In today's newscast:
Partial reopening of Murray Street Bridge
The bridge has been fully closed since June as part of a seismic retrofitting project launched by the city in 2025.
Seabright resident Josh Brouillette says the summer-long closure didn’t inconvenience him, but he worried for local businesses.
“It made it very quiet over there, a lot less traffic," said Brouillette. "That's good. Not great for the businesses, I know that.”
Reece Mejia is the manager at Kayak Connection. She says the on and off closures since the project started nearly two years ago have been tough.
“ Pretty much as soon as the bridge closed, we noticed a drastic change," she said.
Mejia thinks the reopening will provide some relief and says the community has rallied behind impacted businesses in the area.
In a written statement, a Santa Cruz spokesperson said lengthy closures like the one this summer are finished but a few short stoppages are planned for next year. Construction will continue through January 2028.
Increased criminal penalties for repeat drunk drivers
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed off on four new laws that aim to increase criminal penalties for repeat drunk drivers.
The laws come after an ongoing investigation from our partner CalMatters revealed California has some of the weakest DUI laws in the country.
Among the changes are prosecutors' ability to charge a third DUI as a felony. Before it was just a misdemeanor.
It’ll also be easier to charge someone with murder after a drunk driving crash if they had a prior DUI arrest. And there’s extra punishment for fatal hit-and-runs if the driver has a previous conviction for intoxicated driving.
That reporting from our news partner CalMatters.