This Week on the Central Coast…
Monterey Path of History may expand, local colleges are highlighted, and Santa Cruz considers public recreational marijuana use as restaurant week is underway.
Monterey
City Considers Expanding the Monterey Path of History
The Monterey Path of History is a self-guided two-mile walking tour that takes visitors to fifty-five historical locations. Some of the notable landmarks include the Custom House, Colton Hall, Pacific House, and Golden State Theater. The route is marked with yellow tiles set into the sidewalk and is accompanied by an app and brochures.
Monterey City is considering expanding the Path of History. The goal is to make the path more inclusive by sharing stories from a broader range of historical narratives. To help achieve this, the city would reach out to Esselen and Rumsien Tribal contacts to provide more details and stories. Additional stops would be added in order to introduce visitors to the rich diverse history of Monterey. Proposed kiosks would help share the stories with visitors while drawing attention to the path itself.
If approved, the expanded Path of History would be a much more diverse and comprehensive source of Monterey History.
Seaside Internship Gives Students Hands-On Experience
This week the CSU Monterey Bay College of Business announced a partnership with the city of Seaside to create a new internship program. Students will get hands-on experience and practical knowledge of several city departments.
When working with operations departments, students will learn about the inner workings of the city administration and how different departments work together to keep things running smoothly.
Legal students will benefit from the program’s inclusion of the city attorney’s office.
The city engineering department will teach students about city planning, construction, and infrastructure maintenance.
Students will also participate in community engagement, such as handing out construction notices and learning how to handle community concerns.
The program will also support the city by increasing the workforce in various departments without greatly affecting their budgets. Interns can also bring fresh, innovative ideas to the city while (hopefully) becoming inspired to have a future role within the departments.
Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz Restaurant Week is Underway
Santa Cruz Restaurant Week is an annual event where local restaurants feature three-course menus at varying price levels. It’s a great way to experience the diverse food culture of the city.
American dinner classics, like flat iron steak with potatoes, broccolini and demi glacé, are featured at Back Nine Grill & Bar.
Newcomer Hook and Line is featuring numerous seafood dishes like squid with fried rice, or the vegetarian-friendly Moroccan spiced quinoa with sweet potatoes. Their chef, Santos Majano, says “we are a new restaurant, six months into it. My sous chef and I were like, ‘Let’s do something fun, let’s create something delicious and seasonally inspired”.
Izakaya West End’s owner, Geoff Hargrave, is inviting locals to come by to see what’s new, since they recently changed concepts. Their menu starts with pork belly bao, then moves to ramen, and finishes with a fried chicken dish.
Restaurant Week will continue through October 30, so make sure you don’t miss out!
The Best Community College in California is in Santa Cruz County
Cabrillo College has been ranked the Best Community College in California by SmartAsset, a financial tech company. Cabrillo was also ranked 37th overall when compared to 600 other colleges nationally. The ranking was based on four factors:
Cabrillo’s tuition is low compared to other colleges, around $1,262 per year.
At 72%, it has a high retention rate of full time students.
Class sizes are kept smaller with a student-to-teacher ratio of 16 to 1.
The college’s overall factors were also considered, such as the number of associates degrees offered and the size of the student body.
Cabrillo College is a federally designated Hispanic Serving Institution, providing support for its large Latino student population. The college has made strides to support its students with children by expanding its childcare services. A new childcare facility is supported by a $1.67 million federal investment.
The top three most popular majors at Cabrillo are Liberal Studies, Child Care Provider, and Business & Commerce.
The spring semester will start on January 13, 2025. New students can begin registering for classes on November 25.
Santa Cruz County Considers On-Site Cannabis Consumption
Santa Cruz County supervisors are considering approving designated “Puffing Zones” for legal marijuana consumption. These zones would be at existing retailers and farming locations and would start as a 3-year pilot program. While the new ordinance would allow consumption at these locations, not every location would qualify due to their size, ventilation, and other factors.
The Puffing Zones would come with tremendous upside to the county if passed. Most notably would be the potential increase in agrotourism and more spending at local retailers by visitors. The convenience of on-site consumption would be a major draw for some tourists. With increased business, Santa Cruz County could experience a boost in job growth.
Of course, any new ordinance involving marijuana is going to come with opposition. The county will have to ensure that businesses are complying with regulations, such as ventilation and odor-control. The public perception of consumption will be a major hurdle as well, along with controlling the effects of increased cannabis use in public spaces.
A public hearing will be held on December 10.