Expecting a large crowd for a beach cleanup at Seacliff State Beach on Saturday, Save Our Shores printed 250 waivers for volunteers to sign before they got to work.
While that may have been enough for a run-of-the-mill beach cleanup, this was no ordinary event. Over a thousand people came to clean the beach and say goodbye to the wharf that once led to the Cement Ship but was decimated by a series of atmospheric river storms and a tidal swell in January.
It is unclear whether the pier will be rebuilt. Still, California State Parks has said it plans to use its limited financial resources to rebuild the damaged campground and other infrastructure.
Demolition is expected to begin this week.
Lu Robles-Sane, who came with her niece, says she originally moved to the area with her husband. After his death, strolls onto the pier and sitting on the benches have helped her through difficult times.
“I love it out here,” she says. “This is where I find my serenity.”
Robles-Sane’s niece Madison says that her brother used to go fishing on the wharf and that her great-grandmother told her about dances on the Cement Ship, which was intact and served as a local entertainment spot.
Ayla Urquhart, who says she is “basically 9-and-three-quarters,” pins a memory of the Seacliff Wharf onto a piece of driftwood. PHOTO: Todd Guild
Zina Urquhart said she and her daughter Ayla came to celebrate the Wharf.
“It’s really sad,” Zina says. “It’s been here for a long time, and it’s an icon.”
The City of Capitola is hosting a concert to raise money for those impacted by the series of storms that ravaged the county in January.
The “Beyond the Flood” benefit concert will feature Jive Machine, the Alex Lucero Band and Joint Chiefs with Tony Lindsay. The concert is free, but proceeds from beer sales and T-shirts will go to Community Foundation Santa Cruz County, an organization that has already issued $510,000 in disaster grants.
The January storms caused millions of dollars of damage to the Esplanade. Capitola Mayor Margaux Keiser has estimated the damage to the Village at $2.6 million, with repairs to the Capitola Wharf clocking in at roughly $9 million.
The stunning damage to the village, in which the Wharf was cleaved in half and beach logs were slammed into Zeldas on the Beach and Tacos Morenos, prompted visits from President Joe Biden, Gov. Gavin Newsom and Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis.
Capitola Police Chief Andrew Dally said the idea for the concert came after a community beach cleanup that helped clear the beaches of the wreckage from the storms.
“There was just a lot of talk about what’s the next thing we can do,” he said. “It was really apparent that a lot of people in the community really wanted to step up and help with this.”
The public is encouraged to find alternatives to driving to get to the event, since parking is limited. A bicycle lot will be available.
Important Information:
What: “Beyond the Flood” concert
When: 12-6pm, Saturday
Where: at the Esplanade Park bandstand in Capitola
Schedule: Jive Machine – 12-1:30pm, Alex Lucero Band – 2-3:30pm, Joint Chiefs with Tony Lindsay – 4-6pm
On Wednesday, attorneys made closing arguments for a $72 million lawsuit against the California Department of Transportation that seeks to hold the agency partially responsible for the death of a pedestrian along Hwy 9 in the Felton area.
Attorney Dana Scruggs told the 12-person jury in the Santa Cruz County Superior Court that Caltrans’ failure to improve the section of road north of downtown led to the death of 22-year-old Josh Howard.
He asked the jury to assign 75% of the blame for Howard’s Feb. 2019 death to Caltrans and 25% to Jeremy Shreves, the motorist who was convicted of felony reckless driving in the crash.
The first question that jurors will face as they deliberate the suit brought by the victim’s parents, Kelley Howard and Dimitri Jaumoville: “Was Hwy 9 in a dangerous condition at the location of the subject accident?”
Scruggs said Caltrans knew the road was substandard and ignored the issue.
“If they’d fixed the road, it wouldn’t have happened,” Scruggs said.
Shelby Davitt, an attorney for Caltrans, said there’s only one person to blame for Howard’s death: Shreves.
“He shouldn’t have drifted towards that edge line,” she said. “He didn’t turn his wheel.”
She clicked to a screen with a giant blue “0” on it, indicating no pedestrian accidents had occurred there prior to Howard’s death.
“This area is safe when using reasonable care,” she said. “There’s no dangerous conditions at this location—the alleged dangerous condition was the narrow shoulder, but the shoulder does not create a substantial risk of injury.”
Davitt also said Caltrans wasn’t provided with any specific “notice” that Highway 9 could be a serious problem in that spot.
“There’s no accident history here,” she said. “Generally complaining about the road is not notice.”
She called the proposed $72 million in damages a “ridiculous” figure “pulled out of thin air.” Instead, she said, the jury could come up with a figure by adding up several different items meant to bring the family joy in memory of Howard.
One of the options she thought of was to provide 21 of the man’s peers with passes to Roaring Camp Railroad; another was making a donation to an animal shelter, since Howard loved cats.
She suggested $1 million might be a more reasonable sum.
Closing arguments are set to continue on Thursday.
