Underneath the front porch of a house in Santa Cruz—the kind of comfy family home that has very thick wall-to-wall carpeting—there is a secret room accessible by a crude path of boards laid over the steep dirt incline under the deck. “They’re out of the house, in here,” says Brad Loofbourrow as his 13-year-old son Tristan opens the door to the small, hot room. This is where Tristan keeps Ellen, Rachel, Shelby, Bruce, Sahra and H.P. “He names them all,” says Brad. “They’re his friends.”
News
Santa Cruz Hit Hard by State Budget
City and county officials throughout Santa Cruz are reeling from California’s proposed budget, calling it “the worst hit the state has ever imposed.” Social services, education, and public libraries will suffer some of the hardest hits, but law enforcement and public works will also be forced to cut back.
Santa Cruz to Examine Moratorium on Medical Marijuana
City officials in Santa Cruz will be deciding on Tuesday whether to extend the 45-day moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries by another 10 and a half months, to allow them more time to examine the issue. The existing rules were written over a decade ago. Some local business owners have expressed support for the moratorium. They argue that a weakening of the rules could lead to dispensaries on every city block, changing the city’s character.
Championing the Little Dogs of Santa Cruz
We’ve heard it all before: “Is that a dog or a rat?” “Hey, a punt dog!” Or the highly original “Why don’t you get a real dog?”
As far as membership in that sector of society still safe to belittle, we who own smaller canine breeds rate right up there with rednecks and the obese. Stereotypes abound, both for us and our pint-sized pals. We’re airhead heiresses with a Shih Tzu parked in our Gucci bag or post-menopausal women who’ve restocked their empty nests with furry surrogates. (With slide show)
Parks Supporters Breathe Sigh of Relief
California’s belated state budget agreement brings good news to parks lovers: barring any unforeseen circumstances, California will cut $8 million from its state parks rather than $70 million, and just a few parks might close rather than 220. Over the next couple of weeks the California State Parks Department will look closely at each park. “Those with high attendance and revenue will likely be safe. At the moment we’re not sure which ones will have to close,” says Roy Stearns, Deputy Director of Communications of California State Parks. “Santa Cruz County has a lot of state parks that have high revenue and attendance.
Science of Sex Author at Capitola Book Cafe
Author Mary Roach studies the people who study the nasty.
California Gets a Budget
Lawmakers and Gov. Schwarzenegger finally hammered out a deal last night to close the $26.3 million budget gap. The final budget more closely resembles the governor’s proposed budget than that of the Democratic lawmakers who’ve been locked in a stalemate with Schwarzenegger and legislative Republicans since February.
Animal Services on Lookout for German Pointer
Animal Services authorities in Santa Cruz are looking for a German pointer named Jack that bit a nine-year-old boy and charged the boy’s mother in Santa Cruz harbor yesterday.
UCSC Programs Get Grants Despite Budget Cuts
With California preparing to slash $3 billion from its University of California and California State University systems, the future seemed grim for UCSC. There was some good news yesterday though, when it was announced that the school won $6.3 million dollars from the UC system, to be used in four research major research projects.
Downtown Sex Shop Certified Green
Doing the nasty has never been so clean – Pure Pleasure in downtown Santa Cruz has just earned its stripes from the Department of Public Works as the only Green Certified sex toy shop in the entire Monterey Bay area.
