The Weekly Dump 5.28.21

Local Vagrant Playing in Mission Street Traffic Arrested

Friday morning around 11:15AM, SCPD responded to the 2200 block of Mission Street after getting multiple reports of a male transient swinging a sword in the street in front of Safeway and approaching cars in traffic. They eventually arrested a 35 year old male and charged him with a total of 15 charges, including 3 outstanding local warrants for felony vandalism, possession of burglary tools, and resisting arrest. Last check he was still in jail on a 10K bond.

Ninja Gangs in Santa Cruz?

Last Saturday morning around 1:30AM, SCPD responded to the 300 block of Riverside Avenue for a report that 2 people had been stabbed. When they arrived, they found two males suffering from stab wounds to the back. The victims reported that about 10 people dressed in all black with black beanies and masks jumped them, and police think it was gang related. The victims were taken to Dominican for their injuries which seemed to be non life threatening. As far as I know nobody was arrested.

Solo Accident on Seabright Kills Santa Cruz Man

Thursday morning around 1AM, SCPD responded to the 1200 block of Seabright Avenue after getting a number of 911 calls about a solo vehicle accident. When they arrived, they found a male pinned under a crashed Mercedes sedan. Santa Cruz Fire extricated the man from under the car and pronounced him dead at the scene. The preliminary investigation indicated the driver was speeding northbound on Seabright Avenue when it struck a curb and became airborne, hitting a tree and two parked cars before landing back on its wheels with the driver trapped beneath. The 29 year old victim was from Santa Cruz County.

Rat in a Drain Ditch Caught on a Limb

Saturday morning around 10AM, SCPD responded to the 400 block of Highland after getting reports of a vagrant causing problems. Witnesses reported seeing a drunk male in a tie dye t-shirt vandalizing property. After they arrived, they found him pretty quickly and easily and he resisted arrest but didn’t put up much a fight. The 60 year old man was charged with burglary, felony vandalism, resisting arrest, and being drunk in public. His bail was set at $25K and last check he’s still in county jail.

Preventing Local Dummies From Driving Our Pets Crazy

Santa Cruz County’s Auto Theft Reductions Enforcement (SCARE) Taskforce seized 1,120 pounds of illegal fireworks this week. An investigation led to the arrest of a 30 year old male on Green Valley Road for the illegal aerial fireworks.

Crash Into Me

This past weekend, the SCPD on-duty patrol sergeant was driving back to the main station when a DUI driver got t-boned after hitting the patrol SUV in the intersection of Laurel and Center Street directly in front of SCPD’s headquarters. Apparently the driver did not yield to an unprotected green light while turning in front of and hitting the patrol car. CHP responded to the scene and took over the DUI and collision investigation in cooperation with EMS. The driver was arrested for DUI and booked into jail.

Grand Slam in Front of Denny’s

Wednesday around 9PM, SCPD responded to the intersection of Ocean and Plymouth where a person in a wheelchair was apparently struck by a vehicle in front of Denny’s. The victim was conscious and breathing when police arrived and the driver of the vehicle stayed on scene.

Unrelated RV Fires In Felton Deemed Accidental

This past Tuesday night around 9PM, a pair of RVs caught fire in Felton, as local fire fighters managed to contain both blazes quickly with no reported injuries. Both fires were reported within minutes of each other but were apparently unrelated. The first fire engulfed an RV parked off of Felton Quarry Road, and a woman and her dog escaped unharmed. A candle is believed to have been the cause of the fire, and some of the fire spread to nearby brush and trees. The second fire was called in about 15 minutes later at an RV park off of Highway 9. A man was camping with his family and their children when he noticed smoke coming out of his RV. All managed to get out safely. Both RV campers were a total loss. Cal Fire’s CZU unit and the Zayante Fire Protection District assisted on both incidents.

Watsonville Thief Hops the Wrong Fence

Tuesday night, Watsonville Police responded to an auto body shop on the 100 block of Airport Boulevard after the owner of the shop who was monitoring his surveillance cameras saw a man jump the fence onto his property. Officers quickly arrived and surrounded the business. When the 41 year old thief climbed back over the fence they were waiting for him. He was arrested for burglary and other charges. The suspect also had an outstanding felony warrant for vehicle theft. His bail was set at $25K. Last check he’s still in jail.

The Wolves Return to Santa Cruz

This past Thursday night, Los Lobos played a live show on the pool deck of the Dream Inn again, making their musical return to Santa Cruz. They played the same spot last year on Halloween, in a special concert organized by the Dream Inn. Last year, it was a great way to perform live for fans in a safe, “socially distanced” fashioned with guests hanging out on their balconies. The rooms were sold out again this year, and there was a nice, well behaved crowd of a couple hundred people who watched and listened and danced from Cowells Beach behind and below the band. It was a really fun show and the crowd was having a blast. I was one of them. Here’s a video from last year’s show.

La Bamba – Los Lobos (live from the Dream Inn pool deck)

New Community Wellness Center Breaks Ground in Live Oak

Construction began this week on a new wellness center for the Live Oak community. Dientes Community Dental, Mid Pen Housing, Santa Cruz Community Health, along with numerous donors such as Dominican Hospital, Sutter Health, Kaiser Permanente, broke ground on a health care and affordable housing campus. The center will be located at 1500 Capitola Road.