JUNGLE BROTHERS WITH WATZREAL AND KHAN Mike Gee (Michael Small), DJ Sammy B (Sammy Burwell) and Baby Bam (Nathaniel Hall) formed the Jungle Brothers in the mid-1980s in New York City. The result of one of their earliest sessions, Straight Out the Jungle, was released in early 1988. The album’s far-out cut “I’ll House You” is a collaboration with producer Todd Terry and an early experiment in what later became “hip-house.” The album’s Afrocentric slant propelled the Jungle Brothers’ entry into the Native Tongue Posse, a loose collective formed by hip-hop legend Afrikaa Bambaataa, which included Queen Latifah (and, later, De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest). Although they predated De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Digable Planets, the Jungle Brothers didn’t score mainstream notoriety—some believe they were ahead of their time. The trio implemented a rich combination of house music, Afrocentric philosophy, funk and jazz. While the group’s 1989 Done by the Forces of Nature didn’t quite blow up on the pop charts, many still regard it as a hip-hop classic. $22.50/$25 plus fees. Wednesday, Feb. 15, 9pm. The Catalyst Atrium, 1101 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. catalystclub.com
PIMPS OF JOYTIME WITH BLACK JOE LEWIS Brian J has produced albums for New Orleans heavyweights, including Cyril Neville (the Neville Brothers), James Andrews and Corey Henry (Galactic), plus Bernard “Pretty” Purdie and Cedric Burnside. Brian J’s band, the Pimps of Joytime, has released five studio albums and toured expansively, building a worldwide following. On the production of “La Vida,” Brian J plays all the instruments, flexing his skills as a multi-instrumentalist and producer. Meanwhile, when Joe Lewis and his band, the Honeybears, popped onto the national stage more than 10 years ago, many critics embraced him, but still, some maintained that the group needed more experience. “The dues of hard work, the delirious heights of the industry, disappointments and low-hanging fruit. Through this all, Lewis has only honed his mastery over gutbucket blues guitar” and his authentic voice.$27/$32 plus fees. Friday, Feb. 17, 9pm. Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. moesalley.com
KANDACE SPRINGS “My father used to play me records when I was young, and I fell in love right away with all these great singers,” says Kandace Springs. “I learned to do what I do by singing along with them. Ever since, I’ve wanted to pay that forward by reminding people of how great these ladies are; we all owe them so much.”The world-renowned Blue Note/Capitol recording artist’s latest album, released in March 2020, is her most personal work yet. Entitled The Women Who Raised Me, it is her loving tribute to the great female singers who inspired her to begin her journey toward becoming one of our time’s premier jazz and soul vocalists. The album will feature interpretations of songs she first heard in Tennessee, including classics by icons such as Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Carmen McRae to ’60s legends Nina Simone and Dusty Springfield and modern masters such as Sade and Lauryn Hill. Springs will be joined by bassist/vocalist Aneesa Strings and drummer/vocalist Taylor Moore.$47.25/$52.50; $26.25/students. Friday, Feb. 17, 7pm. Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320-2 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. kuumbwajazz.org
CASS MCCOMBS + BAND WITH WEAK SIGNAL, Cass McCombs’ shades of frustration have fueled his music since he started. The approach has earned McCombs quiet acclaim over the years—in 2009, Catacombs was voted onto Pitchfork’s “50 Top Albums of the Year,” and the California native has toured with Arcade Fire, Band of Horses, Thurston Moore and the Meat Puppets. As an outsider voice for the marginalized, McCombs’ anti-establishment, indie rock roots extend back to 2003 when he first launched his website without mentioning his name or music. “We were very punk,” McCombs explains. “We wanted to destroy the music business —we didn’t want to have any promotional activity whatsoever. Everything was to be subversive.” The second song on McCombs’ 2022 Heartmind, his tenth record, “Karaoke,” is a “god-level burst of power-pop perfection,” as captivating as anything the musician has ever written. $22/$28 plus fees. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 8pm. Felton Music Hall, 6275 Hwy 9, Felton. folkyeah.com
BASS DRUM OF DEATH WITH H.A.R.D. Say I Won’t is the first Bass Drum of Death album written, demoed and recorded with a touring band. Previously, frontman John Barrett had been doing everything on his own. But Barrett found freedom in working with collaborators that weren’t available to him before, opening a diverse world of songwriting. There’s an energy and vitality to the music driven by an added boost from new bandmates and a new perspective. The live recording process features layers of multiple parts and overdubs, then stripping it back to the song’s bones, keeping the raw wild heart of the music intact. “My first two records were made entirely by me alone with my gear, my laptop and a Snowball USB mic,” Barrett says. “They were just made quickly, cheaply, as an excuse to tour. I wanted to take my time with this record. Make something good that I was proud of in itself.”$20/$25 plus fees. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 8pm. Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. moesalley.com
COMMUNITY
(RESCHEDULED FROM JAN. 28) MLK MARCH FOR THE DREAM This year marks the 60th anniversary of the 1963 march on Washington for jobs and justice; it’s also the anniversary of Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Now, more than ever, we seek to uphold the dream of Dr. King in establishing a community that will ensure political, educational, social and economic equality of rights for all people and eliminate racial hatred and discrimination. Dr. King said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” Following the march, the 11am presentation will feature a variety of speakers, including NAACP Santa Cruz County Branch President Elaine Johnson, Rev. Curtis Blue, Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley, renowned local gospel and jazz singer Tammi Brown, Santa Cruz County Supervisor Justin Cummings, Assemblywoman Gail Pellerin, Rabbi Paula Marcus of Temple Beth El and more. Keisha Browder, CEO of United Way of Santa Cruz County, will MC. All are invited to march and support the dream of Dr. King. Free. Monday, Feb. 20, 10am. Begins at Pacific Avenue and Cathcart Street to the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium. naacpsantacruz.com
Creativity seems to bloom around Herbie Hancock, the legendary pianist, keyboardist and composer who’s been mapping new musical territory for six decades.
In the case of Berkeley-reared flutist/vocalist Elena Pinderhughes and Benin-born guitarist/vocalist Lionel Loueke, the seeds for their new suite A Diaspora Journey were planted on the road in Hancock’s band.
“Lionel and I have been playing together in Herbie’s group for years,” Pinderhughes says from her Los Angeles home. “We’d often spend downtime in rehearsals experimenting together—it was an idea in the back of our heads that we should do a project.”
When Kuumbwa approached Pinderhughes about submitting a grant to The Creative Work Fund, the 27-year-old immediately reached out to Loueke. A Diaspora Journey illuminates the rhythmic DNA that courses from West Africa and South America to the Caribbean and the U.S. The world premiere of their five-part suite at Kuumbwa features a stellar quintet powered by drummer Justin Tyson, electric bassist Burniss Travis, who also plays with the drummer in pianist Robert Glasper’s band. Elena’s older brother, acclaimed pianist/keyboardist Samora, rounds out the collective.
