Illustration by Louise Leong.

Entertainment & Activities

Cheap getaways require some amount of creativity — you have to know exactly where to look and how to find it. OPERS offers weekend trips at reasonable prices, from backpacking to white-water rafting. For simpler getaways, the department also offers independent trips that you can organize entirely on your own. You can check out rental gear for quick and local camping trips, or snowshoes for longer weekend outings. Whatever it is that interests you, the recreation department offers a frugal opportunity to get away for the weekend with your friends or significant other.

Whether it be for a romantic getaway or relaxation with friends, the Santa Cruz harbor offers a pristine location for a quick voyage aboard one of UCSC’s sailboats. For $15, you can sail up to Pleasure Point in the Santa Cruz harbor and enjoy a three-hour journey as licensed guides take you through the bay. The fee includes lunch and guides — all you need to bring is yourself. Warm clothing is recommended for cooler marine temperatures that can drop below the mainland’s average. Trips fill up quickly and are reserved on a first come, first serve basis. Contact the recreation department at OPERS or recreational department director Matt Brower to reserve a spot or get more information.

This February, Santa Cruz will be hosting an event that seeks to answer one question: “What Is Erotic?” For just $20 on opening night, you can get a firsthand look at what it means to be erotic through various art and dance forms. The event’s proceeds go toward the 418 Project, which has dedicated itself to “moving community and inspiring transformation through performance and dance,” according to their website. Opening night begins Feb. 10 and the show closes on Feb. 19, culminating a six-show run at the 418 Project in Santa Cruz.

Illustration by Jamie Morton.

Gifts

Rising International is having a sale from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Feb. 11. Have fun together and shop fair trade or buy a gift for someone special. The store aims to help impoverished women across the globe by selling their handmade crafts. Colorful accessories, kitchenware, apparel, toys and more are available for a discounted price. It is a great gift that helps spread love in a big way.

If you are in a creative mood, make your own chocolate-dipped strawberry bouquet. Hop over to a local grocery store, like Trader Joe’s, Safeway or New Leaf, to pick out strawberries and chocolate chips. Melt your chips and dip your strawberries. Get some bamboo kebab skewers at Safeway or, depending on your preference, go to Beverly’s Fabric and Crafts or the Dollar Tree, and get plastic flowers and cut off the heads. Then, head over to Ferrari Florist and Gifts to get some cheap flowers like baby’s-breath. Place your strawberries on the stems or skewers, add the flowers and wrap it with a bow. Voila!

Get a gift you both can enjoy at Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge. Select and customize a piece of white bisque pottery, which costs anywhere from $10-$15. Sit, talk, and get creative together. The $9.75 admittance fee covers supplies, support, glazing by trained staff, and kiln firing. If you are celebrating Valentine’s Day with a group, Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge offers a discount price of $5 per person for groups of seven or more. However, if you are in a group, it is best to make a reservation in advance.

Illustration by Christine Hipp.

Food

Valentine’s Day isn’t all about candlelit dinners. There’s nothing like waking up early and going out for a banana-pancake breakfast with that special someone on Valentine’s Day morning. The Harbor Café, nestled in the Twin Lakes area of Santa Cruz, offers plate-sized banana pancakes for $1 each on Tuesday mornings. For a restaurant that’s already best known for its breakfasts, pancakes at $1 apiece just might be worth that early wake-up call, rain or shine. For those who’d like to bring along a canine companion, the Harbor Café features a “Doggie Menu” for your four-legged friends. Whether you arrive solo, with a partner, or with your dog, $1 banana pancakes will be sure to hit the spot — whether you’re a Jack Johnson fan or not.

From its green-and-yellow-painted exterior to its warm, inviting decor, Café Brasil is hard to miss. For a low-key, authentic Brazilian meal, Café Brasil, located on Mission Street, offers both breakfast and unique lunch entrées for the food-curious. Exploring dishes like Coxinha de Galinha (chicken), Bacalhoada (codfish) and Aipim Frito (yucca) with that special someone may serve as a fun addition to your Valentine’s Day festivities. Almost all of the entrees at Café Brasil are under $10. A visit to Café Brasil is an inexpensive way to experience foreign cuisine without the hefty price tag of a plane ticket, and what better excuse to do this than Valentine’s Day?

Home-cooked Meals 101 — Whether you’re a culinary connoisseur or the water-boiling, Ramen-making type, cooking a Valentine’s Day meal in the comfort of your own kitchen for or with your significant other is a fun and collaborative experience. From chicken cordon bleu to homemade pizzas, there are recipes for cooks of all skill levels. Easy fixes include pizzas, pastas, stir-fry and barbecue. Make a trip to the Santa Cruz Farmer’s Market, Staff of Life, or any local market to pick up produce and meats for a simple meal. For recipe ideas,
Epicurious.com offers access to free recipes from food magazines and professional chefs alike! Or check out City on a Hill Press’ food blog, The Starving Student, for easy, step-by-step instructions for a fancy and affordable meal.

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Santa Cruz Guide: Love on a Budget

Powers was part of a major protest associated with Occupy Oakland last Saturday, in which approximately 400 people were arrested by the Oakland Police Department — including Powers, who spent 20 hours in the Santa Rita jail in Dublin, Calif.

Powers, who said she has been “solidly involved” in the Occupy movement since the Nov. 9 protests in Oakland, was part of a group on Saturday trying to occupy and repurpose an old convention center in Oakland that had stood empty for six years.

“We were trying to reclaim this building that belongs to the people of Oakland,” said Powers, who is an interdisciplinary studies major at UC Berkeley, focusing on how social movements and art intersect. “When we got there, the police had already established themselves, and were using tear gas. They had already issued a somewhat dispersal order, but [it was so crowded that] it was hard for people to get out.”

Some protesters then redirected and started marching down Broadway Street, Powers among them, police officers not far behind.

“Riot cops were coming at us from both sides and trying to corral us,” she said. “Everyone was getting arrested. My friend was beat over the head with a baton.”

Oakland Mayor Jean Quan said this latest Occupy event disrupted the city.

“It draws forces from the neighborhoods where I have been trying to put them … this impacts the whole city, not just a building,” Quan said in a video shot by the Oakland Tribune.

Powers was arrested for failure to disperse at the scene of the crime, and joined the 337 other people arrested at Santa Rita (100 more were at the downtown Oakland station), where Powers says quarters were close.

“They kept us in very unsafe conditions,” Powers said. “There were 20 people packed into one cell.”

They were released the next day, with over 50 people outside welcoming them with cheers, coffee and cigarettes. They all have arraignments between Feb. 28 and March 7 — Powers and many others for misdemeanors, but around 10 others for felonies — and Powers is hopeful the charges might get dropped. Either way, Powers said the experience did not disillusion her toward the Occupy movement.

“It’s a pretty interesting thing being arrested for standing up for my freedom of speech,” she said. “It’s only going to increase my involvement. In the process of the Oakland police trying to destroy this day … by arresting us they built a stronger community.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Santa Cruzan Arrested at Occupy Oakland Event

At last Tuesday’s city council meeting, three homeowners and the builders of their residences received Green Building Awards for innovation, air quality improvement, reuse of materials, and other waste reduction techniques.

Local homeowner Jono Stevens received an award for the second-story remodel on his house. In addition to comprehensive deconstruction, Stevens designed his house to generate energy almost exclusively through solar power.

 “I’m very proud of what we did with the amount of green building, and receiving this award,” Stevens said. “It makes me feel good to participate. I benefit from it, the community will benefit, and the value of the home will benefit.”

The building practices promoted by GBP aim to help long-term energy and resource sustainability within the city, as well as reduce harmful chemical byproducts of construction work.

“[GBP] was [created] specifically to save energy, reduce natural resource depletion, and provide for a healthier living and working environment, which in turn provides for a better community,” said GBP coordinator John Ancic.

The Santa Cruz GBP is a leading program in California for waste reduction in commercial and residential buildings. Any new or remodeled building that satisfies the minimum square footage requirement is obligated to participate in the program to receive a building permit.

Participants receive a checklist of different green features they can implement during construction. Each feature is awarded a point, and the summation of enough points — which ranges depending on the size of the project — can earn participants a Green Building Award.

 “It’s really pretty easy,” Stevens said. “In my opinion, there are a lot of choices in order to get points. It’s very user-friendly in that sense.”

Stevens said he wished the program was harder. He said more points should be required to encourage a higher level of green building.

“[GBP] really is a good program,” Ancic said. “It does need to be updated, but we’ve been working diligently to do that, and that’s going to be coming real soon.”

Jennifer Werner, green building and environmental specialist for the city of Santa Cruz, said flexibility within the program is a nice incentive for participants.

“There is a common misconception that building green is a lot more expensive,” Werner said. “There are a lot of options within our program that are not at an additional cost at all, and over the lifetime of the building, you are actually saving money in your utility bills and water bills.”

However, only about 5 percent of all Green Building Program participants have won an award, suggesting the awards are not the main motivator for homeowners to build green.

“This is a choice that the homeowner makes on their own, generally, not so they can garner recognition and a plaque from the City of Santa Cruz,” said Marc Susskind, a contractor who works with the GBP. “Perhaps there are greater incentives that could be offered that would entice more homeowners to fully participate in the program.”

A decade ago, the GBP began its commitment to waste reduction and resource efficiency, as the Green Building Working Group. The group succeeded in generating a set of guidelines for the program by 2005. These were approved by City Council and went into effect in January 2006. Similar programs have been adopted in Capitola, Watsonville and Scotts Valley, all of which produced similar results as the GBP in Santa Cruz.

In January 2011, California’s green building program, CALGreen, implemented a statewide set of green building regulations, compelling the Santa Cruz GBP to adapt to those regulations.

Werner said the GBP would soon be recognizing CALGreen within the updated [GBP] program as a response to the state’s raised expectations.

Susskind has worked on the residential homes of three Santa Cruz Green Building Award winners.

“Generally the homeowners see the value,” Susskind said. “In a lot of ways it’s saving them money by not disposing debris into landfills. A lot of the products are energy-efficient. It is good for their health, for the environment, for their pocket books — it just makes sense.”

Stevens said that participating in GBP was the right decision for him.

“The long-term benefit is there,” Stevens said. “It might have cost me more up-front to do all these things that I did. But the flip side is that over five, 10, 20 years, my energy costs are really minimal.”

Save for objections that the program could penetrate the Santa Cruz community more significantly and that it needs to be updated, Susskind supports the green practices GBP, building owners and builders utilize.

“I think it is good to set guidelines,” Susskind said. “New ways of doing things. A lot of times as builders you end up doing the same thing over and over again. It’s like furthering your education. That’s what the Green Building Program does.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Green Building Program Recognizes Homeowners

Santa Cruz mayor Don Lane explains the possibility of a desalination plant in Santa Cruz's future. The project is still in the planning phase, but it could solve the area's water shortage problem. Photo by Sal Ingram.

The Santa Cruz City Council approved the continuation of a contract with an environmental impact desalination consultant last week. Desalination has been in the works for decades now, and for Santa Cruz County it may serve as a feasible source of water in a city that just experienced its second driest December in history.

The plant is projected to produce 2.5 million gallons a day, and comes with a price tag of nearly $100 million. The cost will be split between Santa Cruz and Soquel County water districts, with Santa Cruz paying 59 percent of the bill. Cost aside, it will take some time for a desalination plant to become a reality in Santa Cruz, as controversies come with its construction.

The final decision on whether to construct the plant will likely be voters’. For now, the plant’s construction is still being negotiated by environmentalists and city council members.

“We’re in the development stage,” said Heidi Luckenbach, Santa Cruz desalination program coordinator.

This stage includes determining all the effects and consequences the plant will have on the community and the environment.

“Part of the process is thinking through how to make it the most environmentally sound project it can be,” said Santa Cruz mayor Don Lane.

Several environmental concerns arise out of the plant’s use.

“It would take a lot of energy to operate,” Lane said.

It is possible, however, the high use of energy can be offset by renewable energy, said Brent Haddad, UC Santa Cruz professor of environmental studies.

Other concerns include the pollution the desalination plant would produce and the negative effect it may have on marine life.

“Forcing water through tightly meshed membranes produces greenhouse gasses,” Haddad said. “There are also risks it will create a zone that it is hard for sea lions to live in.”

A test was conducted by the city of Santa Cruz several years ago in which a small-scale desalination plant was examined to test its effects on marine life.

“The test was enormously successful in eliminating any negative effects on marine life,” Lane said.

Due to the county’s drought, a new source of water — whether it be a desalination plant or an alternative to it — is something that deserves attention, Lane said.

“We have a water problem,” he said. “It seems pretty clear that we need an additional supply and this is the most obtainable and feasible supply opportunity that I’ve seen.”

If the drought were to continue, Santa Cruz would face some tough decisions about water use. Businesses would have a hard time operating at full capacity and the community may have to begin rationing water, Lane said.

“We’d have to start cutting back in severe ways,” he said. “That’s one of the main reasons desal is being considered. If this year continues to be as dry as it is, and next year is similarly dry, we could be in a world of trouble.”

