Comanche Cellars

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The 2012 Comanche Cellars Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands won a silver medal in the ‘San Francisco Chronicle’ Wine Competition this year.Pinot Noir shows off stellar growing season

Pinot Noir shows off stellar growing season
A Greek friend invited six of us over for dinner, preparing incredibly tasty Hellenic food, including pastitsio, artichokes, a typical Greek “horiatiki” salad, and finishing up with my favorite dessert of galaktoboureko (semolina pie). Along with the popular Greek aperitif ouzo, we had plenty of Retsina wine as well.
I took along a bottle of Comanche Cellars 2012 Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir ($34) for friends to taste—and it was a sure-fire hit. “It was practically an ideal growing season, with perfect conditions for everything from fruit set to slow, even ripening,” says winemaker and owner Michael Simons of this luscious Pinot. “The wine reflects its sunny heritage beautifully, with aromas of a warm afternoon briar patch, roasted plums, cherry tobacco, rosemary and carob,” he adds. Luscious flavors of tangy berries and black cherries are also captured in the bottle, along with nuances of wild sage and chai.
Simons is turning out some excellent wines, and he’ll be opening up a tasting room in Marina—shared with two other wineries—in about a month’s time. Meanwhile, he’s offering a tasting experience at his home and office in Monterey. “It’s a relaxed and fun guided excursion through the winegrowing process as you learn about all the great vineyards where Comanche Cellars wines begin,” he says.  The tasting fee, which includes cheese pairings, is $10 per person. He also has a new label, which still depicts the horseshoes belonging to his much-loved steed Comanche. Although Comanche is no longer around, his name lives on in the winery.
Comanche Cellars, 1198 Harrison St., Monterey, 320-7062. comanchecellars.com

Casa Nostra Dinner

Casa Nostra will be hosting Comanche Cellars on Tuesday, March 29. It’s an opportunity to meet Simons and try his award-winning wines. Five small plates of delicious Italian cuisine will be paired with Simons’ wines as you listen to a live jazz duo. Dinner is served in the restaurant’s garden under a canopy with plenty of heaters to keep guests warm. The dinner is from 6-9 p.m. and tickets are $65 (advance ticket sales only).
Casa Nostra, 9217 Hwy. 9, Ben Lomond, 609-6132. ristorantecasanostra.com. The menu will be posted on Facebook.
 

Complete this sentence: “If I didn’t drink alcohol …”

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Complete this sentence: “If I didn’t drink alcohol …”

Mix Tapers

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Mix Tapers

All barely 20 years old now, the members of Brooklyn trio Sunflower Bean discovered rock ’n’ roll in high school in the 21st century, when all of their peers were listening to anything but. For them, as kids, rock was the most underground music you could listen to.
On their debut record, Human Ceremony, released in February, it’s clear that their rock of choice was all over the board, and they’ve tried to smash everything they heard into one album. It’s certainly enthusiastic, and sounds less like a band trying to regurgitate a retro sound than a young band discovering the music for the first time, and wanting desperately to share it with the world.
The influences include early Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, the Cure, Velvet Underground, Lush, and Tame Impala. And their wild variance can be not just heard in their music, but seen in their look, too. Guitarist/vocalist Nick Kivlen looks strikingly like late-’60s Bob Dylan. Bassist/vocalist Julia Cummings would have looked at home in Siouxsie and the Banshees, while drummer Jacob Faber looks like an indie-folk hipster. This is precisely the jumbled approach they take in their music. It makes perfect sense in the Sunflower Bean universe when they blast those Sabbath power chords in the middle of “Creation Myth” after a couple solid minutes of ’90s jangle-pop.
The album’s single “Wall Watcher” is one of the heavier tunes, influenced by heavy alt, with eerie vocals from Cummings. But it’s not the strongest song, nor is it the best pick for a single. That would be “I Want You To Give Me All Your Time,” the song that follows it immediately on the record. Cummings and Kivlen’s harmonies are somewhere between gorgeous and spooky, and the electric finger-picking guitar work and hook-laden chorus could have easily shot this song up on the alternative rock charts in the ’90s—or maybe the college rock charts in the ’80s.

