Good Times is celebrating the big 5-0 and as anyone who has run a business knows, that’s a huge accomplishment. We are so happy about it that we are doing three issues to celebrate the people who have made Santa Cruz great over our past five decades.
Our issue this week commemorates the local businesses that have also reached 50 birthdays or more. We figured we’d find 50 of them, but lo and behold, we found many more. So many, we can’t fit them all in the printed edition, but have spilled them over to our website, goodtimes.sc, which also says something about what businesses have had to do to survive–branch out to the online world. And if we missed some, drop us a line and tell us about them (ed****@we*****.com).
We’ve had to branch out to the online world, at the same time that online has been strangling so many brick-and-mortar businesses.
When you take a look through the ones we are listing, you realize the things they’ve overcome. Several floods, a huge earthquake that leveled much of downtown, fires, a pandemic, and economic woes as rising costs for housing, gas, transportation and food cut everyone’s access to life, liberty, happiness. And of course there’s the internet, which has turned everything we knew about doing business upside down.
When you look at these businesses that have made it, you realize just what local loyalty means. The community has supported them for generations despite the travails and the seeming convenience of shopping online. Shop local has been more than a mantra; it’s a way to keep our dollars flowing back to the community.
The owners of Amazon or Meta are buying yachts and jets, while our local businesses are supporting your kids’ schools, sports teams and local charities. And our community knows this; that’s why so many local businesses are staying in business.
Our future 50th issues include the people who made a difference here, the events that shaped the county and what Santa Cruz will look like over the next 50 years. Send us your nominations and suggestions.
And very importantly: We’re having a free birthday bash at 4pm July 11 outside our office at 107 Dakota Ave. with some up-and-coming local bands and food and drink. Party on. See you there.
Thanks for reading.
Brad Kava | Editor
PHOTO CONTEST
SUMMER FUN Considering it is now summertime (oh sweet, golden summer) I thought it made perfect sense to share this image of a lovely girl named Fiona. Photograph and painting by Julia Craig
GOOD WORK
The Santa Cruz RTC was awarded $128.7 million in grants from the California Transportation Commission for several projects, including these:
Auxiliary lanes and bus-on-shoulder facilities on Highway 1 from State Park Drive to Freedom Boulevard; Coastal Rail Trail Segment 12 between State Park Drive and Rio del Mar Boulevard, including four bicycle and pedestrian overcrossings; protected bike lanes, signal upgrades and sidewalk gap closures, ADA curb ramps, and enhanced crosswalks on Soquel Drive; and Improvements for METRO buses, including boarding platforms, signal priority at 60 traffic lights, shelters and real-time displays.
GOOD IDEA
With thousands expected to visit Santa Cruz for the upcoming Independence Day holiday weekend, the Santa Cruz City Council has implemented measures to ensure the safety and cleanliness of the City for all residents and visitors. A citywide Safety Enhancement Zone will be in effect from Friday, July 4, at 8am to Monday, July 7, at 8am.
Under the Safety Enhancement Zone designation, fines for violations of the City’s municipal code—including the illegal discharge of fireworks, littering and public consumption of alcohol—will be tripled.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Truth matters. Checks and balances matter.”
—Maria Ressa