Directives from both the state and federal government require less water be taken from local Santa Cruz rivers and streams in hopes of sustaining the salmon population. Reducing water levels is harmful to the salmon indigenous to the San Lorenzo River and surrounding local streams.

A large reservoir and the San Lorenzo River make up most of the water supply to Santa Cruz, and with the addition of a desalination plant, the depletion of both these sources would be about 25 to 33 percent lower.

“[The desalination plant] is supplemental to Santa Cruz,” Luckenbach said.

The reservoir and the streams will always be a source of water for Santa Cruz. Proponents of construction say the intent of the plant is not to provide for the total water supply, but to give the county a back-up plan in times of drought.

“Having a desal plant is like buying insurance,” Lane said. “It’s going to cost a lot of money to build the desal, but the question is, what is the cost if we don’t build it?”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Santa Cruz Looks to Desalination for Water

Illustration by Amanda Alten

After graduating from UC Santa Cruz with a bachelor’s degree in business management economics in 1991, organic ice cream connoisseur Dave Kumec moved to Paris. There he excelled as a chef and pursued culinary graduate work before moving back to Santa Cruz in 1995. Kumec spent a number of years in the high-tech business before opening his very own organic ice cream business, Mission Hill Creamery, in downtown Santa Cruz’s Culinary Center in July 2010. Kumec was forced to close the storefront in 2011 after a dispute with the landlord, and has since spent his time building Mission Hill’s wholesale business, selling organic ice cream and sorbet pints at business like Whole Foods and New Leaf Community Markets across northern California. A new Mission Hill Creamery location is set to open its doors this summer in downtown Santa Cruz.

CHP: What is your background in the food industry, and what got you interested in making ice cream?

Kumec: I worked my way through restaurants and have held every position from dishwasher to owner. I did an apprenticeship in Paris when I was 18. I like the satisfaction I see in a customer’s face when they try something good that I make, and ice cream is one of the best ways to get that satisfied reaction. Plus, I don’t cut and burn myself as much when I make ice cream.

CHP: You’re a UCSC graduate from the class of ’91. What brought you back to Santa Cruz to start your business?

Kumec: When I graduated UCSC, I got married and moved back to Paris as an opening chef for the new EuroDisney resort, but eventually I missed Santa Cruz too much and we had to come back. I spent from 1995 to 2008 in high-tech, but I am very passionate about ice cream and organic food, so I decided to follow my passion.

CHP: Mission Hill Creamery serves organic ice cream. Where do you source your products and how do you carry out this organic process?

Kumec: Sourcing the finest ingredients is a vital process. We source fruits, nuts and other produce from local farms whenever possible. There is no local chocolate, coffee or vanilla, but we still seek out only the finest organic varieties.

Organic ice cream is better because it doesn’t include any of the processed stabilizers, emulsifiers and gums practically all other ice creams contain. We like simple, clean, robust-flavored ice cream. When you compare our ice cream against the competition, there really is no comparison.

CHP: What prompted you to reach out to local markets, and eventually markets all over Northern California, to sell Mission Hill products?

Kumec: We really started out with the idea to have a nice little ice cream shop. However, we have had a lot of “bumps in the road,” including losing our store on Front Street. We have needed to adapt, and during the time when we didn’t have a store, we decided we could keep the brand alive by selling wholesale. Our first wholesale customer was the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and that was a huge home run for us. Then it was Staff of Life, New Leaf, etc. Now we are in over 30 stores in nine counties around the San Francisco Bay Area.

CHP: There are a lot of ice creameries in downtown Santa Cruz. How do you plan to differentiate Mission Hill Creamery from these other businesses?

Kumec: It’s true that Santa Cruz has a lot of good ice cream places these days. Our goal is to be the best. We make a very consistent, creamy and delicious product that highlights our artisan skill. And we are not afraid of flavor, ensuring every bite of Mission Hill Creamery ice cream is bursting with that perfect balance of flavor and texture. We welcome you to try our ice cream and compare it to the other stores in town.

The New Mission Hill location will open this summer at 1101 Pacific Avenue, Suite B.

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Q&A: Mission Hill Creamery Combines Artisan and Organic

A variety of chocolates was available to taste from the 28 vendors during the Chocolate Festival held on Jan. 22. Photo by Morgan Grana.

For Jeffrey B., UC Santa Cruz alumnus and former university employee associated with the Office of the Registrar, there was always something about the local charm of Santa Cruz that kept him coming back — and for the past five years, his visits have only gotten sweeter.

Jeffrey was among a bustling crowd of chocolate lovers last Sunday, including locals, newcomers and diehards strolling through the aromatic aisles of Santa Cruz’s fifth annual Chocolate Festival. The festival featured 28 vendors from as far away as Seattle, and ran from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk’s Cocoanut Grove.

“It’s a tradition,” Jeffrey said. “I miss Santa Cruz, so it’s nice to come back, and I love chocolate and sweets. I also love being back in Santa Cruz and seeing former colleagues from when I worked at UC Santa Cruz.”

Organized by the UCSC Women’s Club, the Santa Cruz Chocolate Festival serves as a fundraiser for re-entry students, or students who have left college for a period of years, to receive scholarships at UCSC. To date, the festival has raised over $50,000 in support of this cause. Tickets for the festival were made available to the public in mid-December through local businesses like Whole Foods, Bay Tree Bookstore and Bookshop Santa Cruz, and cost $12 for six tastings.

“[The festival] is the Women’s Club’s largest fundraiser, and I believe approximately $13,000 went to the scholarship fund last year,” said festival coordinator Ann Berry-Kline. “We typically are able to give away somewhere around $20,000 in scholarships.”

Current scholarship recipients who attended the festival include Merrill third-year Yuliana Vasquez and Stevenson fourth-year Jesse Avila. Vasquez and Avila are both among a group of UCSC re-entry students who have been awarded scholarships funded in part by past festivals.

The festival was first hosted by downtown Santa Cruz’s former Attic Café and Art Gallery in 2008, and was relocated to the Beach Boardwalk’s Cocoanut Grove in 2009. New additions to this year’s festival included a larger venue space and a cupcake decorating station for kids.

Organizers also brought back the silent auction after a two-year absence due to overcrowding and space limitations within the Cocoanut Grove venue. The addition of the Cocoanut Grove sun room this year allowed for a much more relaxed atmosphere, while accommodating the growth of the festival over the years.

“It started out as an idea to fundraise amongst a couple of the Women’s Club members, and they didn’t think anybody would really show up at the Attic,” Berry-Kline said. “It was pouring rain that day… [and] you couldn’t move in there one bit.”

Alongside tables lined with gourmet chocolate cupcakes were savory dishes, like chicken mole with chocolate mole sauce, served up by local Santa Cruz restaurant Chocolate. Featured vendors included healthy chocolate pioneers and three-year festival veterans Xoçai, who shifted the event’s guilt-ridden focus toward revealing the health benefits of the antioxidants found in raw dark chocolate.

The festival also hosted many new vendors, like Soquel-based day spa Sudzz, which offers chocolate spa treatments and products. Regardless of how long each vendor had been attending the festival, a common trend of chocolate entrepreneurship and local support served as one of the festival’s major themes.

“There are so many great things about chocolate — not just to eat, but for your skin,” said Sudzz representative Sarai Thomas. “I sponsored the festival in its first year and opened up Sudzz last August, and signing up to be a vendor seemed like a great way to showcase my business to people who love chocolate and are open to experiencing it in a different way.”

As the festival has continued to grow, the event has become an experience that keeps people coming back year after year.

“I heard about it from a friend and it seemed like a cool thing to do,” said Stevenson third-year Jeff Davis. “This [was] my first time and it’s really cool. There are a lot of local people around here and it’s cool to support your local businesses. [I’m] definitely coming back next year.”

With another successful year added to its budding reputation, the Santa Cruz Chocolate Festival has become a tradition for both the Santa Cruz community and tourists alike. As the event’s audience continues to grow, organizers hope to expand next year’s festival into a two-day event.

“I hope to make it a destination kind of thing in the future, and get the local hotels involved in a chocolate getaway weekend,” Berry-Kline said. “Hopefully we can raise more funds and be able to touch more scholarship recipients.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Chocolate Festival Satisfies Sweet Tooth for Scholarships

Young inmates at the Santa Cruz County Juvenile Hall exercise outside at the Felton facility. Photos by Toby Silverman

The inside of what a tour guide called an ‘average’ cell at the Santa Cruz County Juvenile Hall

For the second time in two years, Gov. Jerry Brown is proposing the closure of all state Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) facilities, beginning this year, in light of California’s budget deficit.

With an annual cost of about $200,000-$250,000 per child, “California can no longer afford to operate dual state and county juvenile justice systems,” said Daniel Macallair, Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice executive director. This means the Santa Cruz County Juvenile Hall in Felton could soon receive more inhabitants.

The current California system has been running since 1859, when the first juvenile correctional facility opened. It still stands “as a 19th-century relic,” Macallair said.

In addition to county facilities, California has five state detention centers across the state, each making up a part of the total 1,118 DJJ population. To adequately make the transition from state to county facilities, Brown has proposed giving each county $10 million.

Until 2007, when the Major Juvenile Justice Reform Bill was signed, the population was nearly twice as high. The bill filtered out non-serious offenders and kept less-serious juveniles at the county level. Since then, counties have sent only homicide or assault cases to DJJ, and have equipped themselves to meet the needs of the remaining offenders. With the possibility of the state system’s closure, the counties may also have to meet the needs of those more serious and long-term offenders.

“[The Santa Cruz County Juvenile Hall] was not meant to hold people for long periods of time,” said Scott MacDonald, Santa Cruz County chief probation officer.

Regardless, county probation officials are confident DJJ closure will not affect the overall operation of their facility.

“[DJJ Closure] will affect everyone,” said Robert Igarta, associate director of Santa Cruz County Juvenile Hall. As three Santa Cruz juveniles are currently in DJJ, the county would have to find a way to accommodate those individuals.

However, “the impact won’t be as severe as it will in some counties where there are a lot of kids in DJJ,” Igarta said.

Dealing with the cuts would not be too much of an issue, he said, as only three juveniles would have to be removed from DJJ, and one is moving to an adult prison.

“I think we could do a better job if the kids came back home,” MacDonald said.

Santa Cruz has set a precedent for creating innovative methods of accomodating juvenile offenders. In 1992 it was one of the first counties in the nation to establish the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI), which cut juvenile hall population by about 50 percent. The initiative took individuals who were not serious offenders out of juvenile hall, and placed them in community-based programs designed to help integrate them into society. Today, the initiative has spread nationwide and is even being used in adult prisons.

“Our philosophy is a lot different from other counties,” Igarta said. “Ours is very restorative and compassionate.”

Igarta said by fostering a warm environment and encouraging staff interaction the needs of the children will be identified and more easily attended to. That means participating in recreational games, sitting down with the kids for dinner, and even playing a game or two of chess.

“The showers are warm,” said one of the juveniles of the Santa Cruz system. “It’s one of the best programs.”

Classes are held at the facilities Monday through Friday.

“If you provide one kid with hope, it’s contagious,” teacher Bonnie Dankert said.

Officials are optimistic about the DJJ closure, saying it will just be a minor setback to deal with. For now, they plan to run things as they always have. Although the notion of housing juveniles long-term is not one Santa Cruz Juvenile Hall is familiar with, MacDonald said he doesn’t foresee the closure as one they can’t tackle.

“I’m going to make it work, one way or another,” he said. “Quite frankly, I think we could do a better job than the state.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Santa Cruz County without the Department of Juvenile Justice

The Red Cross Battle of the Badges brought Santa Cruz Police and the Fire Department out to donate blood in a big way. With the help of other community members the blood drive surpassed its goal of 40 donations'-worth of blood. Photo by Prescott Watson.

Forty-six units of blood were donated in Santa Cruz’s first ever Red Cross Battle of the Badges blood drive, six more than the Red Cross’ original 40-unit goal. The competition, held between the city’s police and fire departments, took place in the Freight House at Depot Park on Saturday, Jan. 14.

The departments and various members of the Santa Cruz public turned out to donate blood for the cause. The fire department won both awards against the police department, the first for most recruited 22-21, and the second for most employees present at the drive 5-3.

Sgt. Michael Harms, police officer with the Santa Cruz Police Department (SCPD) Community Services Division, helped with the organization of the drive. Harms said holding the drive in the beginning of the year was important.

“This time of the year blood banks are historically low, right after holidays,” he said. “We wanted to bring more awareness to blood drives with the battle.”

Harms coordinated the event with Patti Childress, account manager at the Red Cross Northern California Blood Services Region, and Rob Oatey, president of Santa Cruz Fire Fighters Association Local 1716. The planning began between four and five months prior to Saturday.

Community blood drives on a smaller scale happen much more frequently, said Mary Woodill, a Red Cross Volunteer Coordinator who helped manage volunteer participation at the event.

Usually the goals for community blood drives are lower than the standard used at the Battle of the Badges blood drive, Woodill said. The goal for the Battle of the Badges drive was an ambitious 40 units, and by the end of the day that goal was surpassed at 46 units. One unit can save up to three lives.

However, Woodill said, sometimes not enough blood is gathered for the region to sustain its hospitals’ needs.

