTES. “WALLS”

“Men build too many walls and not enough bridges.” Joseph Fort Newton

“If there is a hard, high wall and an egg that breaks against it, no matter how right the wall or how wrong the egg, I will stand on the side of the egg. Why? Because each of us is an egg, a unique soul enclosed in a fragile egg. Each of us is confronting a high wall. The high wall is the system which forces us to do the things we would not ordinarily see fit to do as individuals . . . We are all human beings, individuals, fragile eggs. We have no hope against the wall: it’s too high, too dark, too cold. To fight the wall, we must join our souls together for warmth, strength. We must not let the system control us — create who we are. It is we who created the system. (Jerusalem Prize acceptance speech, JERUSALEM POST, Feb. 15, 2009)” Haruki Murakami

“Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance”. Robert Kennedy

“There are no constraints on the human mind, no walls around the human spirit, no barriers to our progress except those we ourselves erect”. Ronald Reagan

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March 15 – 21, 2017

BEST OF VINTAGE STEVEN DeCINZO.

Deep Cover by Tim Eagan.