Tag: state law

Editor’s Note: This is Part II of a three-part series on state-wide propositions on the November Ballot.  Part I covered Proposition 1 through 4 (Oct. 12 edition). Part II covers Propositions 5, Proposition 6 and Proposition 10, and Part III will cover Propositions 7, 8, 9 and 11.  

With several large housing projects on the horizon in Scotts Valley, including the Town Center project with a proposed 300 new units of housing, growth has become a hot issue in Scotts Valley, and has raised many questions at public meetings about adequate water supply.  

The County Planning Department knows there are hundreds of unpermitted dwellings throughout the unincorporated areas of Santa Cruz County, especially up and down the San Lorenzo Valley. Aimed at insuring a basic level of health and fire safety in these living spaces, the county has rolled out a new “Limited Immunity Amnesty Program,” called the Safe Structures Program, to improve the safety of both residents and neighbors of these “not-entirely-legal” residential spaces, while trying to avoid the dreaded “Red Tag” that puts people out of much needed affordable housing.