“Four hundred and fifty units are needed in our region daily,” Woodill said. “When we can’t get that, we sometimes purchase units from Stanford or other areas with a surplus. When we have a surplus, we export our units. Not one unit is wasted.”

Childress said while the Battle of the Badges blood drive is a first for Santa Cruz, the Red Cross in Southern California has been doing it for years. She said she hopes it will become a yearly event in Santa Cruz as well.

“It was a huge success,” Childress said. “We were really excited about that. This was our first time doing it, so it was really exciting for us to have it not just happen, but happen well.”

Childress said she the idea of organizing the Battle of the Badges drive in Santa Cruz was in the back of her mind for two years. She finally made contact with Harms last year, and Harms was on board as well.

“Once you get the right people involved who really want to make it happen then it’s just getting all the logistics down, and everything falls into place,” Childress said. “It was just perfect. You couldn’t have asked for better.”

Childress said the hardest part of any blood drive is getting the location. Typically, the location has to be secured three months prior to the event.

This can make coordinating with UC Santa Cruz in the organization of blood drives difficult, because students who organize a drive would have to approach the Red Cross a full quarter before the event would be held. Childress said her personal goal would be to have a blood drive scheduled at UCSC every month.

Richard Smith, owner of auto repair shop Santa Cruz Motorsports Inc., participated in the Battle of the Badges blood drive on Saturday.

“For four years, I’ve had my blood drawn probably hundreds of times, but I’ve never donated before,” Smith said. “I figured if I could have blood drawn and not pass out, I could deal with it.”

Smith said he was also donating blood for personal reasons.

“[California Shock Trauma Air Rescue] helped save my life four years ago,” Smith said. California Shock Trauma Air Rescue (CalSTAR) is a nonprofit regional air ambulance service. “I had a traumatic brain injury and it was because of [a flight nurse with CalSTAR] that I decided to do this. [Donating blood] just seemed like an ideal thing to do.”

 The next scheduled Red Cross blood drive is scheduled for Jan. 26, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Health Services Agency and Public Health Department in Santa Cruz County.

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Police and Fire Department Face Off in Blood Drive

Last month, the Santa Cruz City Council unanimously passed its Climate Change Adaptation Plan (CCAP) to address climate change. The plan is part of the five-year update to the city’s Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP), which will help diminish dangers associated with climate change in Santa Cruz.

The CCAP will be used as a guideline for the city to plan for increased flooding, droughts, coastal storms, wildfires and eventual sea level rising due to global warming.

The city council said at least some impacts of climate change — like the increase in severe droughts and flooding, seen in the recent Capitola flooding — are already unavoidable. It is in the city’s best interest to “develop resiliency to impacts,” according to the City Council Agenda Report on the Draft Climate Adaptation Plan and Vulnerability Study from Oct. 4 of last year.

The CCAP, authored by public works project manager Cathlin Atchison, was based on research done by Gary Griggs, UC Santa Cruz Institute of Marine Sciences director, as well as Brent Haddad, founder and director of the Center for Integrated Water Research and environmental studies professor. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funded their 18 months of research with a $50,000 grant.

Dubbed the City of Santa Cruz City Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment, the research was completed and presented in January 2011. That assessment was used to create the CCAP, and will be used as an update to the city’s LHMP. This year the LHMP update will be reviewed by FEMA.

The CCAP will also be used as a part of Santa Cruz’s General Plan for 2030. Griggs said climate change issues and mitigation plans are starting to pop up in other coastal cities as the issue of climate change becomes more immediate and less contested.

“Climate change has become very politicized,” Griggs said. “It’s not a scientific question, but it is definitely a political issue. All carbon dioxide molecules trap heat — they don’t have political affiliations.”

Griggs said the majority of scientists agree climate change is happening, and humans have had a big impact on it.

“Unless we do something, or begin to do something, the consequences are going to be significant,” Griggs said. “This winter already people have begun talking about the climate change, no rain, sunny weather. There are huge implications.”

However, certain variables make predicting the risks of climate change difficult.

“Even when the potential threats are reasonably well understood, the somewhat distant timeframes involved in many climate change impacts can make it hard to formulate, approve and implement policies that affect activities taking place at the present … We can hope for the best, but should be preparing for the worst,” reads the Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment.

The city, however, wants to “take advantage of potential opportunities to protect our residents, infrastructure and economic well-being,” according to the CCAP.

“We have been working on this for several years,” said Ryan Coonerty, Santa Cruz City Council member. “The impacts of climate change are far-reaching and affect everything from our sewage system, our water system, our emergency response, our flood control. Starting to prepare in each area is incredibly important.”

The plan, however, has had varying degrees of support from the public.

“In general, the public is supportive of measures to protect our city and build resiliency into our programs and services,” said Robert Solick, public works principal management analyst and Emergency Operations Center manager.

But the public had some difficulties distinguishing between the city’s pre-existing Climate Action Plan, which is meant to address lowering Santa Cruz’s greenhouse gas emissions, and the new Climate Adaptation Plan. Some members of the public feel too much focus on adaptation planning may take away from lowering greenhouse gas emissions, Solick said.

The public may also be held responsible in the future for some funding of the CCAP if FEMA cannot or will not provide all of the financial support to sufficiently cover costs. However, Solick said the federal government, which is currently reviewing the plan, would hopefully provide the funding.

The United States is still around 85 percent dependent on fossil fuels, and it is now widely accepted by the state of California sea levels will rise around 16 inches by 2050, Griggs said. He said it is now necessary to address adaptation to these sorts of changes, in addition to fighting against their increased severity due to greenhouse gas emissions.

“We know the climate is changing,” Griggs said. “We need to start planning instead of saying, ‘I’m going to see how high the water gets before stacking sandbags and evacuating my house.’ We’re all going to retire someday, and we need to put money away. We plan every day, so we need to plan for this too, instead of looking back 20 years from now and wondering why we didn’t.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at City Council Passes Climate Adaptation Plan

