Business

SCOTTS VALLEY—Scotts Valley elected officials listened with rapt attention as influential urban planner Bob Gibbs gave them “a really short version of my Harvard class,” during a study session before the June 2 City Council meeting. As he pulled the cover back on what...

Chantal Vaughan was at work as a manager at Felton Feed & Pet Supply on May 23 when her world was shaken—figuratively and literally—by a driver who lost control of his car and careened into the front of her store, leaving shattered glass and...

After consecutive break-ins, Spanky’s Café in Ben Lomond is now missing an ATM. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office confirmed deputies responded to a report of a burglary at an establishment along the 9500 block of Highway 9 on May 12. “An ATM was stolen from...

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on May 11 voted unanimously to delay a 25-cent fee for disposable cups at businesses in the unincorporated parts of the county until January 2022. County officials crafted the ordinance to reduce the amount of disposable cups that...

These days, everything is “smart.” Smartphones. Smartwatches. How about a smart laundromat? Behold The Mat in Boulder Creek, formerly the Village Wash. Run by third-generation laundromat owner Brandon Parker and his fiancé Erin Hexem, it’s the first smart laundromat in Boulder Creek, and one of...

Mo L’Esperance got her start into food service at a pizza place in Southern California. “I got hired as a cashier,” she recalled. “Within two weeks I was in the back cooking, because it was more fun.” And after stints “back-of-house” in San Francisco, along the...

Scotts Valley is a glimpse of Americana right here in Santa Cruz County. From hotels and restaurants to Fourth of July parades and banners of high school graduates adorning Scotts Valley Drive, the city seems to bend and flex with the times. Visitors can...

Just as Bay Area gasoline prices have finally dipped below the $4 a gallon line at select stations, after rising above $7 a gallon at some pumps this summer, home-heating costs are rising. However, as the icy breath of winter nips at the necks of...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The county’s tourist hotspots—along with its restaurants and hotels—can expect a slight uptick in business this summer from Californians seeking to hit the road for short road trips, according to a survey released Wednesday by Visit Santa Cruz County (VSCC). This prediction is...

In a business matter that’s highlighted a tussle between Planning Commissioners and County of Santa Cruz staff, the Commission has been handed a second chance to properly deny a cannabis cultivation operation proposal in Upper Zayante. Local residents are trying to stop it, arguing it...