It makes perfect sense in the Sunflower Bean universe when they blast those Sabbath power chords in the middle of “Creation Myth” after a couple solid minutes of ’90s jangle-pop.

In an interview the band did with NME, they discussed their approach to music as a reaction to the deadly seriousness of the post-rock shoegaze scene. They’re not so much lighthearted—their music is serious and mysterious—but they do have a playful, curious approach to their music that is reminiscent of a brand-new band still figuring out its sound, or at least a band unconcerned with etching out a cohesive marketable image. They’re dabblers, and the jury is out on whether they are aware of when they accidentally dip their feet into uncool territory.
This curiosity is certainly their most enduring trait, but it also gets them in trouble. They are strongest when they see an idea for a song through, rather than pasting different sections together, like the previously mentioned jangle-meets-doom-metal juxtaposition of “Creation Myth.” It’s a fascinating concept, but makes for less repeat listens than other tunes.
“Single Wall Watcher” is strong because it’s short and sweet, and the fact that it doesn’t sound like any other song on the record is a bonus. Other tunes that hit their mark include psych-popper “Human Ceremony,” and the ominous, washed-out shoegaze tune “2013.”
In general, Cummings takes the lead more often than Kivlen. Her voice is an unsettling kind of angelic, while Kivlen tends to wallow in his dark, post-punk melodies. And Cummings is the stronger singer in the group. Her voice is the most suited to the genre hopping. But there’s a certain charm to the songs like “Human Ceremony” where Kivlen pops in with the occasional vocal lines, and their harmonies almost always work splendidly.
Sunflower Bean is only a few years in, and seem like they have stumbled into a solid debut record by covering as many of their bases as possible. If they can refine their sound while keeping their curiosity intact, they’ll go on to great things.

Sunflower Bean play at 9 p.m. on Saturday, March 26, at the Crepe Place, 1134 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. $10. 429-6994.
 

We Tree

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We Tree

Who hasn’t heard the story of Johnny Appleseed, the legendary folk hero who planted apple trees across the country? Skilled nurseryman and espouser of simple living, his love of apples has long served American parents trying to get their kids to eat fresh produce. There’s only one problem: the person was real, but much of the story was fiction.
The myth of Johnny Appleseed is what sparked bestselling author Tracy Chevalier’s interest in writing her new novel, At the Edge of the Orchard.
“He wasn’t promoting healthy eating,” she says. “He was mostly selling apple trees that produced hard cider and applejack.” Indeed, Johnny Appleseed, aka John Chapman, was a strategic businessman who planted orchards in anticipation of the settlers who would come to the Ohio Valley needing to plant 50 viable apple trees to stake their claims. “I had this vision of a couple arguing over apples,” says Chevalier, “whether to have sweet eaters or sour spitters [two varieties at the time], him for eating and her for drinking.”
The idea grew from there that she would write about a dysfunctional pioneer family—“the dark side of the Laura Ingalls Wilder tales,” as she puts it. She also wanted to write about the great migration west, which gave birth to the most problematic American myth of all: The American Dream. As she dove into the kind of detailed research she’s known for, she pegged its iconic beginnings during the Gold Rush.

“This is a book about migration, and trees migrated alongside people,” says Chevalier. You look out a window, see a tree, and think it’s always going to be there. But trees as a species do move around, and get moved around. For me, that was underlying the idea of people moving.”

