Climate change crusader Al Gore engages local youth
Former Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore opened his May 17 talk at California State University Monterey Bay with a classic quote from anthropologist Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever does.”

Every seat was taken for the fourth lecture in the annual series hosted by the Panetta Institute, a CSUMB-based nonpartisan educational foundation focused on public policy. The roughly 800 students in attendance came from campuses throughout the Central Coast, and the processes used to select them for participation were as diverse as the region itself. Later in the evening, Gore would speak at an $85-per-ticket event at the Golden State Theatre in Monterey (broadcast live on local television). But here, the crowd would be tougher to play to—after all, it rests on the slim shoulders of the students in this room and their generation to make amends for the climate crisis.

Three Santa Cruz preschool co-ops fight to remain open
On Tuesday, May 18, uncertainty filled the classroom as the parents of Soquel Parent Education Nursery School (Soquel PENS) congregated for their last monthly parent meeting of the school year—and what might be their last meeting ever.

Soquel PENS is a preschool co-op with two sister schools, Westside PENS (WPENS) and Santa Cruz PENS (SCPENS). The schools have been a part of the Santa Cruz community for decades, ranging from 35 years to 61 years in operation. “There are grandmothers that went there before their daughters. And now their daughters’ daughters are going there,” says Matthew Kirk-Williams, father of 4-year-old Logan, who attends Soquel PENS.

Velvet Underground finds strength in community (Third in a series.)
In the May 6 issue, we heard from City Councilmembers Ryan Coonerty and Lynn Robinson about the city’s reaction to the May 1 riots, and last week we spoke with Linnaea Holgers James, owner of Artisan’s Gallery, one of the 18 businesses that were vandalized. This week, we continue the conversation with Diane Towns, owner of Velvet Underground.

A Q&A with Linnaea Holgers James, owner of Artisan's Gallery, one of the 18 businesses vandalized during the May 1 riots
Last week we heard from Santa Cruz Vice Mayor Ryan Coonerty and City Coucilmember Lynn Robinson on what the council is doing to address the recent acts of violence in town and what residents can do to help keep the community safe. Since then, Coonerty, Robinson and Councilmember Cynthia Mathews announced several further actions the city is taking to address the destruction, including allocating $5,000 from the council's special project fund to create a reward fund for gathering information about the recent gang-related shootings and downtown violence. They also held a special meeting for Downtown Association members on Wednesday, May 5 at the Santa Cruz Police Department.

A proposed Santa Cruz County Rodeo has some saddling up, and others up in arms
At last year’s Santa Cruz County Fair, County Sheriff Sgt. Michael MacDonald conducted an informal survey of attendees. He asked them, “If a rodeo were brought to the Santa Cruz County Fairground for the purpose of raising money to support our local schools and children’s organizations, would you attend?” One hundred percent said yes.

As the vice president of the Santa Cruz County Deputy Sheriff’s Association (DSA) and the founder of its newborn fundraising branch, Stars of Justice, Inc., MacDonald spent the following months busily planning a proposal for just that: a Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA)-sanctioned rodeo, hosted by the DSA, to be held at the county fairgrounds this October. It would raise money for after-school programs and youth services.

Race organizers, city officials hope the high cost of being an AMGEN host pays off
On a rainy afternoon last February, nearly 15,000 people gathered in Downtown Santa Cruz to watch as bicycle superstar Lance Armstrong streaked into town, one blur of a jersey among many, as part of the Amgen Tour of California, the grueling nine-day, 750-mile bike race along the length of the state.

The city spent close to $80,000 to host the Stage 2 finish line, hoping that it would act as an immediate boon for local business and tourism. They were disappointed. City reports concluded that the overall revenue from sales tax was minimal and that hotel occupancy numbers didn’t experience a significant rise, although some downtown businesses—mainly coffee shops and restaurants—did see substantially increased profits the day of the race.

With legalization on the November ballot, GT takes a look back over the movement’s history
“Doctors smoke it. Nurses smoke it. Judges smoke it, even the lawyers too …” It seems as though Jamaican reggae singer Peter Tosh’s message has finally gotten across to Californians. A proposition to “Legalize It” will appear on the November statewide ballot, asking voters to make recreational marijuana use legal for everyone over the age of 21.

Marijuana has been in the public eye since the 1960s, and has been on a tumultuous path toward normalization ever since. The upcoming ballot initiative, titled The Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010, seeks to end the battle once and for all.

According to the Act, approximately 100 million Americans—around one-third of the country’s population—acknowledge that they have used cannabis, confirming that a large percentage of Americans have made marijuana a part of their life regardless of legal implications.

Local nonprofit MAPS makes history with hit conference on psychedelic science
“The Tao Te Ching says, ‘Those who know don’t speak; those who speak don’t know,” psychologist William A. Richards, Ph.D., says to a large and colorful crowd on April 16. “But in science, we do the best we can. We just don’t know any better!”

Richards, whose talk outlined a study of the use of psilocybin for the treatment of end-of-life anxiety in cancer patients, was one of dozens of speakers at “Psychedelic Science in the 21st Century,” a keenly anticipated conference that took place at a San Jose Holiday Inn from April 15-18. The event was presented by the Santa Cruz-based organization MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies), an IRS-approved nonprofit working to legalize psychedelic drugs and marijuana as prescription drugs.

Proposal for a new Boulder Creek recreation center causes a controversy
The current Boulder Creek Recreation Center sits in an unassuming location behind the Fire Department. A new proposal put forth by the Boulder Creek Recreation and Park District Board of Directors would move the center into a larger space that could serve thousands more people a month and provide more programs for area teens.

But a growing number of concerned residents are saying the plan is not as peachy as it sounds. These neighbors have formed the Boulder Creek-Brookdale Coalition of Concerned Citizens,  (BCBCCC), and are up in arms over the proposal for the new multi-million dollar recreation center that would be built in a residential area on the south side of town. The building would take up nearly three-quarters of a city block, leaving the two homes not included in the purchase with backyards bordering the parking lot.

Singing activists and city clash, weighing First Amendment with concerns of residents
Three amateur singers are currently fighting tickets for opening their windpipes and violating a Downtown Santa Cruz noise ordinance earlier this year. Two of them, Robert Norse and Becky Johnson of Homeless United for Friendship and Freedom (HUFF), are not new to the spotlight, to controversy, or to conflicts with the city. Norse, in particular, often finds himself in the courtroom—whether for an incident at the Metro Station or for making a “Nazi salute” at a city council meeting.