KAZU News

Slashing of federal permanent housing dollars hits locally, Santa Cruz County inches toward regulating battery storage

KAZU | By Elena Neale-Sacks

Published November 19, 2025 at 5:00 AM PST

A four-story apartment complex with rolling hills in the background. — Moon Gate Plaza, a permanent supportive housing project in Salinas that utilizes Continuum of Care funds.

In today's newscast, how local homeless service providers are preparing for a sharp reduction in federal funding for permanent housing. And, Santa Cruz County takes a baby step toward regulating new battery energy storage facilities.

Tags

Elena Neale-Sacks

Elena is an Emmy award-winning researcher, reporter, and producer. At KAZU, they cover agriculture, housing and homelessness, and the aftermath of the January 2025 lithium battery fire in Moss Landing. Their reporting and research has been featured on NPR, KQED, Netflix, Reveal, CalMatters, and more. Elena is an alum of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism and UC Santa Cruz. You can reach them at elena@kazu.org.

See stories by Elena Neale-Sacks