News Briefs

Auditions open for summer musical
Registration to participate in the summer musical “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” has opened at Scotts Valley Parks and Recreation.
Auditions will be June 28, 29 and 30, and the show will be performed at the end of July at Bethany University Theater, 800 Bethany Drive.
Cost to participate is $130 for Scotts Valley residents or $138 for nonresidents. A 50 percent discount is available for siblings.
For information: www.svtheater.com; or Melanie Useldinger, 359-0850.
Popcorn fundraiser to help high school
Cinelux Theater in Scotts Valley has partnered with Scotts Valley High School for a one-day paper drive for the school, called “Paper for Popcorn.”
Anyone who donates a ream of 8½-by-11-inch paper on Thursday, April 22, will receive a free small popcorn at the theater, 226 Mount Hermon Drive.
Stephanie Traulsen, a student who planned the drive, saw that the school needed paper and came up with the idea of the partnership.
Sheriff launches new Web site
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office Web site, www.scsheriff.com, has a fresh face and a more user-friendly interface.
Some new features include arrest logs, arrest warrants, crime mapping, online reporting, a sex-offender search, a missing-children search, a wanted-persons search, press logs and press releases, crime prevention tips and abandoned-vehicle reporting.
Metro updates Web site, bus guide
The Santa Cruz Metropolitan and Transit District has a new Web site, including a redesign of its Headways Bus Rider’s guide.
After a year of production and testing, the site, www.scmtd.com, has many new features and will continue to be updated as people begin to use it.
Dinner raised $6K for Haiti
The $6,000 raised at a pasta dinner by San Lorenzo Valley Rotary and the SLV School District will buy six shelter boxes to help survivors of the earthquake that shook Haiti in January.
Each box includes a high-quality tent that provides shelter for up to 10 people, water-purification tablets and filters, sleeping bags, a cooker, cooking supplies, utensils, heavy-duty tools and personal toiletry items.
Nominations open for Golden Carrot Award
Santa Cruz County’s Go for Health Collaborative has launched this year’s Golden Carrot Awards, which gives accolades to county restaurants that promote a healthful lifestyle. Local restaurants are invited to submit a completed nomination form from the Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency. An application can be requested by e-mail.
For information: Leslie Goodfriend, 454-4313 or le***************@*********************ca.us.
County fights fires before the fact
Fire prevention week is Saturday, April 17, through April 25.
To protect property, the county’s public works department suggests maintaining a defensible space of 100 feet around homes, removing flammable vegetation within 30 feet of structures or other property, and creating a reduced-fuel zone by clearing space between plants and trees. Other tips are to remove lower tree branches at least 6 feet from the ground and to landscape with fire-resistant plants. All plants should be maintained with sufficient regular watering, and dead debris should be removed.
The county will accept yard and wood waste free of charge during fire prevention week.
For information: Ana Maria Rebelo, Santa Cruz County Public Works, 454-2160
Conservation Blueprint comes to Ben Lomond
The Land Trust of Santa Cruz County will host community forums throughout the county to share ideas about how to protect and maintain land, water and wildlife.
The fourth meeting in the series will be from 6 to 9 p.m. at Highlands Park Senior Center, 8500 Highway 9, in Ben Lomond, with an introduction by 5th District Supervisor Mark Stone.
For information: 429-6116 or www.conservesantacruz.org.