“I realized that that’s where it was minted, so to speak, this idea that you could change your life by reaching into a river and pulling out a nugget of gold to make your fortune,” says Chevalier.
Wrenching movement and infinite potential has shaped the American point of view ever since, and nature played no small part in the story. It is unforgiving to James and Sadie Goodenough, the husband and wife who clash at the beginning of Chevalier’s novel, but it provides solace to their youngest son, Robert, who heads to California in the wake of a family tragedy and ends up working for another real-life tree broker, William Lobb.
“This is a book about migration, and trees migrated alongside people,” says Chevalier. You look out a window, see a tree, and think it’s always going to be there. But trees as a species do move around, and get moved around. For me, that was underlying the idea of people moving.” She points out that apple trees came from Kazakhstan, along the silk route to Persia and Italy. “The Romans brought them to England,” she says, “and from there they came to the States.”
It might surprise readers to learn what trees William Lobb and Robert Goodenough sent back to Victorian England: redwoods and sequoias. “You can still see them in parts of the country,” Chevalier says. “They’re much smaller than redwoods that have been growing in California for hundreds of years, but they’re getting there.” She remembers spotting a small grove from a train window as she traveled through the British countryside. The nearby village had street names like “Redwood Way.” Sequoias can be seen too, on the grounds of Downton Abbey-style estates, exerting their distinctly American presence.
Pioneers and refugees often share the same goals, to transform hardship and seek opportunity, but Chevalier reminds us that it’s the business people surrounding them who more often profit. “Most miners during the gold rush didn’t make a fortune,” she says. “The people who did were the ones selling them the shovels and sacks of cornmeal.”
Even in the sweeping landscape of westward migration, where profiteers reap the most, it’s through family members navigating their way from brutal beginnings that we come to understand the greatest myth of all: that we can outrun our troubles. Chevalier sums up the cost of redemption.
“It goes hand in hand with the idea of moving across the country, always heading West,” she says. “When you reach the Pacific, you can’t go any further. You have to turn around and face what you’ve been running from.”

Tracy Chevalier will read from and discuss her new book at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 23, at Bookshop Santa Cruz, 1520 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. Free.
 

From The Editor

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That’s a Rep

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As Joe Williams surveyed the congressional race for District 20, he kept waiting for a proven local liberal like Assemblymember Bill Monning (D-Carmel), Assemblymember Mark Stone (D-Scotts Valley) or Assemblymember Luis Alejo (D-Salinas) to jump in.
But Williams, a hospital lab technician, says they were all scared off by Jimmy Panetta, the son of political heavyweight Leon Panetta, who racked up endorsements quickly after current Congressmember Sam Farr (D-Carmel) announced his retirement.
“He walked in as a fait accompli,” Williams says. “That’s not democracy to me.”
Three years ago, the Monterey Herald wrote a story about Leon Panetta campaigning for Sam Farr in exchange for the lawmaker’s endorsement of his son. Farr officially endorsed Jimmy Panetta last week.
Now that he’s running, Williams has been slamming local media, GT included, for covering the District 20 election as a two-person race between Panetta and Republican Casey Lucius.
Williams, Panetta and Lucius are joined on the ballot by Jack Digby, a Capitola ironworker, and Jay Blas Cabrera, who has run for Santa Cruz City Council in the past. Other candidates include Barbara Honegger, a 9/11 truther based in Carmel Valley, who ran against Farr in 1993, and Benjamin Joseph Julius Strickland, who did not submit any contact information and doesn’t appear to have a web presence.
Williams’ campaign is motivated by his work in unions and by Bernie Sanders‘ presidential campaign. Unlike Lucius and Panetta (both of them military veterans), Williams would like to halt wars overseas. He plans to leverage social media to galvanize support, encouraging followers to pen letters to the editor for local newspapers. His goal is to come in second to Panetta in the June 7 primary and get a head-to-head race with him in November, raising important issues along the way.
“I’ve done it before. I’m not scared of these people,” Williams says. “I’m not scared by money and names and military uniforms and all that. It’s like, let’s do it. Here I am. For the next 80-odd days until the election. Let’s see what I can do.”

Ticket Snub

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Ticket Snub

Paul Steffen is in the midst of one of Santa Cruz’s greatest stresses: looking for a place to live. Currently living out of the Paige Smith building at the Homeless Services Center (HSC), he has applied to 15 places over the last several months, and has been turned away 15 times.
“I want to stay in Santa Cruz,” says the 62-year-old Steffen, stroking his bright-red-dyed goatee. “I’ve lived in other places, but this is my home.”
Steffen says he has a Housing Choice Voucher (HCV), commonly known as a Section 8 voucher, to help assist with the rent. Time is ticking, with his voucher expiring next month, he says. In the Santa Cruz rental market, a housing voucher is no golden ticket.
“I think anyone with a voucher is having a harder time [finding housing] than someone without one,” says Shannon Healer, the director of the Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH).
Federally funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the HCV provides rental assistance for low-income people and families. They can apply for various vouchers through collaborative groups like HSC and the 180/2020 housing project. There are also special vouchers awarded to veterans with applications through the Veterans Resource Center and Veterans Services.
While the program is meant to help people with financial or medical problems, it often comes with its own set of stigmas and stipulations. Scouring Craigslist housing ads, an attachment at the end often reads, “No Section 8.” California law does not allow landlords to discriminate based on source of income, but the housing voucher is considered a subsidy and therefore not a source of income. Some cities and counties throughout the state have prohibited discrimination against housing applicants with Section 8 vouchers, but Santa Cruz has not.

