22 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY December 28, 2023-January 3, 2024 www.montereycountyweekly.com July 18 “We really set out to build our version of a restaurant we like,” Chef Jonny Black says, explaining the goal behind Chez Noir in Carmel, which opened in 2022. On July 18, he and his wife Monique learn that others shared the vision. The Blacks returned from an awards dinner in Oakland with a Michelin Star, becoming just the second restaurant in Monterey County to earn one of the culinary world’s highest honors. Aubergine kept its Michelin Star and added another award. The restaurant’s lead sommelier, John Haffey, was named California’s 2023 Sommelier Award winner. July 26 The Pacific Grove City Council votes 6-0 to approve a separation agreement between the city and city manager Ben Harvey. Harvey voluntarily resigned and received 24 months of salary, totaling just under $438,000, plus six months of health insurance benefits. As part of the agreement, each side agreed not to sue the other. In 2022, Harvey filed a workplace harassment complaint against City Councilmember Luke Coletti, a vocal critic of Harvey’s leadership; an investigator sustained Harvey’s allegations. A subsequent investigation by the Weekly reveals at least three more city staff members have filed similar complaints against Coletti. August Aug. 7 When the 2024 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am tees off, it will be quite a bit smaller than previous years, but also much bigger. As had been anticipated, the PGA Tour declared the tournament a signature event, meaning more of the sport’s top players in the field and a purse of $20 million, almost doubling the previous amount. However, that good news came with some bad—at least for those who follow it for the antics of Bill Murray and other celebrities. With greater significance attached to the unique event, the PGA Tour also confirmed rumored changes to the Pro-Am’s signature format. For decades, the event has teamed 156 professionals with 156 amateurs playing three courses over four days. Under the new format, the tournament will see 80 pros and 80 amateurs contest Spyglass Hill and Pebble Beach Golf Links, with Monterey Peninsula Country Club dropped from the lineup. In addition, amateur participation will be limited to Thursday and Friday. Aug. 10 The public gets the clearest picture yet of medical and mental health care conditions at Monterey County Jail thanks to the release of previously sealed reports by monitors charged with inspecting the state of the jail. The release of thousands of pages comes over objections from the County and Wellpath, the company contracted to provide medical care in the jail, due to a July 28 order from a federal judge. (In July, the Weekly joined the legal effort to unseal these records.) As defendants in the 2015 class-action settlement, the County and Wellpath were ordered to comply with an array of standards meant to improve the state of medical, dental and mental health care at the facility. Plaintiffs’ attorneys long argued that reports proved the defendants failed to comply with their terms of the settlement, but those reports remained under seal. On Sept. 26, Judge Beth Labson Freeman ruled that Wellpath is not in compliance with 43 of 44 conditions of the settlement, and gave the company until March 25, 2024 to address those deficiencies or face up to $1.1 million in fines. Six people have died in the jail this year and 27 people have died since the settlement in 2015. Aug 19 Chuck Baxter, a co-founder of the Monterey Bay Aquarium and longtime marine biology instructor at Stanford’s Hopkins Marine Station, dies at 94. Baxter had numerous accomplishments in his career, and in 2000, the Western Society of Naturalists awarded him Naturalist of the Year. Aug. 19 After years in the making, Orchard Lane Park in Soledad opens to the public. The 3.5-acre park is the first inclusive park in South County and contains a skate park, Wi-Fi, picnic areas and play structures designed to support recreation for kids with disabilities. Aug. 23 In 2018, when marine biologists discovered a “garden” of around 6,000 octopus brooding on Davidson Seamount off the southern coast of Big Sur—the largest known aggregation of octopus on Earth—it sparked a question: Why are the octopus brooding there? On Aug. 23, scientists publish a paper with the answer: On the hillocks of the seamount where the octopus brood—which is about two miles underwater and where normal temperatures are about 35 degrees—there are hydrothermal vents that heat up the water. Warmer water can reduce brooding times by years. September Sept. 5 The Monterey City Council approves a rental registry over the complaints of angry landlords and property owners. Mayor Tyller Williamson said the council needed to represent the needs of renters, as well as landlords. The registry will include a database on all rentals in the city with information such as cost, contact information for each landlord or management company and details about each rental unit. Monterey’s vote came five months after the Salinas City Council approved its own rental registry. Sept. 22-24 It’s the final Monterey Jazz Festival for Tim Jackson, who plans to retire after 33 years with the festival. He became its second-ever artistic director in 1991 after founder Jimmy Lyons stepped aside. Jackson, also the founder of Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz, led the festival into the modern era. Next year, Darin Atwater is set to take over as artistic director for the 67th festival. Sept. 28 Community members protest against Ron DeSantis’ visit to Monterey County. Agribusiness leaders hosted a fundraiser for the Florida governor and Republican presidential candidate, with a $3,300-per-person brunch at Corral de Tierra Country Club. On Sept. 26, Salinas City Council voted to denounce DeSantis’ visit after pleas from organizers who said the event was a slap in the face to ag workers since DeSantis supported anti-immigration policies making it harder for undocumented people to live and work in Florida. October Oct. 4 Salinas City Council votes unanimously to fire City Manager Steve Carrigan, despite his assurances that he plans to stay in Salinas. Weeks prior, Carrigan announced he was a finalist for the job of city manager in San Bernardino. Then on Sept. 28, he said he was withdrawing from that process to stay in Salinas but less than a week later, he was out of a job. Dozens of people spoke on Oct. 10 when the board of the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District voted on whether to pursue eminent domain for a public takeover of Cal Am. The board voted unanimously to proceed. Tahani Lopez, a 20-year-old trans woman from Salinas, grew up in an accepting family and was immediately embraced by her mother when she came out as trans. Her mother said, “I love you so much.”
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