Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Campers help each other to put a new tent in San Lorenzo Park.
Judge Extends Temporary Restraining Order on San Lorenzo Camp Evictions
By KEITH MCHENRY
Federal Magistrate Judge Susan van Keulen just granted a 7 day extension of the Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) protecting the campers at San Lorenzo Park from eviction for one more week. She will issue her ruling Jan. 13. A hearing is not scheduled as of now.
The judge questioned the need to clear the park in the winter during a spike in Covid-19 cases. Judge Susan van Keulen also pointed out that hotel vouchers providing rooms for two to four days was not a solution.
City Attorney Cassie Bronson noted that if the camp was not cleared, many more people might move in possibly increasing the numbers to as many as 300 people highlighting the fact that hundreds of people have no safe place to sleep in Santa Cruz. She also suggested that the unhoused are more likely to contract Covid-19 in the shelters.
Resistance to the Holiday Evictions and the success in Federal Court is contributing to the already strong sense of community felt by the campers and their allies.
The community is asking Santa Cruz County Health Officer Gail Newel to issue an explicit health order to cease and desist from clearing homeless encampments, most particularly at San Lorenzo Park and the area known as the Benchlands.
For information please contact Anthony Prince, attorney for the California Union of the Homeless at 510-301-1472.
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Support Transitional Encampment Plan
By SARAH RINGLER
Brent Adams of the Warming Center wants to use his knowledge, compassion and skills to help the city with transitional camps for the homeless. He said that when camps are closed, the city and county should implement an Encampment Displacement Policy. There should be an appropriate place for people to go with help in transporting their belongings. That place needs to have, at least, adequate clean water, garbage disposal, toilets, secure storage areas and showers.
The camps should be managed and have an expectation of good behavior through Community Agreements. He also thinks that the city and county need to offer permit certification to non-profits, like his, that have experience and want to operate transitional encampments. Adam's Community Agreement is below.
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Fact Sheet: Public Safety in Santa Cruz - Care Not Cops
By SHEILA CARRILLO
‘If someone could take the homeless issues entirely from us and stop us from responding to mental health calls—please, take the money!’ - Santa Cruz Police Department Chief Andy Mills
S.C.P.D. Budget:
- Police budget is $31 million, 28.1% of the 2020 General Fund operating budget.
- The S.C.P.D. responds to about 100,000 calls a year at an average cost of about $300 per response.
- In 2018, only 15.5% of calls to the police were designated as crime related. 60% of the calls, at seven calls an hour, were related to unhoused people, and 20% were welfare checks.
- In 2019, over $15 million dollars of department funds were spent addressing calls regarding the homeless.
An alternative model to police response for nonviolent crises, Crisis Assistance Helping Out On the Streets, CAHOOTS, was established in 1989 in Eugene Oregon.
- Mobilizes two-person teams--a medic (a nurse, paramedic, or EMT) and a crisis worker trained and experienced in the mental health field at 1/3 cost of police dispatch.
- Addresses and de-escalates non-violent mental health and social service-related crises calls, including houselessness, substance abuse, suicide prevention, domestic violence, and welfare checks.
- Last year, CAHOOTS took 17% of police calls on 2% of the police department budget, saving the city of Eugene approximately $8.5 million in public safety spending and $14 million in emergency room and ambulance costs.
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Photo contributed
Covid-19 Protections for Tenants Expire Jan. 31
By SARAH RINGLER
As Covid-19 surges through our community, many have lost their jobs and now risk losing their homes. Previous moratoriums from the state, cities and counties are due to expire on Jan. 31. To prevent a huge increase in homelessness, we must ask our local elected officials to extend current Eviction Moratoriums now. Contact your councilmember in Santa Cruz or Watsonville as well as your county supervisor now. Ask them to Extend the Current Eviction Moratorium. Also, if you are a tenant, join us, take the survey and help build renter power.
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
A male juvenile wood duck cruises the waters of Neary Lagoon. The surface feeding ducks are fairly common yearround in our region in open woodlands near water.
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ECONOMICS
Santa Cruz County Housing Report
Here is the Housing Inventory Snapshot for our county from Raeid Farhat Real Estate Inc. as of Dec. 31.
Single Family homes - The average list price: $1,143,521 (-1.43%, 30-day trend) and average sold price: $1,033,744 (-3.32%, 30-day trend).
Luxury Family homes - Average list price: $3,526,690 (5.18%, 30-day trend) and average sold price: $3,232,327 (24.88%, 30 day trend).
Condo/Townhomes: Average list price: $528,352 (-4.34%, 30-day trend), and average sold price: $569,932 (-8.88% 30-day trend)
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“Investors were encourged on Wednesday by the prospect that Democrats would have a unified government within a few weeks and usher in a wave of new spending to shore up the economy. Even as a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol, stocks ended the day higher”
Matt Phillips - New York Times, Jan. 7
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County Covid-19 Report
By SARAH RINGLER
cases that tested positive. That is an increase of 13% from last Thursday. 97 people have now died, an increase of 17%.