One night in November of last year, John and Sue, both Occupy Santa Cruz participants, threw a brick through the window of the Wells Fargo building downtown, just a few blocks from their home. City on a Hill Press recently sat down with the pair to learn more about Occupy Santa Cruz from an insider’s perspective, as well as what led them to vandalism for the sake of a cause.

~~~~~~

CHP: First off, can I get an idea of when and why you became involved with Occupy Santa Cruz?

John: I went to the first meeting they had in Laurel Park. I’ve always liked politics and history, and I’ve always felt a sense of inspiration in the protest movements of other generations, and I think it’s just as necessary, if not more necessary, now. Some of the biggest issues around Occupy [that interest me] have to do with legalized bribery in terms of campaign funding, and the Citizens United decision.

CHP: Since your concerns seem to be mostly national, what do you think is the value of having Occupy in a “liberal bubble” like Santa Cruz?

John: I think it’s really powerful when people read about things happening not just in New York and DC, but when they open up their local paper and read about the march on Pacific and realize it’s everywhere.

CHP: So do you see any change in Santa Cruz that could be connected to Occupy?

John: There’s been the Occupy Our Homes campaign, which is pretty much genius in terms of PR. Occupy members are inviting people to live with them if the banks are foreclosing on their homes. That’s happening in Santa Cruz and all over.

Also, I was involved with the occupation of 75 River St., which is the most recent big thing, and thought that was a good experience. I have that sentimental front page over there (he points to an issue of the Santa Cruz Sentinel thumb-tacked to the wall). I think what was so controversial about it (and it was regarded as controversial) was that the storyline had a different ending. The headline says “Riot Gear-Clad Police and Protesters Clash.” There was a three-week period where they were cracking down everywhere, so it was almost like an old story by that point, but it was controversial because in this case, the police backed away and the people won. I think that threatened the status quo in a way that made people feel uncomfortable.

CHP: What is the community of Occupy Santa Cruz like?

John: So there’s the veterans of the ‘60s, who are more concerned with spiritual matters. There’s the anarchist faction, which I think deserves a lot of credit for Occupy’s success and framework. I could be completely wrong, but I think the whole consensus process was developed by anarchists as a way to do consensus without having any leaders. So we’ve got the aging hippies, the anarchist punks, the lefty academic student types (here he points to himself) and the homeless.

Sue: And in addition to that, I work in the mental health field, and some of my residents have gone and at least camped at Occupy Santa Cruz. So I have this appreciation for the movement because of how accepting they are of all walks of life.

CHP: Speaking of the homeless, a big complaint leveled against Occupy Santa Cruz is that it’s more of a “homeless haven” than anything else.

John: That’s part of it, but that’s not a bad thing. It’s living up to the values that they’re espousing about economic equality, and they want the state to be more responsive to the people. They’re leading by example. If the homeless aren’t allowed to sleep on the street or in their cars, then that’s a pretty good cause in itself for establishing a community for them.

CHP: What prompted you to throw that brick through Wells Fargo, and do you stand by [your action]?

Sue: It was earlier that day when the students had come down and done the ring around Wells Fargo. For me, it came to this point where we were so disgusted and frustrated by what was going on with the banks, by their continue abuse of practice, and the breaking of the windows was this symbolic thing. We weren’t going to break — they were going to. I would feel bad if I had broken somebody’s something, but this is not somebody’s something. It’s something that we have all paid for, and will continue to pay for.

John: The most recent issue of Occupation Times had just printed an open letter from an Oakland activist [responding to a media coverage of bank vandalism in Oakland] that was really articulate, and he was saying, ‘Some people are uncomfortable with that kind of thing because it seems like violence. But don’t do the job of the 1 percent by condemning the actions for them.’

*Names have been changed

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Q&A: Inside Occupy Santa Cruz

At about 6:30 p.m., Santa Cruz police in riot gear tried to enter the building. They hit protesters with batons in an attempt to control the crowd. Demonstrators responded by barricading the entrance with tables and chairs already inside.

At its peak, the action had roughly 80 people participating. Though the group stated they are “in solidarity with Occupy Santa Cruz,” they said they are autonomous and separate. Their media liaison Desiree Foster said the building is being put to better use occupied than in recent history.

“This building has been abandoned for three years,” Foster said. “We’re taking it and we’re going to make it into a positive community space instead of having it sit here and be empty.”

The Occupy Wall Street movement began on Sept. 17, when demonstrators began to assemble in New York City’s Liberty Square. The movement quickly spread to cities across the nation and internationally. For more than two months, protesters have been occupying space across the globe in the name of substantial financial and political change.

Foster said she hopes clashes between the police and the protesters are minimal.

“We’re here to be peaceful and not cause problems,” Foster said. “We are aware that being in a building is a problem for some people.”

Community members from all walks of life were drawn to the area by outdoor music, police cars and dozens of people milling about. Local first-year law student Ted Fairbanks said he was attracted by the cause.

“I am a concerned citizen who happened to walk by and see what was going on,” he said. “I sympathize with these people.”

Santa Cruz city council member Katherine Biers stopped by as well.

“I happened to drive by, but I saw what was going on,” she said. “I had to see it.”

Media liaison Foster said the group is optimistic about having a long stay in the building.

“We hope to be here through the winter,” Foster said. “Not only is this warm, it’s a place to sleep and it has electricity. It is a safe haven almost, assuming things go okay.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Occupiers Take Over Vacant Bank Building

Illustration by Christine Hipp.

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors voted to place a moratorium on marijuana dispensaries within unincorporated areas of the county in a meeting on Nov. 15.

Dana McRae, county lawyer, wrote a letter to the board on Nov. 9 suggesting the moratorium in reaction to a recent appellate court–published opinion. The Los Angeles County Superior Court decision ruled local governments in California are not allowed to authorize medical marijuana permits.

Federal and state laws regarding marijuana use are in conflict. Further, local regulations are sometimes in violation of state laws. District One county supervisor John Leopold said the decision to implement a moratorium was made to prevent breaking California law.

“Rather than opening more [cannabis dispensaries] without a clear set of rules, we decided that a moratorium was important until we get clarity about what we can and cannot do from the California Supreme Court,” Leopold said.

The tenth amendment to the Constitution states powers not granted to the federal government are within the jurisdiction of each state.

Leopold said over 74 percent of Santa Cruz County voters voted in favor of the Compassionate Use Act, or Prop 215. The 1996 measure, passed with 56 percent of the statewide vote, allowed for medicinal use of cannabis.

“We’re trying to fulfill what the voters asked us to do and we don’t want that right being taken away,” he said.

Santa Cruz County is joining the American Civil Liberties Union in a lawsuit to defend local jurisdiction over medical marijuana regulations. District Three supervisor Neal Coonerty said in an email local regulations in the county are worthy of support.

“Our ordinance has been described as a model for how jurisdictions can regulate medical marijuana dispensaries in a reasonable and responsible manner.”

Supervisor Leopold said the moratorium can be lifted at any time, but the Board of Supervisors is waiting to see how the Supreme Court addresses the issue.

“There have been other rulings that seem to contradict the Long Beach ruling,” Leopold said. “If the Supreme Court takes [the case], we will keep the moratorium in place until they rule. If they decide not to take it, we would probably make a decision on whether it was our best strategy or not.”

Both Leopold and Coonerty said they support medical cannabis like the majority of their constituents. Coonerty said he doesn’t want the law to keep people from their medicine.

“I have supported safe access for medical marijuana patients for many years,” Coonerty said, “and I remain committed to ensuring that patients will continue to have access to their medicine in Santa Cruz County.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at County Prevents Opening of New Cannabis Dispensaries

McPherson said local government is “by and large the most efficient” and thinks his community leadership experience, whether it was as editor of the Santa Cruz Sentinel or as state assemblyman and senator, qualifies for the “knowledge and experience” the job requires.

“I’m running because people have encouraged me to run,” McPherson said.

A California state assemblyman from 1993 until 1996, McPherson moved on to become a state senator for two terms until 2004. In 2005, he was nominated by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to become secretary of state as Kevin Shelley resigned in the middle of his term.

Not the only one to go from a interest in state to local politics, state senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) is planning to run for a seat on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors at the end of his term next year.

Other candidates have announced to run or have expressed interest in entering the fifth district race. They include former Boulder Recreation and Park District chair John Abel, San Lorenzo Valley contractor Eric Hammer, Lompico County Water District board member Bill Smallman, and former San Lorenzo Valley school board member Susan Weber.

While there is support for McPherson’s candidacy, some community members are skeptical of him. John Glass, a supporter of local contractor Eric Hammer, expressed concerns regarding McPherson’s voting record.

John Glass, supporter of local contractor Eric Hammer. Photo by Sal Ingram.

“Eric is environmentally responsible, environmentally aware,” Glass said. “I can’t say the same thing for McPherson. He’s supposed to be a moderate Republican, but I don’t think he’s ever supported a labor law or gay rights.”

“I think the county has a great labor force,” McPherson immediately retorted in a phone interview when Glass’s comments were brought up.  “Small businesses are gonna get us out of this job-drought … and that’s what they mostly have in the fifth District.”

McPherson said he expected such criticism but was surprised to hear it so early in the race.

“The last thing I want to do is get this to be a partisan office, and if that’s where this is going, I think this is a big mistake,” he said.

McPherson said he knows he has name recognition, but that he is running because he believes in public service, which is something he said he is very passionate about.

Candidate Eric Hammer said his “qualifications come from being a community advocate for the past 16 years.” He emphasized the important role UCSC students play in making decisions regarding county services.

“There are a huge amount of students that live off-campus,” he said. “Many commute to campus from the Scotts Valley and San Lorenzo Valley area. Transportation and water issues are very important for students.”

Hammer doubts McPherson’s ability to represent residents of the fifth district because of his recent acquaintance with the area.

“A supervisor’s position should be grassroots,” Hammer said. “It should be filled by someone from the community who understands it. Bruce is a well-know legislator. He just recently moved into the district four months ago. I don’t think he clearly represents this community.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at State Legislator Enters County Supervisor Race

Protesters gather for a general assembly at the Occupy Santa Cruz encampment in front of the county courthouse on Water Street. Photo by Arianna Vinion.

Story updated 11/17/2011 at 10:30pm

Last week, Santa Cruz city attorneys filed a lawsuit against members of Occupy Santa Cruz (OSC) for allegedly being a public nuisance, citing the presence of feces, drugs and fights in San Lorenzo Park. The park is under the jurisdiction of the Santa Cruz Police Department.

“If the demonstrators continue to camp in the city park in violation of an injunction issued by the court, the city would be authorized by the court order to remove the camping equipment from the park,” said city attorney John Barisone.

Barisone added that protesters would not be allowed “in the park without a permit between sunset and sunrise.”

The permit the city gave OSC outlines rules and regulations protesters are to follow to continue their demonstration, including a prohibition against staying in the park overnight. It also calls for protesters to dismantle their tents and clean up the area of the park they’ve occupied by Nov. 16.

Santa Cruz attorney Ed Frey, who represents OSC, filed a notice of removal in federal court on Tuesday, effectively stalling a hearing in Santa Cruz County Superior Court that would have allowed a county judge to decide whether or not OSC is a public nuisance.

SCPD deputy chief of police Steve Clark said he is “surprised [protesters] would balk at conditions that simply ask for a measure [of] responsibility to accompany the rights they wish to exercise.”

Across the country in the last week and a half, Occupy protesters have faced increasing police presence. Last week, protesters at UC Berkeley were beaten with batons by university police near Sproul Hall. UC President Mark Yudof issued a statement on Wednesday expressing support for “peaceful” demonstrators at the protest, and said “a process is in place to review the violence of last week.”

On Tuesday, thousands of students calling themselves “Occupy Cal” marched around Berkeley in support of Occupy Wall Street, whose encampment in New York’s Zuccotti Park was forcibly taken down by the NYPD in the early hours of the morning. Occupy camps have been removed in Oakland, Berkeley, Portland and New York, among other places, but protesters have returned with more conviction and passion than before their eviction.

Tuesday night at 10:30 p.m., protesters continued to occupy the Santa Cruz County Courthouse and San Lorenzo Park despite the 49-degree weather. People camping at the courthouse and park for the past month were there, along with many other new faces. Tents along the river in the park multiplied as well.

People in front of the courthouse shouted, “Whose dome?” while others shouted back “Our dome!” in a call-and-response, referring to their aptly named “Occudome.”

In what appears to be a growing response to local law enforcement and the city’s recent attempts to shutdown OSC, more people are joining the 24/7 protest on county and city property.

“Tents, signs, EZ-ups and someone’s glasses” have been taken by sheriff’s deputies, said Hayden Bean, a protester who has been occupying the courthouse steps for several weeks. Bean said two people were arrested earlier in the day, and one was allegedly assaulted by a non-uniformed officer who had no visible badge and would not provide his name.

The officer who arrested the two men was about to start his shift when he noticed the men photographing his personal vehicle, which was parked next to his patrol car. He claimed the men had touched his personal car and arrested them on suspicion of tampering with a vehicle. UCSC students Austin Bruckner and Joseph Sherman-Williams were the two men arrested, according to the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

Aside from the violence, Bean feels things are going “very well … even though it’s cold, people have high spirits.”

Last week, protesters began constructing new shelters and tents in front of the courthouse in response to the permit issued by the city and Santa Cruz County sheriff’s officers who have told protesters to dismantle their structures. Protesters are refusing to dismantle the tents and instead have chosen to erect more tents, shelters and signs around the dome.

Protester Abby Bacon said many of the protesters have not been getting a lot of sleep because they do not want to get cited for sleeping at the courthouse. Bacon only gets a few hours of sleep each night and she has already been cited.

“They took my tent and backpack,” Bacon said. Sheriffs told her she would have to pick up her belongings later that day. “The general feeling that I have is that people want to stay and protect the spot if evicted.”

Clark said the city’s conditions are reasonable, as protesters have expressed to the police department they would like to disassociate themselves from the group of mostly homeless people who have set up tents in San Lorenzo Park near those of the Occupy protesters. Clark, like other city officials, cites alcohol, drugs, violence and trash as the inappropriate behavior through which OSC is becoming an issue with the city and police department.

The police department has offered their assistance in removing those people who are interfering or disrupting the event, Clark said. It is up to the protesters to use the permit as a tool to disassociate themselves from that “unwanted element,” he said.

