The Aptos Branch of the Santa Cruz County Public Library is on deck for demolition and rebuild as it has outgrown its current facilities. The County has completed a feasibility study, chosen a design-build team, and started the design process. That design concept was developed based on ideas gathered from four community meetings.Â
I rode the Metro 91X bus with my bike out to Watsonville today. There was only one other passenger the entire ride. I got off at South Green Valley at Main Street and rode over to Pajaro Valley High to see how the construction of the new athletic field is doing. For the most part, the artificial turf is now installed and it looks good. Bleachers are in and the concessions and announcers stand is in. Work on the new baseball diamond is still in the beginning phase.
Riding through downtown felt creepy. Very few people were out. There was minimal traffic, a threat as far as biking goes. But it feels vacant, empty and abandoned. Maybe it’s just me; I’m used to a busy, busting downtown with scads of people hanging out in the plaza, shoppers along Main Street, the taquerias dishing out their goods.
The first vice presidential debate is tonight for Kamala Harris and Mike Pence. Let’s hope it is nothing near the rude, angry interruption festival between Biden and Trump. A debate is an exchange of ideas, opinions and stances on issues of the day, and by all means, each party should have a comfortable platform and given time to spread their ideas out for the rest of us, the U.S. public, the voters, to hear them out. Fair and square. Trump seemed to have little understanding and patience for that in his debate with Biden with his constant barging in and tearing apart the agreed upon format that Chris Wallace had to keep reminding him of.
The August Fire in Northern Calif. has now topped the books with its record 1 million-plus acres burned, and counting. In Mendocino National Forest, the blaze is now around 60% contained. Meanwhile the Glass Fire in Napa and Sonoma counties is 58% contained with firefighters saying they expect to fully put the lid on it by Oct. 20. It has charred 105 square miles and we can thank the Glass fire for sending us its smoke these days.
The Zogg Fire in Northern Calif. is 84% contained and has blackened 84 square miles.
And in Big Sur the Dolan Fire is now 92% contained. One firefighter there has tested positive to Covid-19.
In Washington D.C., 18 people in the inner White House circle have now tested positive to Covid-19, including the president and his press secretary. Coast Guard Admiral Charles Ray also has the virus, which has sent the top military command in the U.S. into a panic and widespread quarantine. Out of the hospital after getting Covid-19, Trump compared Covid to the flu, which is entirely off base. Covid is not the flu and it has killed more people this year than the flu has in the past five years.
