Meet In CommonNews

News in Santa Cruz, CA

Good Times · Santa Cruz, CA

Beached whale draws hundreds

Hundreds of people gathered on Cowell Beach in Santa Cruz Thursday morning after a large fin whale washed ashore. Witnesses said the whale appeared to be alive before it reached the shore, and that it was moving its flippers and blowing water out of its blowhole. Officials from Long Marine Laboratory, the National Oceanic and […]

Good Times · Santa Cruz, CA

Letters

From young athletes making waves to a free run club making connections, readers celebrate Santa Cruz community and call for more support for public dancing.

San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center · Santa Cruz, CA

It Starts With Anger - An Interview With Filmmaker / Author James Spooner On His New Book

Interview with James Spooner - filmmaker, author, graphic novelist and tattoo artist. His new book was released in the summer of 2026 and is titled “It Starts With Anger: A Punk Beginning, An AfroPunk Ending.” Spooner will be presenting his new book in Santa Cruz, California on Friday, November 13 at 6:00 PM at the UC Santa Cruz Institute for Arts and Sciences. The evening will be a conversation moderated by cartoonist Johnny Damm.

Nearby reporting

Stories from surrounding communities, closest first.

Calaveras Enterprise · Aptos, CA

Nearby: Aptos, CA

Barbara Dee Boeding Capitanich

Barbara Dee Boeding Capitanich, age 80, passed away peacefully on October 8, 2026. Barbara was born on March 3, 1946, in Eugene, Oregon, to Iris Barbara Owen and Glen Howard Owen. Throughout her life, she was known for her strength, kindness, independence, and deep love for family, friends, and animals. Barbara was married to Ken Capitanich in Aptos, CA. She was a wonderful mother to her three children, Wendee Christine Woodson, Brandee Christine Vietz, and Weston Christopher Boeding. She was also a proud grandmother and great-grandmother whose grandchildren and great-grandchildren brought her immense joy. She treasured every moment spent with them. For many years, Barbara worked as an executive secretary and bookkeeper, earning the respect and admiration of colleagues through her dedication, professionalism, and attention to detail.

New Hampshire Bulletin · Watsonville, CA

Nearby: Watsonville, CA

States are counting on battery farms. Some towns don’t want them.

SNOQUALMIE, Wash. — In the race to meet the nation’s growing power demands, states and utilities are rapidly building new “battery farms” that can store energy for when customers need it most. But as the facilities grow, so too does community opposition. The systems store banks of batteries in buildings or shipping containers. While they can take many forms, developers are increasingly building large, multi-acre projects designed to meet the needs of local utilities. The electricity stored by such systems nationwide has grown tenfold since 2022, and it’s projected to double again by the end of 2028. State lawmakers and renewable energy advocates say battery storage is urgently needed to stabilize the grid and support the transition to clean power. But in some communities, residents are wary of proposals to build industrial battery systems in their neighborhoods, noting that battery fires can produce toxic smoke and are difficult to extinguish.

San José Spotlight · Los Gatos, CA

Nearby: Los Gatos, CA

Waymo expands further into South Bay

Waymo’s driverless cars are serving more South Bay destinations, including the Berryessa Transit Center in East San Jose, giving commuters another option for getting to and from public transportation — though some residents remain wary of the autonomous vehicles. The expansion on Nov. 3 also brings the ride-hailing service to the Great Mall and San Jose Fairgrounds, as well as additional neighborhoods in Los Gatos and Monte Sereno. Company representatives said the move expands Waymo’s Bay Area service area to 350 square miles. While VTA officials welcome additional transportation options, they have no plans to coordinate with the company. Some commuters also remain skeptical of driverless vehicles, citing concerns about safety, affordability and the technology’s impact on human jobs.

