www.montereycountyweekly.com December 28, 2023-January 3, 2024 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 19 January Jan. 8 The year begins with a downpour. Heavy rain in the early days of 2023 meant (as winter storms often do) the closure of Highway 1 on several parts of the Big Sur coast. While most closures reopen in the coming days and weeks, there remains one exception— Paul’s Slide, the same tricky piece of earth at mile marker 22 that also slid in May 2017, creating the southern boundary of “Big Sur Island”—closing off all traffic for 1.5 miles. In December 2023 Caltrans estimated the road will reopen in “late spring” 2024. On Jan. 11, officials warn that rising rivers amid ongoing rains could create the effect of a “Monterey Peninsula island,” with access cut off—this scenario never materializes, and bridges over the Salinas River remain open. Jan. 10 After a years-long push by former longtime Central Coast congressman Sam Farr, D-Carmel, Pinnacles, which became a national monument in 1908, was elevated to national park status by then-president Barack Obama on Jan. 10, 2013. The Weekly celebrates the 10-year anniversary with a cover story. Jan. 11 Carmel Police Chief Alan Ward is quietly placed on leave after only seven months on the job, a transition that becomes apparent when city officials introduce longtime department employee Jeffrey Watkins as the acting chief on Jan. 11. City officials remained tight-lipped about what happened. Ward eventually retired in June, then took a job in July as a lieutenant for the Naval Support Activity Monterey Police Department. The investigation cost Carmel taxpayers over $87,000; the circumstances of his departure have still never been shared publicly. February Feb. 6 One season after settling into its new home at Cardinale Stadium on the campus of CSU Monterey Bay, pro soccer team Monterey Bay F.C. announces its second team, a semiprofessional team in USL Two. The team had a successful first season and went on to clinch the Western Conference Nor Cal Division Championship. Feb. 7 The Carmel Unified School District board votes unanimously to remove Jon Lyons as principal of Carmel High School. Lyons had been on leave since Dec. 16, 2022 while district officials conducted an investigation for allegedly mishandling complaints about misconduct, including sexual harassment and assault, on campus. The termination is one step in a cascade of personnel changes that continue throughout the year. Superintendent Ted Knight was placed on leave on April 1 amid an investigation of his handling of personnel issues. He then resigned on Aug. 11 and agreed to drop all claims against CUSD in exchange for a $770,000 payout. A CUSD parent, Christine Davi, has a pending lawsuit against the district alleging that payment is illegal. After facing community backlash to a plan to appoint a new superintendent without a stakeholder listening process, the board backtracked and in November announced plans to engage the public in a 2024 recruitment effort. Feb. 7 The Monterey City Council votes 4-1 to stop providing cruise ship services, effectively ending all cruise ship visits to Monterey Bay. City Manager Hans Uslar told the council the $1.5 million the city was earning annually in providing the services— which include following required U.S. Homeland Security procedures for checking in passengers—was not worth the millions more the city could lose in tourism dollars in the event of a potential environmental disaster. Feb. 16 CSUMB officials confirm that the new president, Vanya Quiñones, has made major changes to her administration since taking over in August 2022. Those changes included, among others, removing Larry Samuels from vice president of strategic initiatives to a lower-level position—Samuels left days later for a position at UC Santa Cruz. On Feb. 24, Quiñones announced that Title IX director Wendy Smith was out, replaced by an interim. In August it became clear why Quiñones replaced Smith: a review by an independent consulting firm reported
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