“A big part of A Diaspora Journey is the element of ritual, with chants and multiple people singing, but we’re not setting her words to music,” Pinderhughes says. “There are some lyric-based parts, but it’s not a narrative. The subject is vast, and there are so many stories within the ‘Diaspora,’ so we think it can be told from A to Z.
“It’s not a timeline-based thing or story,” she continues. “We’re trying to highlight the similarities between so many different people’s stories. A rhythm you thought came from Brazil, and it’s also in Barbados. There are these connections between Puerto Rico and Benin and Ghana, with these rhythms that come from the same family tree. Different parts of the suite highlight different types of music.”
In conjunction with Monday’s world premiere, Pinderhughes and Loueke will discuss the new work on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at Kuumbwa with Santa Cruz-based Speak For Change podcast host Thomas Sage Pederson, sponsored by the Santa Cruz County Black Health Matters Initiative.
In many ways, the 49-year-old Loueke hails from one of the Diaspora’s sources, as the tiny West African nation now known as Benin was for centuries a major point of embarkation for the trans-Atlantic slave trade. His music embodies a post-colonial journey that maps onto these deep historical fissures.
The third of five brothers, he was raised in an academic household where his father, a mathematics professor and his mother, a high school teacher, encouraged his creative pursuits. Musically precocious, he moved to the Ivory Coast in 1990 to study music at the National Institute of Art, where he soaked up the sounds of jazz guitar greats Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass and George Benson.
Loueke refined his playing during four years at the American School of Modern Music in Paris, eventually earning a scholarship to Boston’s Berklee College of Music. At Berklee, he realized that the traditional music he grew up playing in Benin and his passion for jazz was deeply enmeshed.
“I could combine all the different rhythms and the melodies I was playing back home with the harmonies I was studying,” he explains. “Before that, I never really saw that they were all related. It was almost like a puzzle and finding the last piece.”
In 2001, all the career pieces came together for Loueke when he was tapped for the elite master’s program at the Thelonious Monk Institute. By the end of the first year, he’d been recruited by trumpeter Terence Blanchard, and he’s been on the road ever since, touring the world with iconic jazz musicians like Hancock and Dave Holland and the late Chick Corea.
“I’m gravitating more toward my own music now, but then these guys are not going to be here forever,” Loueke says.
Pinderhughes is also focusing more on developing her original music than her sidewoman gigs. As she prepares to release a very different project focusing on her original songs, A Diaspora Journey marks her emergence as an up-and-coming composer in the jazz community.
“I’ve stepped back from a bunch of things, and I’ve been saying no to a bunch of one-offs,” she says. “I’m still working with Common, Herbie and Christian Scott. The three of them keep me pretty busy, and if my brother calls, I’m there. But I’m taking this year to finish my album.”
Elena Pinderhughes and Lionel Loueke perform Monday, Feb. 20, 7pm at Kuumbwa Jazz, 320-2 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. $36.75; $42.00; $21.00/students. kuumbwajazz.org
The first time I went to the Crepe Place was in 2009 to see Canadian heavy psych-rock outfit Black Mountain. A buddy and I got there early so we could have dinner first. Before we sat down, I took a self-guided tour. “Something is missing,” I thought. I didn’t see anything that resembled a stage anywhere—not even a tiny platform tucked away in a corner.
“Yeah, the bands usually just play against the back wall,” my friend, who had seen shows there before, explained. It was challenging to imagine Black Mountain’s wall of sound unleashed within the confines of the Crepe Place—they had sold out the Fillmore a few nights before and had a growing fanbase. The capacity, which maxes out around 100, hit quickly, and the room vibrated in unison with the band—we stood face-to-face with the group, synchronized, on the same level. I was hooked.
J. Mascis, Father John Misty, Camper Van Beethoven, the Lumineers, Kurt Vile, Imagine Dragons and Real Estate are some of the many acts who have performed the venue over the last 25 years or so—some multiple times. Even the Crepe Place owner, Chuck Platt, plays bass for a popular Santa Cruz punk group, Good Riddance. Along with a variety of innovative thin pancake concoctions like Crepe Gatsby (chicken with red pesto) and Banana Rama (Nutella-smothered bananas and vanilla ice cream) and a thoughtful craft cocktail program, music—and the people, including staff—seem to be the Crepe Place’s keys to surviving 50 years. When Mat Weir delved into the Crepe Place’s history, he was inundated with information—when something so adored has been around for 50 years, it’s bound to amass many stories and memories.
The bottom line—and Weir’s conclusion, if you want to call it that, is that there is no one reason for the Crepe Place’s ongoing success. “Bringing crepes to Santa Cruz? A local watering hole where you’re almost guaranteed to walk in and see a buddy or make a new friend? An intimate music venue with national headliners?” Weir writes with a rhetorical tone. The real question: Could you imagine Santa Cruz without the Crepe Place? I know I couldn’t.
In non-crepe-related news, Santa Cruz Burger Week giveaways are in full swing! It’s as simple as visiting the @santacruzrestaurantweek Facebook page and commenting on the day’s featured burger spot(s). If you comment, you could win a gift card. There are many tasty burgers to try throughout Santa Cruz County. Visit SCBW today and start working your way down the list.
Adam Joseph | Interim Editor
PHOTO CONTEST WINNER
Gloves lined at Soquel High pre-spring training. Photograph by Ross Levoy.
Submit to ph****@*******es.sc. Include information (location, etc.) and your name. Photos may be cropped. Preferably, photos should be 4 inches by 4 inches and minimum 250dpi.
