The Weekly Dump 6.24.16

Free BOC Concert at the Boardwalk!

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Blue Öyster Cult returns to the Boardwalk tonight for their annual summer show! I love these guys. An American rock band formed in New York in 1967 and still going strong, they’ve sold over 14 million albums worldwide. Seasons don’t fear the reaper. Nor do the wind, and the sun, and the rain!

More cowbell!

Free shows at 6:30 and 8:30.

 

What’s Next for the Cotoni-Coast Dairy Property?

The Cotoni-Coast Dairies property surrounds the town of Davenport, about 10 miles north of Santa Cruz. The Coast Dairies lands were once inhabited by Native Americans known as the “Cotoni,” part of the larger cultural sphere of Ohlone Indians in the San Francisco and Monterey Bay region. This iconic property on the Santa Cruz north coast offers rugged and beautiful terrain including vast coastal terraces, rolling hillsides and mountain ridgelines that plunge into deep riparian canyons. Six creeks and associated wetlands flow through the property and into the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary offshore. The property’s diverse ecosystems provide habitat for a variety of rare or special-status species like steelhead, coho salmon, red-legged frogs and mountain lions. Expansive hillsides offer dramatic vistas of the Pacific coastline and Monterey Bay.

In 1998, the Trust for Public Land (TPL) purchased the Coast Dairies & Land Company’s land holdings – roughly 7,000 acres in total – and protected them for conservation and public enjoyment. In 2006, TPL transferred 407 acres of rocky coastal bluffs and beaches on the western side of Highway 1 to California State Parks. Recently, in 2014, TPL transferred 5,800 acres inland of Highway 1 to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), while retaining ownership of several inland parcels that are now protected via conservation easement for continued agricultural production.

The proposed Cotoni-Coast Dairies National Monument will provide a permanent layer of federal protection for the 5,800 acres owned by the BLM and elevate the property as a conservation priority among BLM’s extensive landholdings throughout the country. As a national monument, the property will belong to a special class of federal properties known as National Conservation Lands, which are managed by the BLM for conservation purposes above all else. Monument designation also gives Coast Dairies increased access to federal funding and other resources for stewardship of the land.

Since the campaign kicked off in February with prolific political backing, more than 14,500 people have signed a petition in support. A small vocal minority, however, has concerns. The neighborhood associations in Davenport and Bonny Doon, which are right next to Coast Dairies, worry that an influx in tourists will exacerbate current problems with “traffic, trash and trauma” and further strain limited public safety resources. Not In My Back Yard?

We already have a HUGE problem with illegal camping from the city line to the county line, with dozens of run down RVs living in makeshift campgrounds in the turnouts along Highway 1. The problem is a lack of enforcement by the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO), probably stemming from a lack of resources. SCSO is tasked with covering a wide swath from Watsonville to the North Coast, and this area is not only sparsely populated, it’s at the far edge of their jurisdictional area to cover. And as long as it’s not enforced, it’s going to build a reputation and keep growing. Which is why this debate is so important for the future of the city of Santa Cruz. Failure to get a national Monument status will result in less resources to patrol and enforce the property, less federal protection for the property, and will result in a significantly higher negative impact on the property. The residents of Bonny Doon and Davenport are worried about traffic? They should be worried about having their communities overrun by illegal campers because that’s gonna happen without the benefits of the additional protections the national Monument status will insure. I support the Monument Campaign and I hope others will join me here.

Street Improvements Begin June 20th

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The city of Santa Cruz will rehabilitate and resurface local streets as part of the 2016 Overlay Program, beginning on June 20th. Curb, gutter and ramp improvements are expected to also begin the week of June 20 and continue through the end of July. Sidewalks will occasionally be closed during the project. Paving and street work is expected to begin the second week of July and continue through August.

