Santa Cruz County Resilience Digest

While it might be reopening in August, Capitola is still in the process of developing a long-term vision for the iconic wharf.

Because of damage to pilings sustained in a December storm, the Dolphin Restaurant is set to be taken down to effect repairs to the end of the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf.

Repairs to roads damaged in recent storms, including the slow-moving slide on Mountain Charlie Road, depend on state and federal funding and could take years to complete.

The Sempervirens Fund has purchased two adjacent parcels to be transferred to park ownershipfor use as a new entrance and to replace other facilities destroyed in the CZU Fire.

A 34-unit tiny home village for people displaced when Pajaro was flooded will begin construction in Watsonville on a church-owned parcel in Watsonville.

The California Public Utilities Commission will consider on May 9 a new proposal that would change how Californians pay for electricity.

California State Parks and partner Friends of California State Parks are working together on a project to rehabilitate a number of dunes at Rio Del Mar State Beach to reduce erosion, increase resilience and restore wildlife habitat.

A California Republican’s bill would exempt low and middle income wildfire victims from solar panels requirements on rebuilt homes that didn’t have them when they burned down.

Marimo Berk and Brad Lewis joined the Board of Directors of Sempervirens Fund, the oldest land trust in California.

It quickly became clear that Elon Musk’s SpaceX was responsible for the show. The lights were a Falcon 9 rocket carrying 22 new Starlink satellites into orbit. The rocket blasted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base at 7:30 p.m., and it’s trail was visible from Los Angeles to Joshua Tree National Park.

Legislation would fast-track approval for temporary or relocatable housing on vacant land when local shelter emergencies arise.

Work on repairing and rebuilding the Capitola Wharf has been complicated after inspections reveal structures at the end of the structure will require demolition.

Reprepresentatives Zoe Lofgren and Jimmy Panetta, and Senators Laphonza Butler and Alex Padilla sent a letter to the Biden administration are requesting full funding for the Pajaro River Levee project.

A tornado stuck Kings county briefly, and another touched down in Madera county, as favorable conditions came together during a powerful winter storm which swept the region.

The agency announced it has secured two Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loans through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency which will push the construction of the Watsonville Slough System closer to fruition.

State officials determined that Rancho Palos Verdes can utilize an already-established state of emergency to expedite landslide stabilization efforts as the crisis escalates.

The California Public Utilities Commission is reviewing an application from AT&T California to be relieved of its decades-old obligation to provide landline service in many regions, including parts of Santa Cruz County.

California’s utility regulators are exploring energy bill reforms that would structure charges based on household income. If done correctly, the change shift the cost for maintaining the grid to higher earners who can afford it.

Los Angeles County flood control network withstands punishing rains—for now.

The storm fed off of unusually warm waters as it grew. It also reached “bomb cyclone” status as it neared California.

Mark Strudley, executive director of the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency, estimates that work will begin in late summer or early fall, starting at the Corralitos Creek Bridge.

After the historic Alba Schoolhouse in Ben Lomond burned down in the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex fire, there was hope for rebuilding. But insurance payments complicated those plans.

An updated earthquake hazard map from USGS shows a high shaking risk in California.

Hundreds of San Diego homes and businesses were damaged or ruined in devastating floods after punishing rainfall fell on Jan. 22.

As the FAIR Plan writes more fire-insurance policies, homeowners complain about poor service, rising costs and threats of getting kicked off.

Our understanding and preparedness have come a long way since Southern California’s magnitude 6.7 earthquake in 1994. We’re still learning from that destructive temblor.

Like the redwoods that survived the devastating CZU fire of 2020, the McHenry family is resilient. That fateful August conflagration ruined a promising crop at Beauregard Vineyards.

Two-thirds of community college students in California admit to struggling to meet basic needs. The California Community Colleges’ Student Ambassador Program has empowered more than 50 students to act as resource guides to help them.

After absorbing a heavy one-two punch by way of mammoth waves and a high tide, local crews and community members cleaned up the mess that was left behind while preparing for an imminent round of storm activity.

On Dec. 28, coastal storm surges damaged waterfront restaurants in Capitola and Aptos. Less than a year ago, the same businesses required lengthy repairs after similar storms caused major destruction.

Prescribed burns, used to limit destructive wildfires, are growing in frequency at California State Parks. But as the smoke drifts into residential areas, it’s easy to see why many Californians are concerned about the health impacts.

In downtown Oakland, a new 19-story apartment tower with 236 units could be left sitting vacant because of a shortage of components required to connect the building to the electrical grid.