Opinion

According to the Tax Foundation, California is 34th in the country—not last—in property taxes and Proposition 13 gives us an effective tax rate of 0.7%. Houses are assessed with purchase or new construction and then tax increases limited to 2% yearly. The tax is...

I’m ready for spring. Those few warm spells have given me spring fever. Many plants blooming now are fragrant. Mother Nature encourages pollinators to find sweet nectar thereby ensuring plant propagation. What makes flowers fragrant anyway? Fragrance in flowers is nature's way of encouraging pollination....

Here’s the truth: Saying no is hard. Saying “no” can feel like an impossible task for many people. Whether it’s turning down a request for a favor, declining an invitation or setting a boundary, the act of saying no often brings with it a whole...

“Do one thing every day that scares you.” —Eleanore Roosevelt My traveling shoes had taken me to Washington State; I was on my way to my hometown of Aberdeen for a class reunion. While waiting in the train station in Lacey, I had purchased a...

You know that nagging phrase we’ve all heard by our parents growing up, “Now sit up straight!” I bet it didn’t mean much to you as a kid and you hated hearing it, but your parents were right trying to correct you. Posture is a...

A favorite survivor of the CZU fire is starting to bloom this week in my garden. Even though I had to remove the burned pot along with all the branches and roots, my red flowering currant (ribes sanguineum) recovered to the delight of the...

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.” —Peter Drucker Scotts Valley’s future isn’t something that just happens—we build it with the choices we make today. That’s why city leadership—including the Council, department heads and key community stakeholders—came together in February for...

SVFD hosts successful strategic planning workshop On March 7, the Scotts Valley Fire District hosted a strategic planning workshop to develop vision and goals for the department’s next five years. I want to commend and thank community stakeholders, administrative staff, fire suppression personnel, chief officers and...

“ollege graduates enjoy lower unemployment rates and higher incomes than do those without college education…those with college degrees consistently score higher in life satisfaction and happiness surveys. They are more likely to marry and less likely to divorce. College graduates even live longer and...

Wearing something green on St. Patrick’s Day has been a tradition since immigrants, particularly in the United States, transformed the holiday into a largely secular event celebrating all things Irish. Cities with large numbers of Irish immigrants staged parades going back to 1737 in...