Decarbonizing Requires All-Electric Homes

Krissi the Kitten!

Krissi greets everyone with big purrs. She loves people and is very engaging. She gets her kitten energy out with wand and feather toys and after a play session is happy to curl up in your lap. Krissi’s fur is sooo soft — it’s one of our favorite things about her!

You have to feel it to believe it. She is an easygoing kitten and we think she would do well in a variety of environments.

Now through the end of December SCCAS is having a “Home for the Holidays Adoption Special” where all Shelter pets will be available for a “Pay it Forward” adoption donation of the adopters’ choice. The suggested donation is between $50-$200 and adopters can select a fund for their donations to go to: Planned Pethood Fund (low cost/free spay/neuter) or Extra Mile Fund (specialty lifesaving procedures for homeless animals).

The adoption fee includes spay/neuter, microchip (including registration), ageappropriate vaccinations, routine treatment for worms/fleas, and a free pet wellness exam with a local participating veterinarian. If you are looking for a furry friend for the holidays, come to the Shelter and meet your new best cuddle buddy!

Adoptions are first come, first served! Please view available animals on our website and then visit the Shelter to turn in your application. All adoptions require proof of home ownership or landlord approval. Please have this information prepared. If an animal is in Foster Care, please bring in your adoption application and schedule an appointment to meet the animal. Call 831-454-7200 x0 during business hours or visit www.scanimalshelter.org for more information! n ••• Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter’s full-service, open-admission shelter: Santa Cruz Location (Public Entrance): 1001 Rodriguez St., Santa Cruz, 95062 Hours: Daily 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Watsonville Location: CURRENTLY CLOSED 580 Airport Blvd, Watsonville, CA 95076 SCCAS Main line: 831-454-7200. Animal Control: 831-454-7227. After-Hours Emergency: 831-471-1182 • After Hours: jillian.ganley@santacruzcounty.us

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Winter Fun

To mitigate the impacts of climate change, starting Jan. 1, 2023, the County of Santa Cruz will require all new residential construction in urban unincorporated areas to be designed with permanent sources of electricity as the only form of energy.

“This is a major first step in our ongoing efforts to reduce our carbon footprint from the built environment,” said David Reid, the County’s director of the Office of Response,Recovery and Resilience. “Through our Climate Action and Adaptation Plan, we can achieve carbon neutrality and protect the planet for future generations by taking more actions to decarbonize our lives like this one.”

The rules, adopted Nov. 15, 2022 as part of a State Building Code update, do not affect construction in Capitola, Scotts Valley, Watsonville or the city of Santa Cruz.

Electricity is required for all forms of energy consumption in homes, including heating and cooling, cooking appliances, water heating including pools and spas, and clothes dryers.

The rules apply to all newly constructed residential developments, including residential areas of mixed-use projects, multifamily, single-family and accessory dwelling units within the urban services line.

The rules do not apply to non-residential buildings, non-residential sections of mixed-usebuildings, or buildings outside the County’s urban services line.

Nor do they apply to existing or permitted residential buildings or CZU Fire rebuilds in San Lorenzo Valley and Bonny Doon, which are outside the urban services line. n

“Hart” from page 19

The show included a Mad Max-style wasteland, a sci-fi reprogramming center and an over-the-top Wrestlemania-inspired Thunderdome fight sequence.

Your favorite musical?

As a child, we had the record to “Annie.” My mom sat by the record player and transcribed all the lyrics using a typewriter and we used that script to sing those songs incessantly.

I can’t say that’s my “favorite” musical, but it is inscribed on my psyche in a very deep way. I also learned “The Sun’ll Come Out Tomorrow” in sign language.

Why Cabrillo Stage?

Any time a mention of Cabrillo comes up in conversation, it is always with the most loving and reverent tones. Anyone I know who has studied there always raves about it. I also had looked into the theatre when I arrived in town and heard what quality productions they put on.

During the application and interview process, I was encouraged by the questions that were asked and the thinking that was going into season selection and culture around the theatre.

As I’ve gotten started, I’m repeatedly touched by how many people hold this place dear.

It feels like an institution that is very much rooted in and serving its local community. I find that very inspiring and energizing.

How will you decide which shows to stage?

Season selection is always a process of trying to thread the needle on many different needs and desires. I believe in a collaborative process that involves as many stakeholders in the conversation as possible.

We reached out to the community with a survey that presented genres to gauge audience interest, we’ve reached out to the artistic community to see what is exciting to collaborators, we look at what is being produced in surrounding communities to gauge what niche hasn’t been filled, and then a group of us gets in a room and has a spirited discussion.

In the end, you want to get to a place where the community can trust that even if they don’t know the show or feel they don’t like the show, they are excited to see what Cabrillo Stage will do and that will keep them coming back.

Where do you live?

What’s your impression of the

Santa Cruz County housing market — for homebuyers & renters?

Ilive in the Westside of Santa Cruz. We moved here because my partner, Ross, got an exciting job at the Elkhorn Slough Foundation. His entire family lives here, though, so it’s a place we’ve often come back to in our years away.

Let’s just say we moved here in July and we didn’t move into our rental until October. We were lucky enough to have wonderful family to stay with until we could find a rental we could afford. (Buying was never an option.)

When I left Berkeley (after 20 years and an incredibly sweet rental deal) I never thought I’d come back to the Bay Area because as a theatre artist I’d never be able to afford it.

There were some desperate feeling moments between July and September, but in the end we got very lucky with a sweet landlord. And an opportunity to get rid of a lot of stuff! In all seriousness, I love our neighborhood and feel incredibly lucky to walk my dog to the beach on any given day.

I do think the cost of living directly impacts the type of arts that a community can sustain. So many of us consider our work a labor of love, but I know I’ve tried to make love pay the rent many times and it never works out.

I feel very fortunate that we stumbled on the place we got and I hope that as the conversation continues in this area, solutions to the lack of affordable housing will continue to move forward. n