''Metro Santa Cruz'', a free-circulation weekly newspaper published in

Santa Cruz, California Santa Cruz (Spanish language, Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the largest city and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population ...

, was published from 1994 to 2009 It was renamed the ''

Santa Cruz Weekly ''Santa Cruz Weekly'' was a free-circulation weekly newspaper published in Santa Cruz, California. It began publishing under its current name on May 6, 2009; publication ceased when operations were merged with the competing Good Times weekly on A ...

'' on May 6, 2009 and continued for five years, under its new name, to cover news, arts and entertainment in Santa Cruz County, a coastal area that includes Capitola, Aptos, Boulder Creek, Scotts Valley and

Watsonville Watsonville is a city in Santa Cruz County, California, in the Monterey Bay Area of the Central Coast of California. The population was 52,590 at the 2020 census. Predominantly Latino and Democratic, Watsonville is a self-designated sanctua ...

. In 2014, its owners purchased

Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans (actor), Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was televis ...

and the papers merged. The Good Times name was retained though the Metro Santa Cruz editorial staff, including editor Steve Palopoli and news editor Jake Pierce charted the joined publications’ editorial course. Popular features of Metro Santa Cruz included Nuz, a free-wheeling un-bylined political column, the "ClubGrid" music calendar and Muz, a music column. The ''Nuz'' name was retired upon the publication's renaming. Locally based in Santa Cruz, the

alternative weekly An alternative newspaper is a type of newspaper that eschews comprehensive coverage of general news in favor of stylized reporting, opinionated reviews and columns, investigations into edgy topics and magazine-style feature stories highlighting ...

was owned by

Metro Newspapers Weeklys, formerly known as Metro Newspapers, is an American media group established in 1985 and based in San Jose, California. It publishes five free alternative weekly newspapers in Northern California: ''Metro Silicon Valley'', '' Good Times ...

, a company started by UC Santa Cruz graduate and former Santa Cruz publisher

Dan Pulcrano Dan Pulcrano (born c. 1959) is a journalist, editor, publisher and newspaper group owner in Northern California. He is CEO and executive editor of ''Metro Silicon Valley'', Silicon Valley's alternative newsweekly, as well as its sister publicati ...

. The company also publishes ''

Metro Metro may refer to: Geography * Metro City (Indonesia), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban area with high ...

'' in the adjacent

Santa Clara Valley The Santa Clara Valley (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Valle de Santa Clara'') is a geologic trough in Northern California that extends south–southeast from San Francisco to Hollister, California, Hollister. The longitudinal valley is bordered ...

, a.k.a.

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

and the ''

North Bay Bohemian The ''North Bay Bohemian'' is a weekly newspaper published in the North Bay subregion of the San Francisco Bay Area, in California, United States. The newspaper is distributed in Sonoma and Napa counties. The newspaper began publication in 1 ...

'' in the Sonoma/Napa/Marin area. The newspaper commemorated its 15th anniversary in April 2009 with a photographic tribute to prominent Santa Cruzans, including wet suit inventor

Jack O'Neill Jonathan J. "Jack" O'Neill is a fictional character in the MGM's military science fiction franchise ''Stargate'', primarily as one of the main characters of the television series ''Stargate SG-1''. Richard Dean Anderson played O'Neill in all th ...

, musicians

Greg Camp Gregory Dean Camp (born April 2, 1967) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist. He is best known as a founding member of the rock band Smash Mouth and served as a guitarist and songwriter across several stints (1994–2008, 2009–201 ...

and Dale Ockerman, former California secretary of state

Bruce McPherson Bruce A. McPherson (born January 7, 1944) is an American politician who served as the 30th California secretary of state from March 30, 2005, to January 7, 2007. He is currently a member of the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors. As of 2024 ...

and others. The essay was photographed by Santa Cruz native Dina Scoppettone. The issue was the last one published under the ''Metro Santa Cruz'' name. Though no announcement was made, the name change was foreshadowed in the final weeks. The word "weekly" was added to the front page logo, and in the final issue's front page, the word "Metro" is cut off and seemingly sliding off the left side of the page.

References

External links

Metro Santa CruzMetroSantaCruz: PDF editionSantaCruz.comSantaCruzWeekly.comFacebookTwitter
{{Authority control Alternative weekly newspapers published in the United States Weekly newspapers published in California Newspapers established in 1994 Santa Cruz, California