“This will test their resolve toward this, or signal that their words have been just rationalizations and excuses,” he said. “We do expect them to abide by the permit conditions, and we do expect consequences should they refuse to do so.”

The area in front of the courthouse is under the jurisdiction of the Sheriff’s Department. April Skalland, Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Department press information officer, said the Sheriff’s Department has been working with OSC, focusing on keeping an open dialogue with protesters and assessing the situation day-to-day.

“We encourage OSC to keep that open dialogue with us,” Skalland said.

Mayor Ryan Coonerty, who expressed support of the movement and local protesters a few weeks ago, has changed his tone as more people complain about the protesters in the park.

“Overall, I am hopeful that the protesters will take reasonable steps to address the public health and safety issues,” Coonerty said. “I also hope that they focus their energies on addressing a serious national issue and not protesting the need for Port-a-Potties.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Occupy Santa Cruz Under Pressure

Illustration by Matt Boblet.

People across Santa Cruz voted with their wallets on Saturday, closing their checking and savings accounts and transferring their money to new accounts at local credit unions and community banks.Elizabeth Carr, CEO of Santa Cruz Community Credit Union (SCCU), said that “credit unions nationwide have opened up 650,000 new accounts from Sept. 29 to Oct. 29, and in California that’s about 92,000.”

Rick Hofstetter, President and CEO of Lighthouse Bank, a community bank in Santa Cruz, made sure that his bank, which is usually closed Saturdays, made a special exception for Bank Transfer Day. From  9 a.m. to 1 p.m., their doors were open to people who wanted to transfer their money to Lighthouse Bank.

“Most people who had come in had closed their accounts at Bank of America,” Hofstetter said.

Bank Transfer Day, which took place last Saturday, was taken up by many of the Occupy movement’s protesters, although the event is not officially related to it. However, the event has remained popular with the movement because many protesters see national banks as part of the 1 percent. Protesters feel that the banks on Wall Street have stolen tax dollars from the American people and blame Wall Street for many of the nation’s economic problems.

Protesters and non-protesters alike are calling for more regulation on Wall Street and a separation between investment banking and retail banking. Bank Transfer Day was intended to inspire people to go through the hassle of changing their bank and opening a new account for a cause: to support their communities and take away investment power from the national banks.

By Tuesday morning, people were still going into Lighthouse Bank to open new accounts with the money they had pulled out of the larger banks, Hofstetter said.

In October alone, Lighthouse Bank opened 70 new accounts.

That’s the “biggest month we’ve had since we’ve opened,” Hofstetter said. “We opened half a dozen new accounts, but they were large accounts … between a half and three-fourths of $1 million.”

Hofstetter said large national banks pushed their customers too far. Speaking about the monthly debit card fees that banks like Bank of America, Chase and Wells Fargo were going to charge their customers, Hofstetter said, “I think that’s the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

In September, Bank of America announced a plan to charge customers $5 a month for debit card usage.

“It got to the point where they were feeling bad for not having done so,” Hofstetter said as he described how his new clients felt. He said customers remarked that banking local was better for their community, but they did not want to go through the hassle of closing and opening accounts.

Bank of America, Chase and Wells Fargo dropped their plans of implementing a debit card fee, but some of their customers still closed accounts Saturday.

Santa Cruz community members who closed their accounts at the national banks on Saturday joined hundreds of thousands of people who have taken the same action over the past five weeks. According to the Credit Union National Association (CUNA), a Washington, D.C. based advocacy group, Americans have moved $4.5 billion into the nation’s 7,000 credit unions.

Bank Transfer Day began when a 27-year-old small business owner in Los Angeles, Kristen Christian, made an event page on Facebook for “Bank Transfer Day.” Three days after Christian created the page, 8,000 people had clicked the “attend” button, and within a month’s time almost 80,000 people had indicated they would do the same.

Reports from across the country of people lining up at banks and standing in line for hours to open accounts at their local credit unions and community banks have flooded the Internet. Exact tallies on how many new accounts were opened and how much money was transferred into local banks are not currently available, but one thing is clear: More people are finding alternatives for where they put their money.

In Santa Cruz, protesters marched to Wells Fargo, Chase, Citibank and Bank of America. Casey Livingood, a former account holder who closed his account with the bank, said he closed his account at Wells Fargo a month before Saturday, but did not open an account anywhere else until Saturday’s Bank Transfer Day.

“I went to Wells Fargo [to close the account],” Livingood said, “and opened an account at the credit union.”

SCCU CEO Carr is ecstatic about the people-powered movement. On Saturday, SCCU stayed open until everyone who came to open an account was taken care of, Carr said. She explained that 35 new accounts were opened for customers who had been planning to switch to a credit union for a long time.

“[It was a] tremendous amount for us in one day,” Carr said. “That’s not at all typical. It’s probably five to 10 times what we would normally see. I have to say that I was amazed [by] the power of this movement … started by somebody here in California on Facebook… [It has] created this incredible change.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Bank Transfer Day in Santa Cruz Moves Serious Cash

Illustration by Louise Leong.

At the end of each academic year at UC Santa Cruz, students line up at cafés and restaurants that accept campus Flexi Dollars.

“A case of Skittles, a large Naked Juice, and a hamburger and fries,” a student might request.

Flexi Dollars are campus currency accepted at various businesses at UCSC. Students living on campus are required to purchase a meal plan, granting them access to campus dining halls. Though there are several options for the number of meals students can purchase, each plan includes a mandatory minimum of $50 in Flexi Dollars.

While they do roll over from quarter to quarter, Flexi Dollar balances under $10 cannot be retrieved and many students would rather spend than fill out refund forms for larger balances.

Some students feel pressured to purchase things they may not have otherwise. David Terrazas, a Santa Cruz City Council member, has met with UCSC dining services to encourage them to adopt a policy that would enhance variety.

“The program would expand locations where the Flexi Dollars are accepted,” Terrazas said. “Businesses already on campus, like Joe’s and Hoffman’s, which have locations downtown, would be a great starting point.”

In light of budget cuts and tuition hikes, students are looking to make the most of their money every way they can. The introduction of Flexi Dollar purchases to local businesses gives students more options to spend before the quarter ends.

2011 UCSC graduate Benjamin Glatt said he supports expansion of Flexi Dollar program to local businesses.

“On-campus dining options are limited,” Glatt said. “Expanding Flexi Dollars to local businesses downtown would have given my friends and me an added incentive to go off-campus and shop at places we had never been to.”

Citing the successes of established programs at UC Berkeley, New York University and Tufts University, among others, Terrazas hopes to see the university implement changes to the Flexi Dollar program.

“It seems to me students should be able to use their resources as they see fit,” he said. “I’ve been speaking with dining services and some of the other policy makers to see what we can do to make this happen for the next academic year.”

According to a presentation made by retail consultant Bob Gibbs, the potential market value for UCSC students is $61.1 million. Council member Terrazas said at the Sept. 29 council meeting that Gibbs said  only about 5 percent of that spending, approximately $3.06 million, takes place at local businesses.

Vice-Mayor Don Lane said he supports the project.

“For me, the key point is UCSC and UCSC students are such an important force in this community in many different ways, including as an economic force,” Lane said. “The program would continue to strengthen ties between local businesses and UCSC students.”

UCSC dining services manager Scott Berlin declined to be interviewed for this article. He said in an email that it is too early for him to speak about the collaboration.

Terrazas said expanding Flexi Dollars downtown would provide a safe method of payment and benefit students with campus meal plans.

“Students are already downtown, and expanding the program would create opportunities for them to use all of their dollars,” he said.

Getting students to spend locally is one of Terrazas’s goals. UCSC graduate Glatt said more than just benefiting students, the potential Flexi Dollar expansion would be good for businesses.

“A program like this would be a great way to help bolster the local economy,” Glatt said. “We have money. We just need more places to spend it.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Downtown Businesses May Accept Flexi Dollars

Photo by Sal Ingram.

Story updated 11/10/2011 at 3:19pm

The downtown building once used to ease housing congestion at UC Santa Cruz is now closed. As of this academic year, the University Inn, located at 611 Ocean Street, is no longer a housing option for students.

On Nov. 1, BPR Properties, a company that works in ground-up development projects and purchasing landmark properties, bought the University Inn from Seagate Properties of San Rafael, Calif. for an undisclosed amount. BPR Properties owns several local hotels, such as the Best Western All Suites Inn and the Holiday Inn Express in Santa Cruz.

Perry Patel, principal at BPR Properties, released a statement in regard to the purchase of the University Inn.

“Santa Cruz is an iconic vacation destination and we have big plans for the property,” Patel said.

The University Inn was originally designed in the 1950s as a Holiday Inn. Seagate Properties leased the property to the university in 2001 for a 10-year period to serve as an off-campus housing option.

According to the Comprehensive Settlement Agreement that took effect Aug. 15, 2008, the university agreed to not renew the current lease after the first 10-year term. David Keller, director of UCSC housing services and facilities, said the closing of the University Inn will not impact students very much.

“The student bed spaces are not as urgently needed as they were at the time we executed the lease, due to construction of new bed spaces on campus,” Keller said.

The university still offers a number of other housing options for students, including the University Town Center on Pacific Avenue, he said. Prior to the University Inn closing, 140 students lived there, occupying roughly 80 percent of the 172 available rooms.

The renovation of the property is expected to be complete in 2012. Patel mentioned there are two similar projects underway in Palo Alto and Berkeley.

“Like those two restoration projects, we plan on creating a high quality, full-service property that reflects the values and ideals of the community,” he said.

Scott Collins, assistant to the city manager of Santa Cruz, said the new project will ease one of the city’s reoccurring issues.

“With hotel occupancy rates in Santa Cruz surpassing 71 percent this summer, up 6 percent compared to 2010, the reopening of the University Inn will help satisfy growing market demand,” Collins said.

As owners of the University Inn, BPR Properties plans to develop the Inn to meet the needs of its visitors.

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at University Inn Sold

The Santa Cruz Downtown Commission and Public Works and Transportation Commission held a meeting Nov. 3 to discuss making Pacific Avenue a two-way street. Commissioners tabled the proposal. Photo by Nick Paris.

The meeting was over before it even began. The Downtown Commission and Public Works and Transportation Commission held a special joint meeting on Nov. 3 to discuss the possibility of making Pacific Avenue a completely two-way street. In a unanimous vote, the commissioners tabled the proposal.

Although most blocks on Pacific Avenue are already two-way, a few are one-way — from Pacific and Water Street to Pacific and Cathcart Street. The proposal included a three-month trial period. The estimate for how much the proposal would cost is between $20,000 and $30,000.

Community members gathered in the Chamber of Commerce, anticipating an argument and waiting to speak.

The meeting began with Bonnie Lipscomb, executive director of economic development and redevelopment, who gave a small presentation. She explained the fire department had a test run on
Nov. 3 to see how fire trucks driving through the potential two-way street would fare. Lipscomb said changes would need to be made downtown to make it safe for them to pass.

“In order to accommodate the fire trucks, we would have to remove a row of parking,” she said.

Kelly Kumec of the Santa Cruz Fire Department wrote to the city council, raising additional concerns about the proposal.

“I know especially during the holidays, UPS and other delivery trucks need to stop on Pacific to make their deliveries,” she said. “Currently it is not a problem, because traffic can pass them. But with two-way traffic this won’t be possible and could create gridlock.”

At an Oct. 25 meeting, the Downtown Association proposed to city council members the idea of making Pacific Avenue a two-way street. The idea for the proposal came to the Downtown Association from Bob Gibbs, a nationally respected retail expert, who said a two-way traffic flow would boost sales between 20 and 30 percent.

Removal of parking rows was not in the planned agenda for this project. Lipscomb said fire trucks’ inability to easily drive through a two-way street on Pacific Avenue raises concerns of “safety and access.” The estimate for the cost of the project would also increase significantly.

With a sentence, Lipscomb put an end to the discussion.

“Therefore the Downtown Association does not feel comfortable going through with the proposal at this time,” she said.

Once Lipscomb made the announcement the city council voted to end the discussion. All members unanimously voted to table the proposal and the crowd applauded the quick decision. One council member said it was “the shortest meeting I’ve ever had.” It began at 7 p.m. and was over before 7:15.

Mike Rotkin, a UC Santa Cruz community studies professor and former mayor, opposes the proposal for two-way traffic on Pacific Avenue.

“Despite the recession, we have a very successful downtown even though we don’t have a traditional [two-way] downtown street,” Rotkin said.

The Downtown Association wanted to inact a three-month trial by December or January, which Rotkin felt was “a violation of the process. The speed of it all, they were rushing it. This is a desperate attempt to get cash. I don’t blame them.”

Rotkin, who has lived in Santa Cruz since the summer of 1969, said he has seen a lot of changes within the business community.

“Santa Cruz is a summertime town,” he said. “Back then, people didn’t expect to make money in the winter, but today people do expect to make money in the winter. Rent is higher.”

Rotkin said businesses on Pacific Avenue can succeed without any change in the street.

“If I was a business person, I’d be demanding the government to help me, too,” Rotkin said. “I respect the businesspeople’s concerns. I just feel the basic premise of this is wrong. I don’t believe we need a two-way street on Pacific.”

Though the proposal is on hold until further notice, Lipscomb said there will be a “study session” on Nov. 9 for the city council with more recommendations from Bob Gibbs.

This and other proposals for developing downtown Santa Cruz are still in the beginning phases.

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Two-Way Pacific Avenue Proposal Dismissed

The meeting also served to inform and update Santa Cruzans on the logistics of the integrated water plan. Mayor Ryan Coonerty emphasized that the meeting was intended to provide information for locals.

“Tonight we are just focusing on the water supply,” Coonerty said. “We are not taking any action tonight. We are not approving the desalinization plant. This is to give you a sense as to where we are in the process, what the issues are related to our water supply and then what our future timeline looks like.”

Linette Almond, the deputy water director and engineering manager for Santa Cruz, spoke about the technical issues regarding the plant’s modeling and engineering in her oral staff report, with the help of the Soquel Creek Water District. Almond updated the information provided to the public, along with background information on water supply, and a direct timeline as to when the desalinization program would take place.

A community member said conserving water is not enough, with the main issue facing the city being the lack of dependable supply in the first place.

“Santa Cruz is a community of conservationists,” she said. “We’re conscious about saving water, but that’s really not enough. We need a dependable supply of water. Fresh clean water, for our neighborhoods and businesses, schools and hospitals. We also need water for our trees.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Update on Integrated Water Plan