GOOD IDEA
Our local libraries have so much to offer. Now we can add backpacks filled with supplies for your next outdoor adventure to the list. California State Parks is partnering with REI Co-op to provide backpacks that will be available to library card holders that check out a California State Library Parks Pass. Backpacks will contain binoculars, a hand lens, a compass, various guidebooks and more. parks.ca.gov/30806
GOOD WORK
On Wednesday, Feb. 15, one of our favorite listener-supported community radio stations will celebrate an anniversary: KSQD 90.7 FM, fondly known as The Squid, is turning four years old. The birthday will be commemorated with special broadcasts and listener-submitted wishes. During an era of corporate-owned networks, community radio is more important than ever. Submit your shoutout, donate or just tune in at ksqd.org
Santa Cruz Thread has been the downtown hub of organic body care since 2013. Their growing clientele are in for a real treat as they blossom into establishing a next-level presence on Fair Avenue, on the upper Westside. Established team estheticians, paired with the intimate business management of owner Karissa Cates, have made Santa Cruz Thread a five-star salon.
It only took me 30 years to find my way into an actual salon. At the time, I had just branched off into my own business as an independent marine service contractor focusing on small engine mechanics and custom boat lettering. I had particularly avoided such pampered treatment as an industrious single mother with a low-maintenance surfer-girl persona. I was curious and slightly desperate to try out the famed fad of eyebrow threading and bikini waxing. As a working woman with more engine grease on my fingers than jewelry, self-care was getting out of my weathered hands. I have returned to the sanctuary of body care through Santa Cruz Thread. Throughout the last decade, I have periodically sought my California endless summer Brazilian wax or cleaned up my brows, underarms and wild-mane hairline. I see the same women, not only Karissa, who is always a quick response to fit me in or pair treatment areas, but also her sister-like staff. It sounds so cliche to say, “we’ve laughed, we’ve cried,” but it couldn’t be closer to the whole truth.
As a committed patron, I had heard the discussions of their goals for relocation. Their Front Street main entrance had been one of several downtown locations impacted by break-ins. Unfortunately, many neighboring businesses have been forced to respond with increasing security. I enthusiastically offered to help contribute artwork to her new space. Months ensued before Karissa secured the Fair Avenue location. I was honored that she approached me, another mom, and fellow businesswoman as her consultant artist for interior design. After viewing the spacious layout illuminated by coveted natural lighting, right across from New Leaf and just behind Verve, I was absorbing all the warmth and fuzzies I can only Imagine Karissa herself must be feeling as a fully invested business owner. We are delighted to reveal the love and heart that has been invested into bringing Santa Cruz Thread to the Westside.
Liza Star, Local Artist
These letters do not necessarily reflect the views of Good Times.To submit a letter to the editor of Good Times: Letters should be originals—not copies of letters sent to other publications. Please include your name and email address to help us verify your submission (email address will not be published). Please be brief. Letters may be edited for length, clarity and to correct factual inaccuracies known to us. Send letters to le*****@*******es.sc
“I was devastated. I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, this is it,’” Chuck Platt explains with wide eyes. “Then I got calls from some of the employees who have been here 20 plus years, and they all said, ‘Hey Chuck, don’t worry.’ The Crepe Place gets through everything.”
He’s sitting in his office above the popular midtown restaurant and music venue, discussing the early days of the 2020 lockdown. It was a dark time for everyone, particularly for new business owners like Platt and his wife, Vanessa. They purchased the Crepe Place two years prior and had the usual new ownership wrinkles smoothed out just as the pandemic hit.
The long-term staff already knew: The Crepe Place would survive. The establishment had already endured a mountain slide, only to move into the Cooper House months before the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake condemned the building. More recently, Chuck was hospitalized in early 2022 after being hit by a car in front of the restaurant. He suffered a broken ankle and collar bone, an injury to his left knee and lacerations to his face and body.
“Things were going so well,” Vanessa recalls. “Then our cook, Hugo, called and said Chuck had been in an accident.”
At first, she didn’t believe him, knowing her husband’s penchant for pranks. When she realized it wasn’t a joke, she rushed to his side. Vanessa, a CPA by trade, mainly works the back end, worried about how the Crepe Place would operate without Chuck. Her worries were quickly eased.
“Everyone offered to help and cover shifts so I didn’t have to go in and could concentrate on making sure he was okay,” she says.
Once again, the Crepe Place prevailed.
Former Crepe Place bookkeeper Marilyn Sandow at the North Pacific Avenue location more than 40 years ago.
50 YEARS STRONG
February 2023 marks the Crepe Place’s 50th year, and the spot will deliver 30 days of sweet, savory and sometimes loud surprises. Throughout the month, there will be an array of music from local acts like Kai Killion (Getaway Dogs), Hod & the Helpers and the DJs at People’s Disco, and heavy hitters such as Russ Rankin, Mattson 2 and the Mermen.
Their golden anniversary will also be honored by midtown friends and neighbors, Sante Adarius, who concocted a special anniversary brew, Come Again, canned or on tap.
Chuck also plans on bringing back some classics as specials, including the Tunisian Doughnut, “an old-school, day-one Crepe Place item.”
“I’ve never even had one myself,” Chuck admits.
Longtime crepers might remember the honey and lemon syrup-soaked wonder, topped with cinnamon, powdered sugar and fruit jam. It was so delicious Good Times even showcased it in 1981.
“But no matter how full, I can always find room for a Tunisian doughnut,” Donna Blakemore wrote. She described it as “huge,” adding with chagrin, “now $1 but still worth it.”
Chef Hugo Diaz—who’s been there since 1996 and whose father, Antonio, has also worked as a chef at the restaurant since 1989—is excited about the “very tasty” treat’s return, despite how long it takes to make.
“You have to make the dough and then let it self-rise for a whole day,” Hugo divulges. “But it’s worth it.”