While both Kramer and Healer say the waiting period averages about six to eight weeks, several recipients told GT it took six months to a year.

“There are some efforts underway statewide to prohibit landlords from this practice,” Jenny Panetta, director of the county’s Housing Authority, tells GT via email. “But we are focusing our efforts on incentivizing landlords to give the program another look.”
“There’s a lot of misinformation about Section 8,” says Phil Kramer, the interim director of HSC. Incentives for landlords to choose Section 8 candidates include competitive prices, which keep up with market rates, and the fact that HUD directly deposits money into the landlord’s account.
There are currently more than 2 million active HUD vouchers throughout the nation, Panetta says. Santa Cruz County has about 4,500, of which about 4,200 are “leased up,” according to Panetta, meaning they’ve already found a place to live with the voucher.
Healer says 286 veterans have vouchers through VASH. “About 71 percent are in use, and the remaining are either waiting or at some stage of the process of obtaining a voucher,” she says.
In the struggle for affordable housing, veterans have been given an extra helping hand with the “Be a Hero: Help A Hero” program, announced in November. A collaborative effort between veteran and housing authorities, the program aims to house 193 veterans by the end of 2016.
Kramer estimates the shelter is currently working with about 150 people who are looking for housing, 90 percent of them with vouchers from a variety of places.
The application process for Section 8 vouchers is often mired in bureaucratic red tape, and it can take months for applicants to be notified if they qualify. While both Kramer and Healer say the waiting period averages about six to eight weeks, several recipients told GT it took six months to a year. When the voucher comes, the work continues.
“Once you get the voucher you have 60 days to find a place,” Steffen says. “Which just isn’t realistic in Santa Cruz.”
After those two months, voucher holders can apply for two additional 60-day extensions. Veterans receive an initial 120-day window, twice that of civilians, to find a place, with the same two extensions. If the vouchers do not get used within the time frame, they are recycled to the next eligible recipient. The problem is the waiting list for HCV and Low Income Public Housing is currently closed. According to the Housing Authority’s website, it is unknown when the waiting list will be reopened, and as of May 2015, 4,800 households were waiting to get on the list.
Section 8 vouchers cover only part of the rent, and recipients are told to spend roughly 30 percent of their income on rent. That means that if someone has an $800-a-month income, but a $1,200 room, the voucher holder generally pays only $240, with the federal government paying the other $960.
Administrators like Kramer are bewildered by the reluctance of landlords to take housing vouchers for rentals. He suggests that maybe some landlords are frightened by the prospect of mandatory property inspections that come with renting to someone on Section 8. “But this is done by the Housing Authority, not the city or county. Basically they are seeing if it’s safe and lives up to basic living standards,” he says. “They are not looking for [building] code violations.”
Steffen says that no matter what, his plan is to “just keep on looking.”
“We’re often told by caseworkers not to ask [prospective landlords] if they take Section 8,” he explains. “It’s easier to just take the application and tell the landlord after you return. You’ll have a better chance, but still not much of one.”