“The X Factor” is a music competition televised across the country and in dozens of countries worldwide in search of newsinging talent. The show originally came from the United Kingdom and was created by Simon Cowell, best known in the United States as a former judge on “American Idol.” Fellow Santa Cruz local James Durbin had a similar journey to Rene on “American Idol” and made it as far as the top three.

Rene, 28, recently made it to the the top 12 out of thousands of contestants who auditioned across the country. He began his audition with an original piece titled “Young Homie,” which mentions his personal struggle with addiction, which persisted for 10 years: “Yeah, it’s been two months [and] three years now. Haven’t had a drink and I’m starting to see clear now, I’m putting all my fears down, I can hear the cheers now.”

Rene, who grew up in Santa Cruz and up until recently earned a living hauling trash, said on the show that he “couldn’t have asked for better parents and brothers and sisters.” Rene decided to audition on “The X Factor,” which served as an unexpected gateway to the spotlight for him.

“At auditions, Chris shared his struggle with addiction and how he was turning his life around for his son,” according to a statement released by the show. “We loved him already, but we loved him even more with his original song ‘Young Homie.’ Now, he’s still bringing the ‘truth’ to every performance.”

Rene said his past gives him drive to succeed and empower himself through singing.

“My ‘X Factor’ is triumph over struggles, at least for today,” Rene said on the show. “The passion I have and the experiences I’ve been through — I channel that emotion.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Local “X Factor” Contestant Makes Final 12

The Cold Water Classic was held in Santa Cruz from Oct. 26-30. The tournament attracts surfers from all over the world. Photo by Marielena Verdugo.

Photo by Marielena Verdugo.

Dozens of black wetsuits appeared along West Cliff Drive over the weekend. Surfers stretched their limbs, waxed their boards and fearlessly jumped off the cliffs, all for their love of surfing waves.

The surfers came to Santa Cruz with the O’Neill Cold Water Classic. It was hard to miss, located along Steamer Lane with bleachers set up for spectators, as large red banners bearing the O’Neill wave flew and music blasted over the ocean.

The O’Neill Cold Water Classic has been Northern California’s largest professional surf event in Santa Cruz for over two decades. Locals and visiting surfers compete for the title of Cold Water Classic Champion. A $250,000 prize purse is awarded at the event, as well as an extra $50,000 for the series’ crowned winner.

In the past two years, the prize money has gone to Australians. The event is sponsored by Philips O’Neill Headphones, Sierra Nevada, Dream Inn Hotel & Aquarius Restaurant.

Nineteen-year-old Brazilian Miguel Pupo not only won the O’Neill Cold Water Classic in Santa Cruz, but won the overall Cold Water Classic title and $90,000. There was a great sense of community and respect when Pupo was announced champion.

Sitting on the bleachers, spectators commented on the event.

“They tend to have bad luck around this time of the year,” a man said to his son. “They should do the contest deeper into winter when the waves are bigger.”

Professional and amateur surfers competed in hopes of winning the champion title and a grand prize of $40,000. Between Oct. 26 and 30, spectators gathered around along the cliffs to watch the show, many with cameras or binoculars.

It was a diverse crowd, ranging from older spectators and young families with babies to high school kids. In spite of the beautiful weather, there was one important problem on everyone’s mind: lack of waves.

Early Thursday morning there were no waves, so the competition changed locations to Waddell Creek, just up Highway 1 North.

Josh Kerr, a professional surfer from Australia who currently resides in San Diego, prepared for his heat by watching his buddies surf at Waddell Creek.

“It’s a bummer we had to move from Steamer Lane to Waddell Creek,” Kerr said, “but there were no waves. It’s just not the same vibe here. It’s been a really fun event regardless. There’s been a lot of excitement around it — it’s something we all look forward to.”

Kerr has been surfing his entire life, but became professional 10 years ago when he was 16. He is currently sponsored by Rusty.

“Friggin’ sets going off! This is the best set of waves we’ve seen in about two weeks,” the announcer yells.

At the surf competition, the announcer used words like “barrel,” “stoked,” “sick,” “dude,” “whoa,” “gnarly,” “ripping” and “beat.” For someone not involved in the surf community, it may sound like another language.

Early Wednesday morning, local boys dove into frigid water at 7:30 a.m. in the hopes of being chosen to compete in the contest. Whoever won was named the “wild card” player. Two local boys won the wild card and competed yesterday, but were out of the competition. One left with $750 while the other left with $1,000.

Although the title “Cold Water Classic” is appropriate for Santa Cruz water temperatures, UC Santa Cruz student and surfer Brett Hardy said, “The water actually tends to get a little warmer in the winter months due to an upwelling. It’s pretty strange.”

Professional surfer Kerr said surfing at Steamer Lane is a special treat because everyone gets to stand along the cliff and watch the surfers. It’s rare a crowd can be that close to the action.

Each surfer had a heat, a designated time slot where a few surfers compete to get the best waves and scores given by judges.

Thursday’s, Friday’s and Saturday’s heats were surfed at Waddell.

“The boys were going nuts out there, just crazy,” the announcer said. “It was a really last-minute decision to move locations, but it had to be done.”

Zach Schank, a local high school surfer, watched the heat with a look of inspiration in his eyes.

“It’s incredible seeing the pros surf,” Schank said. “I wanna see a local win. Rat Boy (Jason Collins) is my favorite. He’s a real Santa Cruz pro.”

Schank said he surfs all the time, every chance he gets. He enjoys attending surf competitions because he gets to see the best of the best compete.

Standing at the score board, local Ardon Lockyer reviewed the results from this heats this week.

“It’s a great event, anything that brings people together helps the community,” said Lockyer, who lives down the street from Steamer Lane.

Drew Kampion, a former editor of Surfer, as well as Surfing Magazine, was signing his latest book at the event. The book, “Jack O’Neill: It’s Always Summer on the Inside,” documents the life of Jack O’Neill, owner of O’Neill Surf Company and inventor of the modern surfing wetsuit.

“Without O’Neill you wouldn’t have globalization of action and water sports,” Kampion said. “The invention of the wetsuit opened up 90 percent of the world to surfing. Before it could only be done in specific locations by a small niche of people, but the wetsuit changed all that.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Surf Contest Comes to Santa Cruz

The Santa Cruz Police Department patrols downtown as people dressed in costumes walk along Pacific Avenue on Halloween night. There was a large police presence to enforce laws, including increased fines in what the SCPD declared a “triple fine zone.” Photos by Morgan Grana.

Fifty total arrests were made in downtown Santa Cruz on Halloween night, and 49 triple fine municipal code violations were given. Of the arrests, 34 were for public intoxication or otherwise alcohol-related.

To discourage public disruption during the unofficial Pacific Avenue Halloween parade, the Santa Cruz Police Department announced on Oct. 26 the downtown area had been deemed a safety enhancement zone for designated Municipal Code violations. The fine for possession of an open alcohol container was $480, and a ticket for urinating in public $576.

“The focus is on ensuring a safe event,” said SCPD spokesman Zach Friend. “Over the last few years we’ve averaged 25,000 people downtown in the late evening, approximately half of the city population in one square mile. Historically we’ve had acts of gang violence and a number of alcohol-fueled incidents, from fights to vandalism to DUIs. We want to find a balance for people coming downtown where they can have a good time but respect the law.”

The SCPD teamed with nine allied law enforcement agencies on Oct. 31 to enforce local laws and identify and contact suspected gang members downtown during the evening.

A Nov. 1 press release from the SCPD reported approximately 15,000 people came to downtown Santa Cruz on Halloween, “what has become the largest single informal gathering in the city.”

Santa Cruzan Brandy De Vincentz saw a group of “kids” stopped by police officers downtown that night. The officers confiscated a bottle from the group, and asked them to line up against the wall and produce their IDs.

“It wasn’t scary, just funny,” she said. “I thought they were dumb. I hope they weren’t arrested, because that would be too harsh.”

The SCPD begins preparing for Halloween up to six months in advance.

To make sure downtown Santa Cruz remained a safe environment on Halloween night, SCPD worked with UC Santa Cruz, downtown businesses, the Santa Cruz Fire Department, Parks and Recreation, Public Works, localized law enforcement and ambulance services.

“The number one thing is moderation of alcohol — so many bad decisions are made when intoxicated that reducing the amount you drink on Halloween greatly improves safety on that night,” Friend said.

Arrests were made for domestic violence, possession of a concealed weapon, possession of a switchblade knife, drug possession, parole violations/warrants and resisting arrest. One unloaded handgun, one switchblade knife and two pellet guns were removed during the evening.

Downtown Association director Chip said ensuring safety during the parade is important, as the evening is significant to Santa Cruzans “on a more global level.”

“For many young vampires, princesses and firefighters, Halloween provides some of their first memories of downtown,” he said. “Dressing up as whoever you want to be, walking around and seeing all kinds of amazing people and creatures and having people give you candy all afternoon makes for a good impression. The trick is managing the crowd as the costumes get more grown up and the streets get more crowded … Generally the city has done a good job of managing it. The fines are pretty steep, so people know that they can come down and have fun, but you’ve got to behave.”

The SCPD also responded to a significant number of party-related calls that evening, according to Friend. The department reports fielding 347 calls for service during the evening, a 75 percent increase over last year’s call volume.

“Overwhelmingly these calls, especially later in the evening, were for parties and issues (such as fights) stemming from the parties,” according to the Nov. 1 release.

The SCPD and the UCSC Police Department scheduled a round of party patrols for Friday and Saturday nights preceding Halloween.

The focus of these patrols was “large and out-of-control parties in Westside Santa Cruz neighborhoods,” according to UCSC Public Affairs.

Previous party patrols performed by the Santa Cruz and UCSC police between September and October resulted in more than 60 citations, nine arrests, and 32 party hosts warned with their addresses flagged under the city’s “loud and unruly” ordinance.

For the past three academic years, UCSC has provided money to the Santa Cruz Police Department to fund voluntary overtime for officers on the weekends to enforcement of the city’s “loud and unruly” ordinance and to respond to large parties, according to UCSC Public Affairs. Executive Vice Chancellor Alison Galloway approved a campus expenditure of $25,000 for the 2011-12 academic year to continue the partnership program with the city.

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Fifty Arrested Downtown on Halloween

“What is this 99 percent I keep seeing?” Frans said. “There are signs for banks, for slavery and for poverty. What’s going on here?”

Sentiments like these were common for onlookers of the Oct. 15 protest in downtown San Francisco: Tourists and locals alike were astonished to see the swelling of a crowd larger than 2,000, marching in solidarity with more than 1,500 additional cities on this “World Wide International Day of Action.”

On Oct. 15, the agenda for Occupy SF was multifaceted. Prior to the march, select members of Occupy SF coordinated a route with police squads, assuring the safety of marchers. As 3 p.m. neared, the crowd gathered at 101 Market St., the location of the Federal Reserve building, flowing in on bikes, BART trains, cars and on foot.

Before the march had even begun, there were visible policy divisions taking place. As one protester climbed a column to denounce the unethical power of the military industrial complex, another man on the corner of Market and Drumm paraded with megaphone in hand, demanding  banks not foreclose on his house.

Divisions of protester demands were prevalent throughout the day in San Francisco.

Gene Hermann, a specialist in internal medicine from Michigan observing the protest, vocalized similar sentiments to those of the exchange students.

“I don’t know what to really say — do they have jobs?” Hermann said. “They just don’t seem to be fighting for the same thing.”

Such critiques of the fellow occupations are consistent with commentary from both mass media and many individuals outside of the movement.

Marcher and San Francisco business owner Bob Gorringe, however, said  the ambiguity of one specific goal is a strength of the movement rather than a weakness.

“We are all here for different reasons. People are starting to get it — this isn’t about being liberal or conservative, people are simply tired of how this system operates,” Gorringe said. “I mean, look around. These are people from different classes, different backgrounds, and they’re fed up. We’re growing faster than I could have imagined.”

The size of the protest had indeed risen greatly since the action’s inception a couple of weeks prior. On Oct. 5, the Occupy SF movement marched from Union Square to the Federal Reserve with less than 60 people. Two weeks from that day, the movement had gained more than 30 times that number.

“I was a little surprised myself,” Gorringe said. “It’s been less than a month since we started, and we’ve attracted such a diverse crowd. I’m just happy to help.”

Though Gorringe has assisted the movement since its formation in late September, he takes no role of authority over any other marcher, walking with his family and occasionally hollering, “We are the 99 percent!”

Also a concern for the movement is the danger of being “co-opted” by different social and political groups. In New York’s Occupy Wall Street, the actions of labor unions have often been seen as overstepping, but OccupyWallSt.org commends the aid of the fellow working class.

As one of the thousands marching on Saturday, Luke Adams came to San Francisco to bring his perspective to the table.

“I find it difficult to be heard, but my voice is as loud as any other of these fine people here today,” said Adams, a local pastor from the Agnostic Sanctuary in Mountain View, who said he stood with the movement as an American citizen rather than as a religious leader.

A Marine who reportedly toured twice in Iraq from 2002 onward was also seen in the ranks of protesters, with microphone in hand.

“We are here and we are not going away — wake up America, this is the real thing!” he said. While dictating his address to the audience, flanked by a few other servicemen, mobilizers tried to quiet him for the purpose of beginning the general assembly at San Francisco City Hall.

The occupation of City Hall took place at about 4:30 p.m. with longtime activist Jacob Feldman and another underground mobilizer self-labeled as “Magic” speaking. As the crowd gathered around, speeches began, often interspersed with deafening roars and applause from the audience.

There was no call for a set of demands, but speakers outlined what they hoped to combat. There were often rebuttals from opposing members of the crowd, but the general consensus was accepted.

“We are reclaiming the word ‘occupation’— we are occupying everywhere,” said Magic. “We have almost forgotten who we are, but it’s not too late! And as the empire dies, the people rise!”

Following these speeches, protesters returned to the streets, marching to the Federal Reserve and Justin Herman Plaza, just one block south of the FED where they plan to continue the occupation.

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Occupy SF Protest Gains Momentum and Criticism

Photo by Nick Paris.

Occupy Santa Cruz ended its second full week of protesting with three events over the weekend. The events drew hundreds of community members in support of the Occupy Wall Street movement which is sweeping the nation and capturing the attention of average Americans, politicians and political pundits alike.

On Friday, at least 100 people congregated at the Water Street entrance to the courthouse, where the movie “V for Vendetta” was screened.

Along the concrete stairs leading up to an ad-hoc movie screen sat protesters and community members who came out for some free entertainment.

On Saturday, Occupy SC maintained camp in San Lorenzo Park, and participants spoke and tabled at WAMMFest.

Occupy SC ended the weekend with a human chain around the Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse on West Cliff Drive, home of the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum. Local media estimated 150 people participated in the demonstration.

Mary B., a surfing museum attendant who prefers to remain anonymous, showed up to work just after the protest started.

“They were blocking the entrance,” Mary B. said after saying she asked them to move off the porch, but felt they were “OK on the lawn.”

The protest, which was originally scheduled to go from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., was over before 2 p.m. One participant said she felt there was not a lot of energy, which was why people left the demonstration early.