While the future is sweet, every survival story is about more than perseverance. Drizzled throughout are bonds of love, family and community, and the Crepe Place is no different. Every local has a Crepe Place story or memory, has known or been an employee or all of the above.
“It’s a Santa Cruz restaurant,” Eric “Giff” Gifford says—he co-owned the spot from 2007 to 2018 with Adam Bergeron. “We prided ourselves in being a reflection of our community—we felt the responsibility to keep the place going strictly from the feedback we would get from our customers.”
With the wood-centric interior, Zen garden—Santa Cruz’s “best kept secret,” according to longtime bartender Nick Gyorkos—and extensive bar, there’s not another place that embodies Santa Cruz. Its laid-back atmosphere and kitschy art—from the famous “Marihuana” poster and Bob Dylan painting to framed comic books and cluttered knick-knacks—make it a tower of a bygone era.
“It’s always been like a family,” bartender Dave Pierce says. He’s been there for 26 of the last 33 years. “We have the best customers in the world, or at least around here.”
More than a restaurant. More than a venue. The Crepe Place is a community hub and one of the few remnants of an older, simpler, less expensive time.
In addition to the owners and the art, the employees should be credited for the Crepe Place’s unexplainable charm. Many of the staff have worked there for years—some for decades—generational employees for generational customers.
“There was a time when it was almost impossible to get a job here,” Gyorkos recalls. He’s worked there for 17 years. “Nobody ever left.”
As rare as it is for restaurants to survive and thrive for 50 years, it’s even rarer to see one that has changed so little. It looks almost the same as when Gary and Marlene Keeley opened the doors in 1973.
The vintage wooden sidewalk cutout of a French gendarmerie nationale is one of the Crepe Place’s many trademarks. In 2009, Black Mountain performed to a packed house—the Sadies (returning on March 1, 2023) opened. The first Crepe Place menu is worthy of a space at the Smithsonian.
AS THE CREPE FLIPS
From the start, the Crepe Place has always been a family establishment. Gary Keeley’s sister, Sharon, initially told him to open a creperie after a trip to Paris.
“She fell in love with them,” he remembers, from his Corralitos home. “She said it would sell in Santa Cruz, and she was right. There was no other entity selling crepes, and I think most Santa Cruzans had never even heard of them.”
They opened in a small, one-room building—long since demolished—on the corner of Ocean Street and Soquel Avenue.
“We could seat 12 people if they were friends,” Keeley laughs. “We had three little tables, and the space was tiny!”
They called their new restaurant The Seine on The Other Side, combining the previous tenant’s name—The Other Side—with the French connection.
“We tried to be French and used words like ‘Fromage,’” Keeley says, pointing out that the original menu still hangs in the Crepe Place’s backroom.
“Our customers called us the Crepe Place. So, when we moved near the clocktower on [North Pacific Avenue], that’s when I changed the name,” he says before adding with a laugh, “And it’s a great name!”
That was 1974—present-day Los Piños location—where they continued to grow for the next 14 years. Keeley’s daughters worked there, andhis oldest, Lauren, would continue waiting tables for several years, eventually taking over the management aspects of the business. A lot of the menu is the same as it was then.
“[Lauren] says ‘by far’ the Special Salsa Crepe was our most popular,” Keeley says. “She said, ‘After waiting tables for years and years, I served more Salsa than anything else.’”
Another favorite was—and still is—the Whole Thing: a dessert crepe with chocolate, banana and nuts topped with whipped cream and a scoop of Marianne’s ice cream.
The Crepe Place grew in popularity and size as time passed, eventually taking over the old United Bar space—and liquor license—next to its North Pacific Avenue location.
Keeley says the restaurant was always a reflection of the community, more carefree than today.
“We ran a fairly tight business, but we also had a lot of fun”
Once, a group of people wanted to talk with management about the best way to streak through the business. A naked person did indeed run through the restaurant—Santa Cruz’s hippie days marked a very different era.
“Lauren said, ‘Well okay,’ and gave them a route!” Keeley laughs.
By the mid-80s, the Keeleys tried a second location on the UC Santa Cruz campus. It never caught on. By 1988, the restaurant was more profitable than it had been in years—until Christmas Eve that same year.
A landslide had brought the entire face of the bluff behind the building down on the restaurant. Instead of waiting for the inspection, clean-up and rebuilding, the Keeleys rented and renovated a downstairs unit in the famed Cooper House—now Abbott Square—Santa Cruz’s most popular hangout at the time. They reopened in June 1989. However, four months later, the Loma Prieta Earthquake brought Santa Cruz’s downtown to its knees and took the Cooper House with it. The owner of the Cooper House wouldn’t allow any of his tenants to go in and retrieve anything.”
Luckily, a city employee found a legal loophole that allowed Keeley back into the building. Because of that, some of the spot’s classic decor, like the Bob Dylan painting, Marihuana movie poster and that iconic policeman sign, were salvaged.
With a lot of help from friends and community members—several locals volunteered their time and labor for free—the Crepe Place reopened at its current location in February 1990.
Chicago psych trio Bitchin Bajas recently performed the Crepe Place. The small venue has always been a go-to for up-and-coming rockers, like the now-bigtime Father John Misty, and established performers like the late great Justin Townes Earle. PHOTO: Mat Weir
THE MUSIC NEVER STOPS
When longtime employees Adam Bergeron and Eric Gifford—a part-time employee and Bergeron’s then-roommate—bought the business in 2007, they made two significant changes. First, they extended the bar to the striking shrine it is today. Second, they turned it into the all-ages midtown music venue it has become.
“When Adam and Giff came in, the Crepe Place became a really great music venue,” Germaine Faison says.
Faison worked as a waitress at the restaurant for 23 years and under all three generations of owners. She hung it up in 2020 with the lockdown and her mother’s cancer diagnosis.