The Stanford Daily · Santa Clara County, CA

Nearby: Santa Clara County, CA

Two voting locations open on campus through Tuesday

Two official Santa Clara County voting centers are open on campus at Tresidder Memorial Union’s Oak Lounge and the Graduate Community Center’s Havana Room. Students can also submit mail-in ballots and conditional voter registration applications. Both locations have been open for early voting since Saturday morning and will remain open through Tuesday. The election centers will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Election Day. Students, faculty and staff who are registered to vote in Santa Clara County can officially submit their ballots at either of these locations. Santa Clara County voters with mail-in ballots can also submit their votes there. Those submitting mail-in ballots for other California counties or other states can mail their ballots at official post office locations and mail drop sites. These ballots should be submitted with postage.

Cortez Journal · San Jose, CA

Nearby: San Jose, CA

Jensen Huang built the company that powers AI. Now Nvidia must find a way forward without him

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigned Thursday, capping a spectacular downfall for a poster boy of the artificial intelligence boom whose exit following reports of extramarital affairs now thrusts the chipmaker into an uncertain future. After a dizzying series of headlines about Huang’s infidelity and ties to an alleged Chinese spy, his departure sets off a scramble to find a permanent replacement to lead the multitrillion-dollar colossus that grew from obscurity to a perch between Apple and Microsoft at the top of the S&P index. The resignation sent shares of Nvidia plummeting 14% at the opening bell, before stabilizing. The stock closed down about 4% Thursday as investors pondered the lawsuits, investigations, likely corporate jockeying and the resilience of a market driven by the gains of a few tech giants.

AIStockWire · San Jose, CA

Nearby: San Jose, CA

US prosecutors probe whether Alice Huang helped smuggle Super Micro (SMCI) products to China

Key points US probes whether Alice Huang-linked entities helped smuggle Super Micro products The Manhattan US Attorney's Office is leading the Alice Huang inquiry Nvidia hired a former head of the office to investigate reporting about Jensen Huang The Justice Department is investigating whether entities linked to Alice Huang were involved in efforts to smuggle products made by Super Micro Computer (SMCI) to China, Bloomberg reported on Nov. 12. US officials suspect Alice Huang, a former Megaspeed executive, of spying for China, according to the report. Jensen Huang, who acknowledged an affair on Nov. 8, resigned as Nvidia's CEO the same day as the report. Super Micro shares were at $27.48 at 3:06 p.m. ET, down 9.7% from Wednesday's close of $30.43. The stock had opened about 11% lower, before the report was published.

San José Spotlight · San Jose, CA

Nearby: San Jose, CA

Silicon Valley BART extension hits construction milestone

Transportation officials overseeing the multibillion-dollar Silicon Valley BART extension are celebrating an early construction milestone in bringing the rapid transit service to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara. Workers in recent weeks completed excavating and reinforcing an 83-foot-deep hole on a former rail yard property nearby PayPal Park. The shaft will serve as the launch point for the massive boring machine that will drill out the 5-mile tunnel made to house the new BART tracks. The $12.7 billion public works project overseen by VTA will eventually add four new BART stations: three in San Jose and one in Santa Clara. In the works for more than a decade, the effort has faced delays, ballooning costs and a series of controversies, including pushback against its single tunnel design.

San José Spotlight · San Jose, CA

Nearby: San Jose, CA

Bramson: Voters have spoken, but California’s affordability crisis remains

For a family in San Jose struggling to pay $3,000 a month in rent, the results of the Nov. 3 election probably won’t change much about next month’s bills. Neither will they shorten the commute of a worker traveling two hours each day because living near their job is simply too expensive. And for someone facing eviction, the promise of future housing construction offers little comfort when the rent is due tomorrow. Yet California voters delivered an important message last week. They are willing to invest in making their communities more affordable. The challenge now is turning that political support into something residents can actually experience. Consider the results. Proposition 1, authorizing more than $11 billion in housing bonds, passed with approximately 61% support. Voters also rejected Proposition 43, preserving the ability of citizen-led local tax measures to pass without a two-thirds supermajority.