Police, who often check in with the Occupy Santa Cruz protesters at their base-camp in San Lorenzo Park, were not present at Sunday’s demonstration.

Santa Cruz Police Department spokesman Zach Friend said the department was aware of this past weekend’s events, but no formal coordination between protesters and the police department took place.

Many police departments across the U.S. have taken action against protesters in the “Occupy” movement. On Monday, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that 130 protesters were arrested in Chicago, 11 in Cincinnati, and more than a dozen in Philadelphia. More than 100 protesters participating in Occupy Oakland were arrested on Tuesday, according to The Los Angeles Times.

“The Santa Cruz Police Department has a different operational philosophy than many departments,” Friend said. “It is important to us to take a balanced approach to enforcement.”

Despite community support for Occupy Santa Cruz, tension has been brewing between protesters and the police department, which warned protesters last week it will issue citations if the protesters do not accommodate other parties who want to use the park.

“Moving forward, we need organizers to maintain open lines of communication, obtain permits for events and respect local laws and environmental needs,” Friend said. “We have received feedback from a small number of the participants that they want police action so they can receive greater media attention … We simply want organizers to maintain a respectful attitude toward the community, laws and expectations we all have for a successful outcome.”

Local elected officials like Mayor Ryan Coonerty and Rep. Sam Farr (D-Carmel), sympathize with the protesters.

“There is a lot to be angry about,” Coonerty said, “and I appreciate that people are engaging and advocating for a change to our economic policies.”

Occupy Santa Cruz protesters have led several marches around town to protest in front of the national banks, which have been primary targets in demonstrations for the broader “Occupy” movement.

On Nov. 5, protestors are calling for a national Bank Transfer Day. The idea of transferring money from national corporate banks to community banks and credit unions is popular among the “Occupy” movement’s protesters.

Coonerty sympathizes with the protesters, but said it is important to respect the employees at the local branches of the national banks because “they are hardworking members of our community, and should not have to take the abuse for the actions of CEOs they had nothing to do with.”

“[It is important from]an economic sustainability standpoint to keep as much capital as we can in the community,” Coonerty said. “I think if people move their money in large numbers it will send a message.”

Local congressman Farr, who is “very supportive” of the protesters and a member of the Progressive Caucus, donated cash two weeks ago when members of the caucus passed around a hat on the floor of Congress to collect money for the Occupy protesters in Lafayette Square, a park located directly north of the White House.

At a press conference the Congressman commented on creating green jobs in Santa Cruz and the “Occupy” movement.

“I think this is what the people on Wall Street are about,” Farr said. “They want America to be focused on doing things like this rather than just taking care of their bank accounts.”

Farr feels the movement is getting people to focus on things other than “the wonder of wealth, or the worship of wealth.”

As Republicans continue to block the president’s job bills, the latest unemployment figures remain high in California at a whopping 11.4 percent, and 10.1 percent in Santa Cruz County.

Farr suggests students get internships at places they want to work so they get a job when the economy begins to pick up again.

“Your lifetime isn’t going to be remembered by how much money you made when you got out of college,” Farr said. “Your lifetime is going to be remembered by what you accomplished in life, and that’s not just going to be about money. That’s going to be about a lot of other things.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Local Leaders Support Occupy Santa Cruz

Hundreds gathered in San Lorenzo Park on October 22 for WAMMFest, an event held in recognition of continued local government support of medical marijuana collectives, despite the federal ban. Photo by Kyan Mahzouf.

San Lorenzo Park hosted an intimate marijuana-themed music festival this weekend. The Duck Island Stage featured three musical groups: Bayonics, The Green Lights and MoonAlice.

On Saturday afternoon hundreds came out for Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana’s (WAMM) ninth annual freedom and music festival. Patients and their supporters came together to celebrate the right to medical choice. Donations were encouraged, but not required.

WAMM threw the event in appreciation of local government for continually upholding Proposition 215, which allows the operation of medical marijuana collectives in California despite the federal ban on them.

Richard Johnson, a WAMM member and volunteer, said the discrepancy between state and federal law results in inconsistent enforcement.

“The question of medical marijuana has never been resolved,” Johnson said. “It’s always been a gray area between state and federal government.”

WAMMFest comes at a time of particular uncertainty for medical marijuana growers this year. U.S. attorney Melinda Haag announced earlier this month that she plans to close certain medical marijuana dispensaries.

“In the Northern District of California, I have decided to focus initially on [closing] stores that sell marijuana and allow people to smoke marijuana very close to schools, parks and other places where children learn and play,” Haag said at a press conference.

Haag said some dispensaries are in violation of state law in addition to federal law because they are located within 1,000 feet of schools and parks, a violation of Prop 420, passed in 2003. The IRS has been hitting California dispensaries like Harborside Health Center in Oakland with multimillion dollar tax bills.

California congress passed the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, or Prop 215, with 55 percent of the vote. It allowed for non-profit organizations to cultivate and distribute marijuana to seriously ill patients. WAMM co-founder Valerie Corral participated in the writing and passage of the bill.

Federal authorities under the Bush administration did not recognize the legality of medical marijuana and proceeded to raid growers and dispensaries in California. WAMMFest’s website notes the Corrals’ raid as a significant catalyst for the event.

“Our annual celebration was born in response to the Bush Administration’s attack on our collective garden,” according to WAMMFest’s website. “In 2002, 30 armed DEA agents raided the home of WAMM founders Mike and Valerie Corral, arresting them at gunpoint. Agents then used chainsaws to hack down the garden.”

Prop 420, the Medical Marijuana Implementation bill passed in 2003 through the California State Senate, outlined the rules and regulations for medical marijuana use and distribution. It also asserts medical marijuana is an issue under state jurisdiction.

Dale Gieringer, director of the California National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said federal intervention in California has been a violent interaction.

“I really felt we were being raped by the federal government in 2002,” Gieringer said, referring to the Corrals’ arrest. “And last week, I felt raped again.”

Last week federal officers raided Matthew Cohen’s home in Ukiah, Calif. Cohen, owner of Northstone Organics, woke up at 6 a.m. to machine guns and handcuffs.

“Cohen has a medical marijuana cooperative permit and [proof of compliance] zip ties from the Sheriff’s Office, and was among the first of local growers to get the permit under the county’s new Medical Marijuana Program,” according to the Ukiah Daily Journal.

According to the article, Cohen worked closely with local law enforcement to ensure he was operating within state law, even participating in compliance checks with the county sheriff three times per year.

WAMM member Johnson said federal closures do not make sense to him.

“For me, there are many angles of the hypocrisy of federal closures,” Johnson said. “The ones who have that angle of control generally would tend to be the ones to be on the side of states’ rights. It’s interesting how they’re so silent on this issue because it crosses over that border into drugs.”

The enthusiastic WAMMFest crowd didn’t seem fazed by recent raids and threats of closure. For them, federal threats are routine. WAMM member Johnson said the festival came about as a resistance to Corrals’ raid and arrest.

“This festival was founded out of rebellion and justice,” Johnson said. “Marijuana drug laws are built on fear and wanting to control.”

During the Oct. 7 press conference, U.S. attorney Haag said her experience with medical marijuana dispensaries in her community has been negative. She said Prop 215 has been “hijacked by profiteers who are motivated not by compassion, but by money.”

“If you watch for a moment, you see cars pulling over, seemingly young, healthy people jumping out of the cars, running into the store, and emerging with paper bags full of marijuana,” Haag said.

Johnson said the federal government is trying to keep marijuana stigmatized and out of reach for patients. He and other seriously ill patients say they are tired of crackdowns on medical marijuana dispensaries.

“From a medical perspective, it’s very frustrating,” Johnson said. “Since ‘95 I have lived with AIDS. Marijuana has played a key role in my health care. The biggest threat to my health is that the federal government won’t allow testing to see if THC would benefit people and they actually intimidate doctors to not write prescriptions.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at WAMM’s Freedom and Music Festival Returns to the Park

Illustration by Jamie Morton.

Over 2 million plastic beverage bottles are used in the United States every five minutes, according to Captain Charles Moore of the Algalita Marine Research Foundation.

Growing concerns for the environmental impact of rapidly-accumulated rubbish have prompted a new Santa Cruz City Council policy. On Oct. 11, the city council prohibited the city of Santa Cruz purchasing single-use bottled water for city offices in a 6-0 vote.

Vice Mayor Don Lane said during the meeting that the policy is “a small step within a city framework to make sure we are not unnecessarily creating plastic waste in our community.”

Reducing plastic waste and implementing policies to achieve this are important to many people in the Santa Cruz community.

Local conservation organization Save our Shores and Santa Cruz’s Waste Reduction staff prioritized informing the community about the inefficiency and environmental concerns associated with single-use plastic bottles.

“I brought this issue up because I shared their concern and hated to see our city money being used for something that could be so harmful,” Lane said.

The policy states no city funds will be used in order to purchase plastic bottles and will be regulated by the city’s finance department.

Laura Kasa, executive director of Save Our Shores (SOS), a non-profit organization that cares for and advocates on behalf of the Monterey Marine Sanctuary, spoke at the meeting. She thanked the city of Santa Cruz for trailblazing in banning plastic bottles from city offices.

“That is a great step that [the city] is taking,” Kasa said.

SOS coordinates inland and beach cleanups in the Santa Cruz area, and Kasa attributes the merit of the city’s move to the demographics of the trash items they collect.

“In just the past two years we have collected over 8,000 plastic bottles, many of those water bottles,” Kasa said. “We’ve found that 72 percent of everything we’re picking up is plastic, so this is really taking a right step toward this effort.”

Kasa hopes this policy will motivate people in changing their lifestyles and make a connection to how sustainability plays a large role in our lives.

Another advocacy group working towards removing plastic bottles is Take Back the Tap (TBTT), an on-campus organization focused on ending the sale of single-use plastic water bottles at UCSC by Earth Day 2012. TBTT has worked with three different units — dining services, third-party vendors, and student organizations — to make all of this possible.

TBTT member Gabi Kirk stressed that the privatization of the UC system raises the same issue as the commodification of water.

“We’re seeing an increasing privatization of the university and that actually ties really strongly into water,” Kirk said. “Bottled water takes a public good that everyone needs to survive, turns it into a consumer good and jacks up the price.”

Vice Mayor Lane said it is important Santa Cruzans think about their plastic consumption and drink tap water instead of bottled.

City Council members and other community affiliates hope this policy illustrates the city’s effort to embrace the concept of “reduce, reuse, recycle” and shift away from the use-and-toss mentality. Lane said it is a small step that can make a big difference for Santa Cruz and cities who may follow suit.

Kirk is ready to push for more universities to adopt policies that address plastic consumption.

“Even when we declare victory the campaign won’t be over,” Kirk said. “We’re launching a statewide organizing website and connecting to students at other California universities to learn from their campaigns and teach them about what we’re doing.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Bottled Water Prohibited for City Employees

Illustration by Jamie Morton

In today’s abundance of new gadgets, one in particular is causing controversy in Santa Cruz County and across the state. The “Smart Meter” is a wireless digital device appearing along the California coast and igniting heated discussions.

A Smart Meter is a wireless digital utility meter that measures the amount of electricity and gas used in a household or business. All buildings had analog meters before the switch to Smart Meters. These wireless devices send information to Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), the sole energy provider in northern and central California.

With projected benefits like “better usage of renewable power” as well as “smart devices and smart homes,” the PG&E website states “the Smart Meter system lets you track your energy use anytime throughout the month, so you can make smart decisions and control your energy costs.”

PG&E began installing Smart Meters in 2006 when the California Public Utilities Commission approved the switch. The company plans to be finished with all installations in 2012.

Residents around the county and state are upset about these new energy tracking devices because they emit potentially dangerous electromagnetic frequencies during hourly updates to PG&E. The long-term effects of constant exposure to this level of radiation are unclear.

StopSmartMeters! is a movement that began as the “Scotts Valley Neighbors Against Smart Meters” in June 2010. The group advocates for ceasing installation of Smart Meters in Santa Cruz County by providing information on their website, holding weekly protests, and writing letters to the Santa Cruz City Council.

Josh Hart, a 1998 UC Santa Cruz graduate who holds a master’s degree in transportation planning, is the director of StopSmartMeters!. He is greatly concerned with the negative effects the meters may have on life in our community and on a global scale.

“Smart Meters are having impacts on humans, animals and plants,” Hart said. “It’s horrific. People are having symptoms of electrosensitivity — such as headaches, fatigue, depression, sleeplessness — but the long term could possibly even be tumors and cancer.”

Hart said radiation is creating health and environmental issues that are “actually pushing people out of their homes and neighborhoods. I know people that have had to leave their property because of Smart Meter radiation.”

Over the summer, UCSC lecturer and nuclear policy expert Daniel Hirsch, along with two college students, conducted a study on the potential health effects of Smart Meters. Hirsch’s research is in no way associated with the university. State legislators requested the independent science base study in an attempt to avoid bias in the data measurement or conclusions.

The results from testing were inconclusive regarding the radiation’s health effects. Hirsch’s research found Smart Meters emit significantly more radiation than the average cellphone.

“The cumulative whole body exposure from a Smart Meter at three feet appears to be approximately two orders of magnitude higher than that of a cellphone, rather than two orders of magnitude lower,” according to Hirsch’s study, indicating that the information given out by PG&E was incorrect.

In January 2011, Watsonville, Santa Cruz, Scotts Valley and Capitola voted against the installation of Smart Meters.

Though Santa Cruz did not pass an official ordinance, the council agreed that if people want to opt out of Smart Meters, they should be able to do so for free, instead of being charged a potential fee from PG&E.

Community members have asked the city to ban Smart Meters. Vice Mayor Don Lane said state law prevents any city ordinance from being effective.

“The city of Santa Cruz chose to not go through with an ordinance,” Lane said, “not because we didn’t have any sympathies, but because we knew it would just be a symbolic act.”

Tony Madrigal, a Santa Cruz councilmember since 2004, is a proponent of having alternatives to Smart Meters for city residents to choose from.

“I support the community members having an option about having Smart Meters,” Madrigal said. “I think our community functions best when people have options, when everyone is clearly educated on what the options are, especially in their own native language.”

Lane said he has “mixed feelings” about Smart Meters.

“I have concerns about the radiation issue,” Lane said, “but the concept of a statewide network can be really valuable in terms of energy efficiency and a possible reduction of our state’s carbon footprint. It’s really a challenging issue. There’s a reason the Public Utilities chose to do this. It’s not just PG&E versus the people.”