Zooming In on the Santa Cruz City Council

This past Tuesday, the Santa Cruz City Council gave the green light to a potential sale of two downtown parcels currently owned by the city to a New York based developer for a proposed high-end hotel at Front and Laurel streets in downtown Santa Cruz. The vote was 4-2, with Council members Renee Golder, Shebreh Kalantari-Johnson, Vice Mayor Sonja Brunner and Mayor Donna Meyers voting in support. Councilmembers Justin Cummings and Sandy Brown voted against it. Councilmember Martine Watkins was absent. The proposed six story building would be located at 324 Front Street. The developer is SCFS Venture, a New York-based company affiliated with New York-based hotel real estate investor Eagle Point Hotel Partners and Santa Cruz-based developer Owen Lawlor of Lawlor Land Use. The developer currently owns the Santa Cruz Community Credit Union building at 324 Front Street and the parking lot south of it. The city owns a roughly 4,600-square foot strip between that parking lot and Laurel Street, as well as a 4,400 square-foot portion of a parking lot north of the credit union building. The developer wants to buy those two city parcels. The resolution does not guarantee the land sale.

One of the parcels is now a former city parking lot turned eyesore bum hangout. Gee, what would I rather have on this corner? A filthy, rat infested parking lot filling up quickly with bum tents and Food Not Bombs trash or something that generates tax revenue for the city? No brainer!

It’s Our 5th Birthday!

Five years ago (almost to the day), I published the very first “Weekly Dump”.

I’m feeling thankful for the small things today!

Happy Birthday to Me – Cracker

Handicapping the Rumors For Ryan’s Seat

Odds based on nothing more than random rumors I’ve heard, innuendo, and gut feelings. New odds this week! I was told by a pretty rock solid source that Cynthia Mathews is out. And I believe it, but she’s still staying as a long shot.

  • Steve Pleich 1:1 (hell we all know he’s gonna run again….)
  • Gail Pellerin 3:1
  • Martine Watkins 3:1
  • Hilary Bryant 3:1
  • Donna Meyers 3:1
  • Justin Cummings 3:1
  • Shebreh Kalantari-Johnson 3:1
  • Chris Krohn 5:1
  • Sandy Brown 5:1
  • Renee Golder 10:1
  • David Terrazas 10:1
  • Sonja Brunner 10:1
  • Kayla Kumar 10:1
  • Brent Adams 10:1
  • Keith McMuffin 25:1
  • Crabby Samuels 25:1
  • Bad Mom 25:1
  • Cynthia Mathews 50:1

Get Your Swagger On!

I have swag! I’m working with Spreadshirt and have my own shop. I just put some basic products up to start with for now with the new logo. You can also click “Customize” and “Products” and pick from other products not currently available in my store. Contact me with any questions or issues. Nothing would make me happier than to see people out and about with my swag. I want photos! I’ve never asked for money, and I still plan to continue to do the Weekly Dump each week and make it available for free, without any paywall or ads or spam (or salary). Think of this as a way of donating to the effort and getting something back for your donation (I only make a few bucks on each item sold). I’d love to do more with Santa Mierda if I had the means to do so. This will help provide the means to do so. And it helps get the word out. The hell with the coronavirus, let’s make this viral. Being stuck inside is the perfect time for online shopping! I’ll love you long time if you buy my swag.

The Santa Mierda Podcast Network

Be sure to check out the Santa Mierda Podcast Network! You can find the Santa Mierda Podcast Network on SoundCloud. And Apple Music. And Spotify. It’s free so check it out and give it a listen!

Check Out Our Twitter Feed for More Mierda!

Be sure to check out and follow our Twitter feed for even more mierda! Even though the Dump only comes your way once a week, I try to post breaking news and updates on other days as well. So check us out and follow us on Twitter for even more updates about real time news in Santa Cruz you might not otherwise hear about.

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31 Comments

  1. Happy 5th Birthday, Santa Mierda!!! Our community is a better place because of you.

  2. Thanks so much for 5 years of ‘Vibrant Honesty!’ We appreciate all your hard work and dedication! ?

  3. Happy Birthday!!! What a wild ride so far ?!! Thanks for always keeping us informed. Love ya man !❤

  4. Happy Birthday. Great read… vibrant, honest, consistent.

  5. HAPPY BIRTHDAY! And thank you for continuing to publish news without the usual media bullshit spin.

  6. Thank you for showing us what the First Amendment really means.

  7. Santa Mierda:
    No Ka Oi
    ?

  8. Five years and running. Well done. And finally we have a city council that understands that the health and well being of all Santa Cruzans, all colors, rich and poor, young and old, housed and unhoused depends upon supporting the future economic vitality of the city. Now let’s keep the pressure on for increasing our public safety, too.

  9. Just the Facts

    Here’s to another five! Happy B-day and thank you!

  10. Johnnybitchin

    Been a great and always informative 5 years…thanks for your blog…I wait for it all week..
    Have a wonderful weekend..

  11. Happy Birthday! Thanks for all the knowledge and humor. Rob

  12. Congrats on the 5 years.

  13. The new web site design is nice.

  14. MuyDeplorable

    HB2U!

  15. Evelyn Bernstein

    I want to be on your list and receive your newsletter every week.

  16. Evelyn Bernstein

    I want to be on your list and receive your newsletter every week. Starting now.

  17. Evelyn Bernstein

    Happy 5 year publishing from Soquel .

  18. Hey Ben,
    That was a good piece of writing. I’m glad you’re not on vacation. I wrote a poem dealing, in part, with West Cliff Drive. It’s about 750 words. I would like to send it to you via USPS with my special $1.10 stamp in a brown manila envelope as I have done for five other recipients in my limited edition of ten. Hard copy only. May I send it to an address you provide?

    • Send it to 155 Center Street, Santa Cruz, 95060. Be sure to put your return address on it so I can send you a thank you!

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