Eye Surrender

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Eye Surrender

For the past five weeks I’ve been driven to the brink of insanity by a seemingly harmless bodily phenomenon: the eye twitch. A little eyelid flutter is not uncommon to the human experience, and of course I thought nothing of it at first. Then it took over my life. Every morning, for weeks now, I wake up and wonder if I’ll find relief—until there it is again, a lively Mexican jumping bean dancing on my upper lid.
Following a less-than-fruitful crusade to calm the pulse—in which I pulled down my pants for vitamin B-12 shots, consumed magnesium supplements and far too many bananas (“you need potassium,” someone said), irritated my coworkers with constant twitch updates, and stopped just short of chugging tonic water, hearing that quinine (once a main ingredient) is said to bring relief—I finally consulted Dr. Craig Blackwell, an ophthalmologist in Capitola, about what turns out to be medically termed a “myokymia.”
The muscle in question is the orbicularis oculi, a circular muscle controlling the eyelid which happens to contain more fast-twitch muscle fibers than anywhere else in the body. The more extreme and rare version of eye twitch, blepharospasm, involves a forceful shutting of the eyelid, says Blackwell.
“The minor version like the one you describe is not uncommon, and seems almost always related to stress,” says Blackwell. “When stress goes away, so does the twitch.”
It’s not the response I had expected, having narrowed my suspicions down to excessive screen time. But it’s an explanation that could feasibly fit my lifestyle, where deadline looms like a guillotine over every Tuesday, and there is never enough time to make things as perfect as I’d like them to be.
“I want to ask you,” says Stuart Thompson, Ph.D, a neuroscientist and professor of biology at Stanford, “not as a physician, but if you go for a walk on the beach and you just kind of let yourself experience that, be in nature for a little bit, does the eye twitch stop?” Yes.
While the exact connection between stress and the eye twitch remains unknown, Thompson says that “play” activities like dancing, hiking, laughing with friends—you know, all of life’s good stuff—results in a very healthy chemical process in the brain.
“So for one thing, in that state you’re secreting oxytocin, you’re raising the growth factor concentrations, you’re growing new synapses. I mean, what changes is really amazing,” Thompson says. “The health benefits are very similar to what a good night’s sleep does.”
In addition to neurotrophin, or the growth of new neurons, a state of play activates the entire pathway of feel-good neurotransmitters, from oxytocin and the cannabinoid receptors to serotonin, dopamine and endorphins.
It’s almost the exact opposite of what is happening in the brain during times of prolonged stress. Of course, the chemical response of acute stress is designed to protect us in situations that require hyper-alertness and charges of adrenalin, but when the response sticks around it becomes completely counterproductive.
“Now, there are not a whole lot of things that are known to be neurodegenerative, but stress is,” says Thompson. The numerous effects of stress on the body and brain are caused by glucocorticoid hormones, he explains.
“In stress, your ability to form new synapses and remember or recall something is really heavily impacted. All of that stuff is kind of shut down by the stress hormones,” says Thompson.
The stress hormones also trigger inflammation in the brain itself, which causes the brain’s immune cells, microglia, to attack neurons and kill them, leading to a loss of brain function, says Thompson.
“There is tremendous crosstalk between immune cells in the body and immune cells in the brain,” he says. “What happens in your body affects what happens in your brain, too.”
We all react to the world in slightly different ways, says Thompson, and we all have a baseline level of anxiety, but we also come equipped with the means to lower those tensions and stresses in our lives. “I think we have a great deal of resources to improve our moods without drugs,” says Thompson. “There’s nothing as good as your own sense of well-being when you have a little oxytocin flowing … the things you get from being a human animal and enjoying it.”
In a world where being healthy often means physical exertion and dietary deprivation, I can’t think of a better prescription for a healthy brain: find the flow and zone out on walks, playing guitar, or whatever it is that takes your mind off the grind.

Pub Circuit

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Pub Circuit

Every day as I return from the gym, I gaze longingly at the various contractor signs still papering the windows of Lillian’s-in-progress, on the corner of Seabright and Soquel. Soon, I tell myself. Soon I’ll be able to feast on hearty Italian food in the old historic Ebert’s space.
Luckily, we can all take our appetites over to the newly opened East End Gastropub, the twin sister of West End Tap. Well, not identical twins, as it turns out. An early look at the East End menu reveals a heightened level of ambition at the new eatery housed in the former Tony & Alba’s at 1501 41st Ave. in Capitola. Chef Geoffrey Hargrave has spun the new menu into some intriguing conceptual regions; for example, goat cheese, leeks and bacon pizza, rye pappardelle, and honey-cured pork belly with Brussels sprouts, faro and fried farm egg. Sign me up! We can expect locally-made artisan beers and lunch and dinners seven days a week. If the mega-scene that causes almost seismic activity over at the West End Tap & Kitchen is any measure, the new gastropub owned by Hargrave and partner Quinn Cormier should shake up the 41st Avenue neighborhood big time.