Streets effected include: King Street from Bay Street to Miramar Drive, Laurent Street from Escalona Drive to Moore Street, Storey Street from High Street to King Street, Myrtle Street from Taylor Street to Laurel Street, Soquel Avenue from Ocean Street to Dakota Street, Grant Street from Plymouth Street to Market Street and Plymouth Street from Sutphen Street to Lee Street.

Expect intermittent lane closures and limited on-street parking Monday through Friday during construction.

Woodies on the Wharf This Weekend

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This Saturday from 10:00 AM – 3:30 PM Woodies on the Wharf take over the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf. Woodies on the Wharf is exactly what it sounds like — Santa Cruz Woodies, a local chapter of the national Woodies Club, show off their pre-1952 wood-bodied automobiles, and invite others to do the same. Check out over 200 wood-bodied cars, many in perfect condition, out on the Santa Cruz Wharf.

4th Annual Pleasure Point Street Fair

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Takes place on June 25th from 11AM until 5PM along Portola Drive between 41st and 38th Avenues.

This year’s Pleasure Point Street Fair will feature 8 local bands, as well as a kids zone hosted by Santa Cruz Children’s Museum of Discovery. The music line-up features headliner Coffee Zombie Collective (creative, Acoustic Rock covers), Aquacats (classic Acoustic Rock, Pop, Vintage Surf Music), Nomalakadoja (Reggae/Rock/Island), Shoreline Summer Band (Live Oak students, ages 9 – 18. Jazz, Rock and Funk), Soulwise (Reggae/Rock), Spazztics (Ska, Reggae, Rock), UTurn (Rock/Country) and Wild Iris (Folk, Blues).

There will be a skate competition, nearly 100 vendors, and an expanded beer garden. Proceeds benefit the Jay Moriarty Foundation. More information here.

Thursday Art Markets at the Tannery

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Every Thursday afternoon from 3-6PM, there’s the Thursday Art Market, with Live Music, demonstrations from artists across mediums, featured loft artists and food from Jonathan Parvis’ Dead Cow BBQ. Held in the Tannery Courtyard. Check it out and support local art and BBQ!

“Freedom Sleepers” Finally Give Up?

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The “Freedom Sleepers”, that rag tag group of homeless advocates (and a couple actual homeless folks) who have been having a weekly lawn party every Tuesday in front of city hall, seems to have finally “moved along”. I know they had a big falling out with one of the lead organizers, who didn’t even live here, he lived in San Jose. It was always about who gets the most attention over there anyways. The group was initiated by Micah Posner’s father, Phil Posner, who divides his time between living part time in a low income trailer park in Santa Cruz and his nice casita in Mexico. Phil seems to be around a lot less (that Mexican casita is pretty sweet…), and the other so called “leaders” all seem to either be busy with other projects (Norse), or conceded failure long ago (Brent Adams). They’re done.

Take a Ride on the Big Dipper!

Weekly Shoutouts!

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Weekly shoutout to City Councilmember Richelle Noroyan for her continued efforts to keep Main beach clean. Weekly shoutout to Chris Culligan, who took time off from his busy schedule to address the Board of Supervisors and read them the riot act at their budget meeting. They don’t just talk the talk, they walk it.

City Council Election Watch

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2 more candidates have officially “declared” this week that they are in. One is Mayor Cynthia Mathews. No big surprise there. The other is Steve Schnaar. Kind of a surprise there.

4 of the 7 seats on the Santa Cruz city council will be up for re-election this fall. 4 is also the magic number for a “majority” so theoretically, a new “majority” could actually be voted into office and make sweeping changes. The likelihood of that happening is about zero though. There just aren’t 4 like minded candidates running with enough clout to pull this off. Very few candidates have actually declared so far, and a number of others have been “rumored” to be considering a run.

Declared Candidates:

• J.M. Brown
• Dru Glover
• Nate Kennedy
• Steve Pleich
• Cynthia Mathews
• Steve Schnaar
• Martine Watkins

Rumored Candidates:

• Sandy Brown
• Micah Posner
• Mark Primack