Santa Cruz Local

The future of Santa Cruz’s homeless policy is going to be guided by a new committee. It’s called the Community Advisory Committee on Homelessness, and it was created on Tuesday night by the Santa Cruz City Council. We break down what you need to know about Tuesday's meeting, including a proposal for rental housing data collection and the city's new 5G cell tower policy. Plus, some news about Santa Cruz Local.

Cindy Larive will become UC Santa Cruz’s new chancellor next month.

As the university’s top official, her decisions will shape the campus and its growth. So, she’ll also have a big impact on the City of Santa Cruz and its housing crisis. That’s why we want to get to know her. We visit her at her home in Riverside. We also break down UC Santa Cruz's pressures to grow and the challenges Larive will face.

You may remember that the Santa Cruz City Council was putting together a task force on tenant protections. It was a step toward potential new housing laws in the city. On Tuesday, a consultant returns to the council. His findings? The atmosphere is too toxic for a task force to succeed. In Tuesday's meeting, the council goes in a different direction. We brief you on what you need to know about Tuesday's city council meeting.

The City of Santa Cruz now has a projected $3.9 million deficit. The Santa Cruz City Council on Tuesday took major steps toward balancing the budget. Hear what cuts and revenue strategies the city is considering before the final budget adoption, expected June 11. Also, we hear a letter to the editor about our needle exchange episode.

Santa Cruz County has an injection drug use problem and a needle litter problem. We look at Santa Cruz County's needle exchange program and how it compares to other programs in the state. What can Santa Cruz County's health department learn from San Francisco's needle cleanup program? What are the trends with Santa Cruz County's injection drug use? How can Santa Cruz County get more inject drug users into treatment? We hear from Supervisor Ryan Coonerty, county health officer Dr. Arnold Leff, San Francisco Department of Public Health program manager Eileen Loughran, Santa Cruz County Sheriff-Coroner's Office forensic pathologist Dr. Stephany Fiore, Janus of Santa Cruz Director of Medication-Assisted Treatment Amanda Engeldrum Magana and Harm Reduction Coalition of Santa Cruz County co-founder Denise Elerick.

The City of Santa Cruz’s plan to build a new library and parking garage downtown has gone astray since the new city council took office. Some people believe that the city doesn’t need another downtown garage. The council has listened.

The plan isn’t dead. It’s just on hold while the city takes another look at other concepts for the new library, but without the garage.

Meanwhile, the clock is ticking. If the council doesn’t come up with a plan for a new library within the next year, the city risks losing the $27 million provided by Measure S, the tax for local library construction that voters approved in 2016.

The City of Santa Cruz has a $3.2 million deficit. That’s smaller than in years past, but it’s still not good news.

What that means for you is that in the short term, you’re going to be seeing some cuts to city services. You won’t be seeing any large improvement projects for things like parks, the Civic Auditorium, and the wharf. And come election time next year, you’re probably going to be voting on some kind of tax increase.

We’ll discuss what cuts the city is considering, and how we got here.

A U.S. district court decision on Monday allows the City of Santa Cruz to permanently close the Ross Camp come Friday. We zoom out and tell you about how the City of San Jose closed a homeless camp along the Guadalupe River last month. And we give you the success story of Lauren Dixon, a 24-year-old Santa Cruz resident who clawed her way out of homelessness last year. What can Santa Cruz learn from these stories?

For months, the City of Santa Cruz has struggled to close the Ross Camp, a homeless camp at Highway 1 and River Street. Here's the latest chapter: a U.S. district court will decide whether the city can legally close the camp. We talk with Santa Cruz Police Chief Andy Mills and City Attorney Tony Condotti on how the court hearing went on Friday in San Jose. We also hear from Food Not Bombs co-founder Keith McHenry, who is part of a group that sued the city over the camp's pending closure. He says closing the camp doesn't give a real solution to the people living there.

Senate Bill 50, a controversial housing bill working its way through California's Legislature, had some major revisions Wednesday. We break down what the revised bill would mean for Santa Cruz County residents. In a nutshell, we may see more four-unit apartment buildings in residential neighborhoods where they were previously excluded.