8 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY APRIL 20-26, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com THE BUZZ FREE SPEECH As corporate owners have slashed staff at many local newspapers, the Digital First Media-owned Santa Cruz Sentinel was not spared. But in 2019, two former Sentinel reporters, Kara Meyberg Guzman and Stephen Baxter, saw a need to fill the void and created a new digital publication, Santa Cruz Local. Three years in, they conducted a survey to learn how to better serve southern Santa Cruz County, where 72 percent of residents speak Spanish at home. Among 162 respondents, they learned that local residents want local news in Spanish, and 29 percent would prefer to listen to the news. That prompted Santa Cruz Local to fundraise for new positions and now, $72,000 later, they are hiring two part-time Spanish-speaking roles to expand their coverage of the Pajaro Valley region. The biggest interest area among survey respondents is health, and people overwhelmingly expressed an interest in success stories. “We heard over and over again, ‘we’re so tired of a negative narrative,’” Guzman says. “If we really want to serve our community well, we need to show it with nuance, strength and beauty too.” Good: Assemblymember Dawn Addis, D-Morro Bay, has chosen the Big Sur Health Center as her pick for 2023 nonprofit of the year for Assembly District 30. Founded in September 1979, the Big Sur Health Center plays a vital role as the only medical clinic on a roughly 90-mile stretch of coastline, providing care to both Big Sur residents and visitors alike. Through the Nonprofit of the Year Initiative, now in its eighth year, each California legislator gets to choose one nonprofit to highlight. “[This recognition] gives elected leaders the opportunity to shine a light on what nonprofits are accomplishing for the people in their districts and for everyone to appreciate the collective impact of nonprofits across the state,” Jan Masaoka, CEO of the California Association of Nonprofits, said in a statement. The chosen nonprofits will be celebrated with a luncheon at the State Capitol on June 7. GREAT: Seaside hasn’t had a farmers market since 2019, after a Saturday market on Broadway was discontinued due to lack of local buy-in. Not only was business slow, but some business owners along Broadway didn’t like it. Some residents didn’t appreciate it either—lower Broadway is a transportation artery, and the market blocked it. But the city wanted to bring a market back, and on April 6, Seaside City Council voted unanimously to do so, with the same market operator in a new time and place. Council awarded Everyone’s Harvest, a nonprofit that runs five farmers markets in the county, a two-year contract to manage a farmers market. After discussion about a time and place that will avoid conflicts, it will be located at Laguna Grande Park (located across the street from Seaside City Hall, on Canyon Del Rey) and will run weekly from 3-7pm on Thursdays. The hope is to launch it in late May. GOOD WEEK / GREAT WEEK THE WEEKLY TALLY Surcharge on safe-and-sane fireworks sales collected by the city of Salinas. Revenues are used toward enforcement of illegal fireworks; the fireworks fund balance from 2022 is about $75,000. Source: April 18 report from Salinas Fire Chief Sam Klemek and Salinas Police Chief Roberto Filice 7% QUOTE OF THE WEEK “I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but that’s creativity.” -Steve Saunders, a Monterey-based master jeweler, speaking about a particular sculpture he made that resembles a tree, or an embrace (see story, p. 38). ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES Stop By To Shop And Find Your Vintage Treasure OVER 100 DEALERS 21,000 SQUARE FEET The Largest Antiques and Collectibles Mall on the Central Coast 471 WAVE STREET MONTEREY (831) 655-0264 P M canneryrowantiquemall.com Open Daily 11am-6pm ’22 Voted Monterey County's Best Antique Shop ♦ 3 Card Poker ♠ Century 21st No Bust Black Jack ♣ Texas Hold’em ♥ Baccarat FULL BAR! BLACKJACK BONUS POINTS PAYS UP TO $20,000 SMALL TOWN BIG PAYOUTS! 1-800-Gambler • Gega-003846, Gega-Gega-003703, Gega-000889 Gega-000891 Gega-002838 The Marina Club Casino ensures the safety and security of all guests and team members at all times, while providing exceptional service. 204 Carmel Ave. Marina 831-384-0925 casinomonterey.com ♠ ♣ ♥ ♦ Just minutes from Downtown Monterey Where Monterey Comes To Play
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