Thirsty Thursdays

In the quest to be ever-more welcoming to customers, the savvy conceptualists at New Leaf Community Markets will now host monthly complimentary tastings. Not simply microbrews, but also local ales and/or new craft hard ciders will be presented every third Thursday of the month. So that means that March 17, otherwise known as St. Patrick’s Day, the Leaf will be pouring SCMB’s organic Dread Brown Ale and Lavender IPA, and Surf City Cider will pour a Santa Cruz Scrumpy Hard Apple Cider (note that artisanal brews and ciders have long names). The Scrumpy Cider is both vegan and gluten-free, FYI. Yes, cider is turning out to be the new Chardonnay among aficionados of refreshing creations that contain some but not tons of alcohol. If you haven’t tried one of these shockingly refreshing, brisk, not-your-grandfather’s ciders, then get on over to New Leaf, 1101 Fair Ave., Santa Cruz, on one of these third Thursdays.

Cookie of the Week

The supple—nay, tumescent—almond orange cookie, dusted with powdered sugar and weighing in at a reasonable $3 at Cafe Ivéta took my breath away last week. I have never been able to get past the outrageous gluten-free fudgy cookie, packed with bittersweet chocolate chips, but somehow the almond orange number finally got my attention. The tension of flavors, intense almond pushing against the tangy citrus, is enough to make anyone’s afternoon (pair with jasmine green tea for a serious bliss event). But I was utterly unprepared for the texture; “chewy” is too poor a word for the succulent effect of teeth on cookie. The exterior seemed to melt, while the interior offered a wonderful moment of resistance. Now I have to confess that I adore this cookie as much as the mighty fudgy cookie. Can it be possible? Ivéta has two divine cookies on its mouth-watering pastry counter. 2125 Delaware Ave. on the Westside of Santa Cruz.

Wine of the Week

Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard 2014 Grenache. Jeff Emery just can’t stop making appealing wines, and his 2014 Grenache, from Hook Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands, underlines his skill. The wine’s 14 percent alcohol delivers a steady abundance of red berries, white pepper, bay leaves, and complex spiciness. Refreshing acidity amplifies the versatile effect, thanks to the cool climate of the chosen vineyards. $18.99 at New Leaf.
 

Penalty Phase

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Penalty Phase

Now that Santa Cruz City Councilmember Micah Posner has admitted to renting out a unit in his backyard that was unpermitted for housing, some of his former supporters are feeling betrayed.
“I put an addition on my house, and my husband and I haven’t had a vacation since 2008, and we’re paying for it, because we enjoy it, but we did it legally,” said Sarah Nash, who voted for Posner four years ago, at a hearing on Posner’s violations on March 8. “And I can’t tell you how totally upset I am.”
Nash, a retired federal employee, stressed that it wasn’t personal—she would be “pissed” at any of the other council members if they had broken such laws, as well—even saying that she felt she was probably going easier on Posner because he’s her neighbor in the Lower Ocean area.
“But I don’t just want my neighbors to put something in their shed and think they can get away with it,” she added, her voice trembling. “I didn’t even think about getting away with it.”
Others told the council they felt it was unethical that Posner had presided over regulations around accessory dwelling units (ADUs)—some of which passed on narrow votes—while skirting the rules on his own.
Posner supporters spoke as well, outnumbering critics 4 to 1 at the meeting. They called his since-abated unit a valuable piece of affordable housing in an increasingly expensive town, and praised Posner for apologizing. Some suggested the council’s whole hearing was part of a larger crackdown on poor and liberal community members—like Keith McHenry, who has been charged with vandalism downtown, and Leonie Sherman, a former council candidate who was called an anarchist by a police officer in 2014.
“This, to me, is one of the final straws,” activist Grant Wilson said.
The council voted to censure Posner, issuing a formal reprimand that has no effect on his ability to serve. Council members also voted unanimously to have City Attorney Tony Condotti send a formal letter to the Fair and Political Practices Commission (FPPC) notifying the group that they are now aware of Posner’s actions.

Upon inspection, the staff found that the unit did not have a bathroom, a foundation, heating, or permits for electricity and plumbing.