“Some nights, there would be a great musician, and I’d want to go home but would be so glad I stayed,” Faison says. “And then you’d see them on The Tonight Show. So many bands that played were about to blow up.”
Acts like the smooth-voiced Americana of the White Buffalo, heavy psych rockers Black Mountain and the late Justin Townes Earle—the troubled, musical genius son of Steve Earle. According to Bergeron, whenever papa Earle played the Rio, he would come by to thank them for treating Justin so well. Often, he would pull up a stool, have a drink and watch a ballgame. It’s a testament to the welcoming warmth of the business and a sentiment shared by many musicians.
“J. Tillman—aka Father John Misty—left Fleet Foxes and spent a year on what he called a ‘spirit quest,’” Bergeron explains. “He would come and play gigs, but plenty of other nights, he would just come and drink beer.”
Where else but the Crepe Place can fans pay a reasonable price to stand a foot away from major, national headlining acts like Pixies founding frontman Frank Black or Portugal. The Man or Canadian alt-country rockers the Sadies? —the Sadies return on March 1.
Meanwhile, the music continues with Platt, bassist for longtime punk outfit Good Riddance. He’s also in the hardcore supergroup Seized Up, who packed the restaurant for their live debut in December 2019.
Without a stage, greenroom or the ability to host large crowds, the unlikely music venue has become one of the area’s most endeared.
“Music made it more of a spot on the map for people who don’t live in Santa Cruz,” Gyorkos says. “People all over the world know the Crepe Place as a music venue.”
Several employees have played the room with Gyorkos’ different bands, from the six-piece soul revival outfit Harry and the Hitmen to the rootsy, country-folk group Bad Maps. The latter he plays with another beloved Santa Cruz musician and former employee, Dan Potthast, also known as Dan P.
“It’s the best; I love it!” Potthast exclaims when asked about playing at the restaurant.
Along with Bad Maps and his 10-piece–now defunct–roots reggae and ska act, Dan P. & the Bricks, Potthast has performed solo multiple times while he was employed from 2007 until 2020.
A wooden show flier in the shape of a dachshund he hand-painted for his debut solo show still hangs above the doorway to the kitchen. Potthast returns to the restaurant on Feb. 22 with Beast! and Hod & the Helpers.
“I love that feeling of being on the floor, and the crowd is in your face,” Potthast says. “The shows go off!”
GETTING BATTER ALL THE TIME
In 2017, Bergeron and Gifford were looking for a change. So, when they mentioned their plans to their CPA—Vanessa Platt—she saw a perfect opportunity.
“Chuck’s always said he wanted a bar or restaurant where he could throw shows,” she says. “It appealed to us because it’s part of Santa Cruz history. People have been coming for years, and those are the stories we hear all the time.”
Chuck adds, “My main job is to keep the Crepe Place relevant with the times. And that goes for the menu, without taking away classics.”
When the Platts took over, they kept many classics like the Turkey Club, Crepe Gatsby and the Whole Thing. They’ve also added tasty treats to the familiar menu, such as tater tots and cauliflower wings. Chuck, who’s had a plant-based diet since 1984, worked with Diaz to create vegetarian and vegan versions of every crepe on the menu.
Hungry patrons should also note the unique poutine—a Canadian delicacy of fries and cheese curds drowned in brown gravy (meat or vegetarian)—served only on Canada Day (July 1) and their Thanksgiving Crepe throughout November. But that’s not all.
“We now have gluten-free crepes,” Chuck proclaims. “We did several recipes until we liked the taste. They’re great!”
So, after 50 years, what exactly is the Crepe Place’s legacy? Brining crepes to Santa Cruz? A local watering hole where you’re almost guaranteed to walk in and see a buddy or make a new friend? An intimate music venue with national headliners where local bands get on their feet? A relic of survival no matter what disaster is thrown at it?
The truth is, it’s all of these things and more. After all, what would Santa Cruz be without the Crepe Place?
“The community in Santa Cruz is really special, and the Crepe Place is one of the top 100 reasons why,” Bergeron says. “It’s part of Santa Cruz’s history.”
The 50th Anniversary Brunch happens at the Crepe Place, 1134 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz on Sunday, Feb. 26, 10am-2pm; The “All Vinyl DJ Party” is 3-8pm. Free. thecrepeplace.com
There was something surprisingly familiar about the way UCSC professor of astronomy and astrophysics Brant Robertson described galaxies in our recent interview. I’d talked with him for two previous stories as the James Webb Space Telescope launched and started sending data back to Earth. But in this particular conversation, a few phrases he used summoned an unexpected nostalgia.
He listed some of the new questions that JWST allows astronomers to ask. “What’s the diversity in the population of galaxies at these times?” and “what impact do they have on their surroundings?” were among them.
I commented that those sounded more like the topics I used to explore as an ecology student than what I would expect to hear in astronomy. He nodded with a smile.
“It’s indeed often called galaxy ecology,” he said. “Galaxies—they live and grow, and they die off, but they do so in the environment of other things.”
To understand the lives of these faraway galaxies—not simply their distance from us or their age, but the details that define them—requires incredible technical precision and power. It’s one example of how JWST is changing science, and UCSC researchers are at the forefront.
In part three of our JWST series, UCSC scientists talk about significant discoveries, changes in scientific culture and revelations to come.
TELESCOPE’S-EYE VIEW
After years of delays and uncertainty, the most powerful telescope was launched into space in December 2021. It flew to a predetermined point about a million miles from Earth and successfully unfolded its 21-foot-diameter mirror and tennis court-sized sunshield. In the year since, it spent several months calibrating four main instruments and began sending highly anticipated data back to Earth.
“Already, Webb has touched on almost every aspect of astronomy,” UCSC distinguished emeritus professor Garth Illingworth says. It changes how we see everything from the birth of ancient galaxies to planets in our own solar system.