Even though 43 counties in California have voted against Smart Meters, PG&E continues installation.

The Santa Cruz Board of Supervisors voted in favor of Ordinance No. 5084, which prohibited the installation of Smart Meters in unincorporated areas of the county for one year beginning in January 2011.

“No Smart Meter may be installed in or on any home, apartment, condominium or business of any type within the unincorporated area of the County of Santa Cruz,” according to the policy, “and no equipment related to Smart Meters may be installed in, on, under, or above any public street or public right of way within the unincorporated area of the County of Santa Cruz.”

PG&E declined to be quoted for this story. The PG&E website has a specific section dedicated to Smart Meters, explaining what they are.

Hart believes PG&E should respect the Board of Supervisors’ decision to ban the Smart Meters.

“PG&E continues to install Smart Meters even though the county voted against them,” Hart said. “People do have rights and powers to say no.”

Santa Cruz county sheriff Phil Wowak has been criticized by some members of the community for not enforcing the county’s decision and allowing PG&E to continue installations. Hart believes it’s up to the community of Santa Cruz to rally together to protest Smart Meters.

“Sheriff Wowak refuses to enforce this law and is currently being recalled through a community effort,” Hart said. “There’s a signature gathering happening right now.”

Lane said the sheriff’s department cannot enforce the law because utilities in California are run by the California Public Utilities Commission, which approved Smart Meter installation for PG&E in 2006.

Hart said consumers should exercise their right to understand the risks associated with the controversial technology.

“People need to realize they have rights and the right to question.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Radiation From Smart Meters Raises Concern

Protesters Rally Outside the Santa Cruz courthouse on Monday near midnight. Protesters have also lined up hundreds of signs in front of the courthouse where they camp out and “Occupy Santa Cruz.” Photo by Toby Silverman.

Almost a week after the group’s first General Assembly, the Occupy Santa Cruz movement has taken shape. The diverse group of activists has expanded its presence from San Lorenzo Park to the Santa Cruz Superior Courthouse on the steps of the Water Street entrance this week.

Monday evening’s General Assembly meeting began at approximately 6:15 p.m. on the Water Street side of the courthouse. Roughly 50 protesters surrounded by twice as many signs gathered to discuss proposals related to the occupation of San Lorenzo Park and the courthouse steps.

The group agreed to meet at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday morning to decide whether they would be moving the occupation. The protesters weighed the pros and cons of establishing the occupation’s base at the courthouse, but are currently scouting for the next location to occupy.

Toward the end of the general assembly, one man asked the crowd of protesters for a show of hands indicating who was willing to sleep at the courthouse — which would be illegal — and risk getting arrested. Half a dozen people raised their hands.

“People need to stand up and show that we are not going to back down,” someone shouted.

The Occupy Wall Street movement began officially on Sept. 17, when demonstrators began to assemble in New York City’s Liberty Square. After three weeks of camping and occupying the square, the movement has spread to cities across the nation, including Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Atlanta, Seattle, District of Columbia, Raleigh-Durham and now Santa Cruz.

In total, Occupy Wall Street events have emerged in over 1,322 cities nationwide. One week ago, there were only 302 cities participating throughout the country.

Casey Livingood, a local resident who  protested throughout the weekend, said he feels “social revolution is happening,” as he stood in front of a large sign on the courthouse steps that read, “Thanks Egypt,” a reference to the Egyptian revolution and the Arab Spring, which began earlier this year.

“Cops came and were impressed we had everything cleaned up,” Livingood said, as he explained how the police frequently check in with the protesters throughout the day. “They’re fine with any political protest, but they will not tolerate lodging at the courthouse.”

An older man, in a show of division from other protesters, instructed protesters to get the name and badge number of police officers who try to remove them. He also recommended protesters comply with any officers who ask the protesters to vacate the premises.

“We do not allow ourselves to be moved,” a young man yelled. “The cops are going to show up when there are as few of us as possible.”

Protest signs were scattered throughout the steps and lawn of the courthouse. Demonstrators chose to display signs on the Water Street side of the building so passersby could see them. Slogans on the signs included “1300 + Occupations World Wide Join Us,” “Democracy Is Not a Spectator Sport,” and “Social Revolution Is Happening.”

“The last three nights have been really fun,” said Hayden Bean, referring to the occupation of the courthouse and San Lorenzo Park throughout the weekend. Bean, a Santa Cruz resident, said he has enjoyed “meeting like-minded people.”

Occupy Santa Cruz has recieved food donations from local residents who support their cause. With so much food, it is “hard to eat before it goes bad,” said Livingood, who says he is the liaison for donations.

The demonstrators created a special committee, the “Waste Management and Sanitation Group,” which oversees issues regarding clean-up and disposal of trash.

“We’re actually pretty conscious of the waste we create,” Livingood said.

Activists Ellen Kane, who described herself as a “long-term community member,” said she did not want to see the occupation end.

“I don’t expect this to peter out,” said Kane, who said she wants Occupy Santa Cruz to protest political and economic dishonesty.

UC Santa Cruz students have joined Occupy Santa Cruz as well. Austin Bruckner, a second-year undergraduate, said he slept at the courthouse last Friday and planned to sleep there again Monday night. He said he believes the U.S. education system needs to abolish tuition.

“Education should be free,” Bruckner said.

Bruckner’s roommate Evan Powell, a second-year psychology and linguistics double major, said he supports Occupy Santa Cruz because he is an anarchist and is “disgusted with a lot of things going on” in the political and economic systems of the United States.

Frustrated with the political system, Kane believes the Occupy movement has the power to change it.

“I’ve worked my whole life,” Kane said, describing her involvement in the activist community for the last few decades.

“I pray to hell it continues all over this country.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Occupy Santa Cruz Rallies On

Photo by Christopher Lee.

Story updated 10/9/2011 at 2:12am

Two cars were totalled this evening in a car accident at the intersection of Broadway and Cayuga in Santa Cruz.

At approximately 5:15p.m., a black Subaru attempted to cross the street at the intersection. As the Subaru crossed, a white Camaro, unable to brake in time, struck the right side of the Subaru going approximately 15-20 mph. Alcohol does not appear to have been involved with the accident.

Brad Martin, the driver of the white Camaro, said the Subaru caught him by surprise.

“I wasn’t even going that fast when the guy suddenly decided to rush across the street,” Martin said. “I didn’t even hit the brake it happened so quick. I just simply didn’t see him.”

The Subaru then flipped approximately one and a half times before settling on its left side next to a street stop sign. While there have been no serious injuries reported, Martin’s fiancee, Fawn Pearl, who was a passenger in the white Camaro, was taken away by ambulance from the scene.

“We were [in Santa Cruz] for this engagement/birthday party thing,” Martin said. “This is a great way to start the weekend.”

Motioning to the police officers nearby while taking a drag from his cigarette, Martin moved for his phone to contact his insurance company.

“It was [the Subraru driver's] fault. At least [the police] say it was his fault,” Martin said.

By about 5:20p.m., police and firemen had the situation under control, taking down witness statements and removing the vehicles from obstructing the street intersection. Traffic along Broadway began to back up, and vehicles heading southbound on Cayuga had to be turned around.

Geoff Llewellyn, driving his way home with his friends Austin Wood and Katie Humphreys, witnessed the accident play out in front of him.

“We were turning left onto Cayuga when we saw the car get hit in front of us.” Llewellyn said. “It was crazy.”

Still startled by the suddenness of the crash, Humphreys counted herself and her friends lucky they were not the ones hit. Pointing over at the Subaru, still laying on its side surrounded by broken glass and personal items of the driver inside, Humphreys judged they narrowly avoided getting hit by the once airborne wreck.

“I mean, we were lucky [the Subaru] was hit straight on its broadside,” Humphreys said. “If the car had hit the front side even a little bit more, it probably would have hit us.”

Local resident Debbie Justice believes that the accident was not an isolated incident. Justice said that ever since Soquel Street had one of its lanes closed, the uptick in redirected traffic to Boadway has led to more accidents.

“This intersection is particularly bad,” Justice said. “It gets narrower from one side of Broadway to the other as you cross Cayuga. I’m constantly seeing accidents happen here.”

Justice, who did not see the crash happen but rushed to the scene after hearing it from her home less than a block away, is worried about how close the intersection is to the Gault Elementary School, located about a block away on Seabright.

“One day one of these kids are going to get hit walking or bicycling to school,” Justice said. “They won’t see it coming. The city’s got to start considering this.”

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Major Traffic Accident on Broadway

San Francisco protestors gather at the Federal Reserve Building on Saturday, Oct. 1, where the Planning Action Committee discussed direction and logistics of the Occupy San Francisco Movement. The gathering followed the established protest in New York, Occupy Wall Street. The Santa Cruz offshoot, Occupy Santa Cruz, began shortly after Saturday’s meeting in San Francisco. Photo by Pierce Crosby.

Occupy San Francisco attendees protest in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street action, which has spread to more than 430 cities across the nation. Photo by Pierce Crosby.

Photo by Pierce Crosby.

“Strength of conviction has never been a problem for Santa Cruz,” former Mayor Scott Kennedy said at the kick-off of the Occupy Santa Cruz action, an offshoot of the Occupy Wall Street movement happening on the opposite coast. According to occupytogether.org, more than 430 similar occupations have sprung up in cities and towns across the nation as of press time.

Kennedy, seated on a park bench after dusk, engaged in political banter with Robert Norse, a well-known local activist who works with Free Radio Santa Cruz. The two, who do not always see eye-to-eye (especially considering the lawsuit hanging between them), sparred, speaking to past, present and future local and national issues.

Such conversation characterized the general atmosphere of the evening. Springing up via word of mouth, Twitter, Facebook and other various forms of online communication, and inspired by Occupy Wall Street, a leaderless group that began meeting in New York City’s Liberty Square on Sept. 17, Occupy Santa Cruz is modeled on the same principles of open, participatory and horizontal organization between attendees.

After three weeks of camping and occupying the New York City square, the movement has spread across the nation to other major cities, including Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Atlanta, Seattle, District of Columbia, Raleigh-Durham and now Santa Cruz.

In San Francisco, the movement began with rallies held in front of Chase Bank, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and the Federal Reserve. The federal reserve in Union Square has become the headquarters for protesters and the movement’s “camp.”

Protests have continued systematically, using the medium of social media to bring attention to their cause. Events are planned and discussed on online forums such as occupysf.com.

On Oct. 1, Occupy SF took to the streets to raise awareness to passersby and discuss the best way to utilize attendees.

The occupation continues at 101 Market St.

“There is a lot of work to be done, the first stage is definitely getting more people here to help us fight this battle,” college graduate Adrian Martinez said while participating in one of the divided groups gathered on the front lawns of Union Square.

Although the Bay Area protest consistently remains non-violent, on Thursday, Sept. 29, six protesters were arrested for the charge of occupying the private space of a Chase bank.

In Santa Cruz, demonstration began shortly after the San Francisco actions.

On Oct. 4, a closely huddled crowd of approximately 300 people held ad hoc demonstration signs high above the crowd. Some of the slogans read “End imperialist war and capital exploitation” and “Rage against the machine.”

When the general assembly began at approximately 5 p.m., the crowd simultaneously vocalized their concerns, opinions and demands. After a slight, confident young woman ordered people to speak one at a time, the discussion became more orderly. The assemblage discussed spaces for a more permanent occupations, such as the Santa Cruz Courthouse and the empty building on Pacific Avenue that previously housed Borders bookstore.

By a show of hands, a consensus was reached. The occupation will be in San Lorenzo Park beginning today, Oct. 6. Along with the planned march to banks such as Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo, reports of demonstrating at the county courthouse were heard as well.

Some of the primary aims of the Occupy Wall Street movement are to take back the United States government, which demonstrators say has been hijacked by banks and corporations. In Santa Cruz, as in New York, the people who form the movement are saying the same thing: the corporate profiteers, corrupt politics, and the “too big to fail” banks need to come to an end.

How they were going to take action against the banks, corporations and government was not exactly clear at first, but by the end of the assembly they had agreed that, along with establishing a strong foothold at the San Lorenzo Park, they will meet under the clock tower downtown to march to each local branch of the Wall Street banks.

This first march will be to the “too big to fail” banks, to withdraw money, then march to one or more local community banks to redeposit their money. If all goes as planned, thousands of dollars, if not more, in people’s checking and savings accounts will have been effectively removed from the investment powers of the big banks and into Santa Cruz’s local economy.

Kyle Thiermann, local activist and founder of Surfing for Change, weighed in on Occupy Santa Cruz’s plan to move money from the major banks and into the community banks.

“People are waking up to understanding their power,” Thiermann said. “It’s so cool that Santa Cruz is making that happen.”

Thiermann is well known in the surfing community as a great surfer and passionate activist. His work is aimed at the average person and encourages them to move their money out of large banks, namely Bank of America, and into smaller community banks and credit unions.

Thiermann said his work has caused around $300 million to be moved from Bank of America to community banks.

“When you put $1 into the bank, the bank has the power to turn that $1 into $10” using “fractional reserve banking,” which, Thiermann said gives large banks more leverage in the global economy because they turn around and invest it elsewhere in the world. Therefore, Thiermann insists, it is more beneficial to a community if people bank locally, because that community is replenished with their money.

By 8 p.m., the large group of 300 had split into several factions, each containing approximately 20 individuals. There was a group for philosophy, one for food, and another for legal matters, among others.

“It went very well … everybody got a chance to voice their opinions,” said Hugo Arana, a local carpenter who “for many years has been disappointed by the economic system that we have that puts profits before community.”

Similar tactics for discussion have been used in San Francisco and at the movement’s U.S. origin on Wall Street.

“So far we’ve all been basically working towards planning dates and networking with the people, but it’s a challenge because you don’t want to make a hierarchy. This is an equal movement, we’re all Americans, and we want an equal system,” said an Occupy San Francisco protestor who wished to remain anonymous because of his job.

David Addison, a Santa Cruz library employee at the local gathering, said he was glad to see the solidarity at the event. Addison, who brought his wife, child and mother in-law to the general assembly, said it is “the beginning of something” because the middle-class is not “represented anymore in this country — we are the 99 percent.”

Addison acknowledges the differences between Santa Cruz and New York, namely the lack of a financial district, but maintains that community mobilization is nevertheless vital.

“I want to see the average person in this country be represented,” said Addison, before following his daughter toward the park swing set.

Additional reporting by Pierce Crosby.

---- (C) 2011 City on a Hill Press. All Rights Reserved. View online at Occupy Santa Cruz Kicks Off