Posner voted for the motion, too, saying he understood and respected the council’s decision.
Councilmember Pamela Comstock says she hopes that the letter will relieve the city of any possible legal responsibility should the FPPC decide that Posner did anything seriously wrong. “It’s about the impropriety, and I want it to be airtight in our statement that we didn’t do anything wrong,” Comstock said at the meeting.
Councilmember Don Lane, who in the meeting called Posner’s violation “embarrassing,” says the censure should help the council put this whole thing in the past. “I felt like it was important for the council to make a statement on this and move on,” he tells GT.
Community members were packed into the council chambers benches so tightly that they overflowed into the aisles and lined the back wall. The meeting was at times intense, with people clapping with those they agreed with and yelling at those they didn’t. As Lane described the ethical problems he had with Posner’s actions, one person blurted out, “That’s enough, Don.”
Condotti said that he did not think Posner’s votes on ADUs presented any conflict of interest because the council member’s unit was in a multi-residential zone where such units aren’t allowed anyway.
Posner has taken heat for not disclosing the income from his back unit on his form 700 through the FPPC. He has since updated the paperwork, and at the meeting he provided his tax returns showing that he had reported the income on his income taxes.
A confidential housing complaint about Posner’s house had tipped off city planning staff about the violation. Upon inspection, the staff found that the unit did not have a bathroom, a foundation, heating, or permits for electricity and plumbing, city planning director Juliana Rebagliati says.
Posner has stressed that it would have been difficult to afford the fees for a remodel, but Rebagliati says that staff works with homeowners to try and bring buildings in violation up to code and that there is a way to waive all fees, as long as landlords make their units affordable to renters. “There was no discussion of that. There is a process to waive the fees,” she tells GT. Under the plan, homeowners also must pay a prevailing wage for the construction labor.
Posner, who hasn’t decided yet whether he’ll run for re-election this year, says it would have been impossible to bring the building up to the city’s housing code for a second unit. He and his wife Akiko Minami would like to build a second unit using those same provisions to waive fees, but he says it has been a lesson in permitting. “Essentially I’m starting over, and I’m excited to learn how it works,” he says.
In his remarks last week, Posner said he understands and agrees that public officials should follow the rules and that he especially regrets the impact this has had on his colleagues at the city.
“It’s been a month of apologies, and I think that’s reasonable,” Posner said. “I am a public official, and I understand why the council would want me to speak about this matter and frankly to publicly apologize. So, I want to do that.”

Comanche Cellars

Pinot Noir shows off stellar growing season A Greek friend invited six of us over for dinner, preparing incredibly tasty Hellenic food, including pastitsio, artichokes, a typical Greek “horiatiki” salad, and finishing up with my favorite dessert of galaktoboureko (semolina pie). Along with the popular Greek aperitif ouzo, we had plenty of Retsina wine as well. I took along a bottle...
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Complete this sentence: “If I didn’t drink alcohol …”

Local Talk for the week of March 23, 2016
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Mix Tapers

Sunflower Bean pours its influences into a melting pot of a rock record
Read more

We Tree

In her new novel, Tracy Chevalier explores how the American Dream has its roots in apple trees
Read more

From The Editor

Plus Letters To the Editor When DNA told me he wanted to write about what he described simply as "the indie wrestling scene in Santa Cruz," I only had a couple of questions: 1) "What?" and 2) "No, really, what?" As he explained, I noticed Santa Cruz's go-to comedy guy getting that look. You know the...
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That’s a Rep

Joe Williams on the District 20 election
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Ticket Snub

Even with Section 8 vouchers, Santa Cruz’s poor struggle to secure housing
Read more

Eye Surrender

What twitches are trying to tell us about our stress levels
Read more

Pub Circuit

Every day as I return from the gym, I gaze longingly at the various contractor signs still papering the windows of Lillian’s-in-progress, on the corner of Seabright and Soquel. Soon, I tell myself. Soon I’ll be able to feast on hearty Italian food in the old historic Ebert’s space. Luckily, we can all take our appetites over to the newly...
Read more

Penalty Phase

Micah Posner
City Council votes to censure Posner, send formal letter
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