“The telescope performs better than all the requirements we had on it,” Illingworth adds. And because of its excellent launch, it has enough fuel to operate for 20 years.
But it hasn’t all been smooth sailing. It took months of calibrating and discussions to tease out the exact sensitivity of each instrument onboard. On top of that, instrument shutdowns delayed observations and threw wrenches in schedules.
At one point in December, the entire telescope shut down, says Illingworth. Booting it back up took two days.
Sometimes the malfunctions come from cosmic rays that pass through the telescope and confuse the electronics. Other times software bugs cause the issues. Either way, the result is a scramble to make up for lost time in the tightly packed observation schedule.
Illingworth is the U.S. lead for the PRIMER program, which studies the formation of some of the earliest galaxies in the universe. Because of the instrument shutdowns, the team had a shorter window to make observations and now must wait until November to fill in the gaps.
“So, we have a map of a region of the sky with holes in it, which is very frustrating,” Illingworth says. “But that’s just the way it goes.”
Hiccups aside, he says the excitement of discoveries and seeing the universe in a new way makes it “amazingly fun” to be a scientist.
Three days after the first data was released, Illingworth and colleagues wrote a paper about a puzzling discovery. They had expected to find small, dim galaxies from early in the universe. But “there’s much more of these than expected, and they’re much brighter than expected,” says Illingworth.
Some scientists have suggested that this discovery could point to flaws in our understanding of cosmology and the early universe. Illingworth thinks it’s more likely that we just don’t understand the galaxies’ formation. Others suggest that the galaxies might not be as old or far away as proposed.
“We shall see,” Illingworth says.
AT THE EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE
Light from the earliest galaxies travels billions of light-years across an expanding universe before it reaches our solar system. When it touches our solar system, the wavelengths have stretched into the infrared in a phenomenon called redshift. Infrared light is outside the range we can see, but JWST’s instruments are designed for it.
One of the instruments, called the near-infrared spectrograph (NIRSpec), works like a prism, spreading out light and allowing researchers to study the individual colors in light from stars and galaxies. This technique, called spectroscopy, helps scientists more accurately measure the distance of galaxies. In November, Robertson and an international team, JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES), used spectroscopy with four of the oldest-known galaxies. The paper is currently under consideration for peer review.
Two galaxies were known from Hubble Telescope data, and two were newly discovered using JWST.
“Those two turned out to be the two most distant galaxies that we know about,” says Robertson. Other faraway galaxies have been found, but their distances have not yet been confirmed with spectroscopy.
The distance and timescale are impossible to grasp. The light has traveled for 13.5 billion years before reaching us, meaning these galaxies existed in the universe’s infancy, less than 400 million years after the Big Bang.
These early galaxies behave very differently than our Milky Way. They’re around a thousand times smaller in the area but only about a hundred times smaller in mass.
“The density—how much stuff you fit into a small space—actually controls the timescale on which things happen,” says Robertson. “So, it’s like the clock is running faster in some ways in these galaxies.”
For example, scientists believe that galaxies form stars about a hundred times quicker relative to their mass than the Milky Way.
To better understand these earliest galaxies, researchers need more examples. With hundreds of hours of assured telescope time in their future, the JADES team expects to have plenty more to study soon.
“We’re just getting started,” says Robertson.
THE SEARCH FOR HABITABLE PLANETS
While sensitive enough to see the galaxies at the edge of the visible universe, JWST is also “powerful enough to see the tiniest molecules in the smallest planets very close to us,” says UCSC professor of astronomy and astrophysics Natalie Batalha.
Batalha leads the Transiting Exoplanet Community Early Release Science Program. The group, made up of around 300 scientists from around the world, studies the atmospheres of planets outside our solar system.
Most scientists don’t expect JWST to be able to detect life, but learning about exoplanet atmospheres provides a starting point for studying their habitability.
UCSC is at the forefront of this research. The Astrobiology Initiative, directed by Batalha, is an interdisciplinary effort to study the origins and distribution of life in the universe. UCSC also draws visiting astronomers over the summer for the Other Worlds Laboratory (OWL).
When a planet passes in front of its star, some of the starlight filters through the atmosphere before reaching the telescope, Batalha explains. By observing a star before, during and after a planet crosses in front of it, scientists can measure changes in the light. Using spectroscopy, they can then identify molecules in the atmosphere of the planet that absorb light at specific wavelengths.
“When you’re trying to observe an exoplanet atmosphere, you’re trying to tease out a small number of photons from the star that have been affected by the atmosphere,” Batalha says. “And for that, you need really, really high precision.”
In August, the team published findings of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of WASP-39 b, a Saturn-mass planet that orbits a star about 700 light-years from Earth. Data from Hubble had hinted at the presence of CO2; this was the first confirmation of it in an exoplanet atmosphere.
In the same planetary spectrum, the researchers found sulfur dioxide, the same gas responsible for the smell of burnt matches.
“It was pretty shocking,” says fourth-year Ph.D. student Nicholas Scarsdale. Scarsdale models the atmospheres of exoplanets and then matches those models to the spectra.
The presence of sulfur dioxide excited scientists because it forms through photochemistry—chemical reactions influenced by light.
“The ozone in the upper atmosphere that protects us from ultraviolet radiation is actually produced by photochemistry,” Batalha says.
It means the atmosphere is not in equilibrium. Scarsdale says that so-called disequilibrium processes are widespread in the universe but not as common in models because of their complexity.
“Life is a disequilibrium process,” he continues. “At equilibrium, we are dust in the wind.”
Scarsdale says that photochemistry is particularly interesting; all Earth life relies on it through photosynthesis.
WASP-39 b is a “hot Jupiter” and not considered habitable, but it can still offer clues about how stars influence their planets’ atmospheres.