We are under Regional Stay-At-home-orders based on the availability of Intensive Care Unit beds in our region, the Bay Area, that includes Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Monterey, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma counties. For information on the Stay at Home Orders, go here.
The distribution of data has remained mostly stable over time with percentages rarely changing by more than one point. The county's Effective Reproductive Number continues to be above one. See chart below which is continually updated. Numbers above one show the spread of the virus is increasing. Below one means the spread is decreasing.
To get tested without a doctor’s request, call 1-888-634-1123 or go online at https://lhi.care/covidtesting. The testing clinic is at at Ramsay Park in Watsonville. Other testing sites that may have restricted access can be found here.
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Known cases tested positive by age/% of population:
19 and under - 19%/25%
20-34 - 30%/22%
35-44 - 16%/12%
45-64 - 25%/27%
65 or older - 11%/15%
Tested positive by ethnicity/% of population:
Multi-Race - 1%/3%
White - 18%/58%
Latinx - 54%/34%
Black - .4%/.9%
Asian - 2%/4%
Other - 11%/.4%
Unknown - 14%
Tested positive by gender/% of population:
Female - 52%/50%
Male - 47%/50%
Other - 0%
Under Investigation - 1%
Tested positive by region/% of population:
Mid-county - 20%/12%
North county - 17%/60%
South county - 62%/29%
Under investigation - 2%
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Weekly increases in positive tests:
June 12-19 - 7%
June 19-26 - 23%
June 26 to July 3 - 22%
July 3-9 - 23%
July 9-16 - 40%
July 16-23 - 20%
July 23-30 - 27%
July 30-Aug. 6 - 13%
Aug. 6-13- 12%
Aug.14-20 - 16%
Aug.20-28 - 10%
Aug. 28-Sept. 3 - 10%
Sept. 3-10 - 6%
Sept. 10-17- 8%
Sept. 17-24 - 7%
Sept. 25- Oct.1 - 5%
Oct. 1 - 9 - 4%
Oct. 9-15 - 4%
Oct. 15-22 - 5%
Oct. 23-29 - 4%
Oct. 30-Nov. 5 - 6%
Nov. 5-12 - 10%
Nov. 12-19 - 11%
Nov. 19-26 - holiday
Nov. 19-Dec. 3 - 29% 2 weeks of data for this week only
Dec. 3-10 - 16%
Dec. 10-17 - 17%
Dec. 17-24 - 14%
Dec. 24-31 - 19%
Jan. 1-7 - 13%
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Orange and Almond Bars
By SARAH RINGLER
This recipe comes from “Festive Foods,” a 1963 publication put out by the Milwaukee Gas and Light Company. I got this little booklet from my mom who has circled, checked and starred her favorites. So, even though the booklet is stained and falling apart, it is special to me. That’s the sad thing about one’s favorite recipe books; they are the ones that are used the most and most likely to decompose. At least some of the recipes are being reborn and redistributed here.
I decided that I wanted to use peeled almonds. They can be peeled after boiling them in water for five minutes or so.
Almond Nut Bars
Crust:
1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
Filling:
2 beaten eggs
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 cup chopped almonds or Brazil Nuts
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons flour
Topping:
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoon citrus juice
1 1/2 tablespoons grated citrus rind – wash the fruit well
1 1/4 cups sifted confectioners’ or powdered sugar
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Mix flour and salt. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles meal. Press the mixture to the bottom of an ungreased 8-inch pan. Bake in the oven for about 18 minutes or until golden brown.
Beat the eggs in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add the brown sugar, salt, vanilla extract and flour and mix has dissolved. Then, add the coconut and the chopped nuts. When the crust comes out of the oven, spread this mixture over the crust. Return to the oven and bake about 15 minutes until done.
While bars are baking, make the topping. Mix the butter, juice, rind and sugar with an electric mixer until it is smooth.
When bars are cool, spread on the topping and sprinkle with chopped nuts. Cut into squares.
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YOUR STORY OR ART HERE: Please submit a story that you think would be of interest to the people of Santa Cruz County. Try and keep the word count to around 400. Also, there should be suggested actions if possible. Submit to coluyaki@gmail.com
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Welcome to Serf City Times. Over time, our county has grown more stratified and divided with many people feeling left out. Housing affordability, racism and low wages are the most obvious factors. However, many groups and individuals in Santa Cruz County work tirelessly to make our county a better place for everyone. These people work on the environment, housing, economic justice, health, criminal justice, disability rights, immigrant rights, racial justice, transportation, workers’ rights, education reform, gender issues, equity issues, electoral politics and more. Often, one group doesn’t know what another is doing. The Serf City Times is dedicated to serving as a clearinghouse for those issues by letting you know what is going on, what actions you can take and how you can support these groups.This is a self-funded enterprise and all work is volunteer.
Copyright © 2021 Sarah Ringler - All rights reserved
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