“A lot of the planets that we think of as being in the habitable zone have very different stars from our own,” he says. “So, understanding what that different light profile does to the chemistry in their atmospheres is really important for understanding whether they’re habitable at all.”
A STARRY-EYED FUTURE
WASP-39 b is one of three exoplanets the early release science program is studying. The other two are WASP-18 and WASP-43. All three are bigger than the class of planets Batalha and Scarsdale are most excited to study: sub-Neptunes and super-Earths. These planets are ubiquitous in the Milky Way, but we don’t have one in our solar system.
“I want to know if any subset of those planets represents new real estate for the possibility of life,” says Batalha. She’s working with her daughter, NASA astronomer Natasha Batalha, to study those planets and expects to get back the first observations in the next two weeks.
UCSC also led the process of imaging an exoplanet using JWST. Aarynn Carter, a postdoctoral scholar who works with UCSC professor of astronomy and astrobiology Andrew Skemer, spearheaded the data analysis for imaging exoplanet HIP-65426 b.
“I’ve spent the last five years preparing for these observations, and seeing them not only succeed but exceed expectations is exhilarating,” Carter said in a press release. “I think what’s most exciting is that we’ve only just begun.”
With two decades of spectacular images and discoveries ahead of us, the stars are aligning for a new age of astronomy.
If the surfing world mirrors society, Santa Cruz has the privilege of holding up a beautiful, full-length mirror. The question then becomes: What do we want it to reflect? To care about diversity, representation, inclusion and justice, whether or not we’re surfers ourselves, means to factor in what our lineups look like.
At Troubled Waters, a presentation, Q&A and community discussion about diversity and racism in surfing, surfer/activist/Black Surf Santa Cruz founder Esabella Bonner, Black.Surfers founder Kayiita Johnson, surfer/historian/anthropologist Paul Richardson and artist/activist/Decolonize The Surf creator David Crellin will discuss and examine the history of representation in surfing. The panelists will lead a conversation on ways to help make contemporary surf culture more inclusive and welcoming.
“Surfing offers this perfect lens and opportunity to see certain ‘isms,’” Bonner says. “Whether sexism, racism, classism or able-ism—surfing is a lens into greater systemic issues. Calling out the history, calling out that we’re living in troubled waters, that’s how we actually dismantle these things and reimagine how things should be.”
The topic inspired what became the heart of Crellin’s Digital Arts and New Media MFA thesis project at UCSC, which developed into a gallery exhibit and later evolved into Decolonize The Surf. The interactive project reaches broad audiences using a QR-coded sticker—surfers have been putting them up around breaks statewide—leading to a website that’s become a movement based on learning about and working to eradicate racism in surfing.
Troubled Waters came about as an extension of conversations that began when Crellin reached out to Bonner, Johnson and Richardson while researching the original Decolonize The Surf project.
“The work they, and so many others, are doing is urgent and necessary,” Crellin says. “They were incredibly generous with their time, knowledge and friendship. As a white artist and activist making a commitment to creating anti-racist work, their insights, inspiration, support and guidance were, and are, invaluable to me.”
Bonner emphasizes how much the panelists’ missions are aligned. She founded the organization to “promote physical, spiritual and communal healing through surfing, recreation, education and advocacy,” which is aligned with Decolonize The Surf, Black.Surfers and, of course, the event itself.
All originally stem from “truth-telling and acknowledging that we are living in troubled waters.” Bonner adds that segregation and separation in the water can be repaired through events and storytelling that recognizes “the true history and root of the problem and gives us an opportunity to heal together. This comes from being able to acknowledge that we have a problem in the first place.”
Crellin says that contemporary barriers to ocean access for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) include “showing up at a community that’s exclusively white,” the challenges of getting to the water, put into play by “the systems” and created systemic racism.
For instance, while researching Decolonize The Surf, Crellin learned that a 10-minute bike ride from where he grew up was Bruce’s Beach. This Manhattan Beach resort welcomed Black beachgoers in the early 1900s. In the 1920s, the local government took the resort and finally returned it to the Bruce family in 2022. Crellin offers a quote from artist, activist and academic Lilla Watson to help describe his passion for this work: “If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time, but if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”
For Troubled Waters, the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History is offering a collaboration. Director of Exhibitions and Programs, Marla Novo, met with Crellin to discuss ways the permanent surfing exhibition in the History Gallery could be more inclusive.
“Collecting, preserving and sharing stories” is the heart of the museum’s mission. They decided to “start the discussion.” “The MAH is honored to host talks like Troubled Waters,” Novo says. “We do this by creating spaces for our community to connect, create and share.”
The MAH has also worked with Bonner and Black Surf Santa Cruz. Crellin hopes the event opens up “a conversation about issues of representation and race in the surfing community, and stimulates an honest, if at times, uncomfortable look at how surfing can be more accountable, on a personal level and in the sport as a whole.”
He hopes attendees think about the issues and what comes up for them. Crellin suggests attendees ponder questions like, “What is it that they don’t know or understand? Where do they feel awkward, challenged or unsure? What do they think surfing needs to do to be more diverse and inclusive? And what might they be prepared to do to help change surfing for the better?”
Bonner encourages the opportunity to view “this work—such as antiracism—as a verb, something to actually do.” She hopes the audience arrives “with an open mind, a curiosity to learn more and intention to act upon the information and do something differently. I hope that’s the mindset.”
Crellin also advises researching the organizations working on representation and diversity in surf culture. Black Surf Santa Cruz, Black.Surfers, Brown Girl Surf and Native Like Water, are just a few examples.
“The information is out there if you look, and it’s a great way to start to learn about it and what you can do to make a difference,” Crellin says.
Troubled Waters: The Ocean as Contested Space in Surf Culture happens Friday, Feb. 17, 6-7:30pm at the MAH Garden Room, 705 Front St., Santa Cruz. Free (with museum admission). santacruzmah.org
