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Santa Cruz Monterey KOA

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Santa Cruz / Monterey Bay KOA
Santa Cruz / Monterey Bay KOA 4.0 star rating 152 reviews

The Santa Cruz Monterey KOA is a special place. It’s one of the top-rated KOA’s in the nation, receiving an average of 4.5 stars on the KOA rating system from over 1,000 ratings. It was even featured on Episode 7 of Season 4 of the CBS reality series “Undercover Boss.”

There are a number of things that make this KOA a special place. To begin with, it’s located close enough to the beach that it’s easy to get to but doesn’t get too chilly from sea breezes. And it has a spacious swimming pool that is heated year-round, as there are many sunny and warm days throughout the year in Santa Cruz. There’s also a big hot tub next to the pool to keep you feeling warm and bubbly!

The campground offers a number of “Camping Cabins”, a few tent sites, and dozens of RV sites to choose from. There’s a large convenience store on site, selling all kinds of camping gear, food, beer and wine, and a lot of camping necessities you may have forgot to pack like marshmallow roasting sticks, firewood and the like. They offer free WiFi throughout the campground, and there’s a little train too that makes a circuit around the campground at no charge to vacationers.

The fun doesn’t stop there – they also have a mini golf course, gigantic jumping pillow for the kids to hop up and down on for hours, coconut palm climbing trees, outdoor cinema, vending machines, and a clubhouse with amusements for the children.

Whether you are coming in from out of town or a local looking for a great family “staycation”, the Santa Cruz / Monterey KOA is the place to go for fun and relaxation at an affordable price.

Santa Cruz Greenway Looking to Capitola

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Greenway Looks at Capitola

An indication of its popularity and momentum, Santa Cruz County Greenway is looking to Capitola, which is a key section of the Santa Cruz County Branch Line Rail Corridor.  Greenway Capitola, a local transportation advocacy organization, is sponsoring a 2018 City of Capitola ballot initiative which aims to preserve and utilize the rail corridor and trestle for active transportation and recreation in the City of Capitola. The group is currently gathering paper signatures from Capitola registered voters.

To help educate the public about the ballot initiative and the rail corridor, Greenway is inviting the public for a short talk and question-and-answer session on Wednesday, May 2, from 7:00 to 8:30 pm at the Jade St. Community Center (4400 Jade Street, Capitola, California 95010).  Attendees are encouraged to come early to meet near the tracks behind the Jade Street Park baseball field at 6 pm for a brief rail walk prior to the Q&A session at 7.

Greenway would like your help to spread the word – check out and share the event on Facebook.

Not able to make it to the meeting and trail walk on May 72?  Then please join Greenway for a second walk at 10 am on Saturday, May 5th, meeting again behind the Jade Street Park baseball field.

Also, community members who are concerned with the future use of the rail corridor are also encouraged to attend the next SCCRTC (Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission) meeting at 9 AM Thursday, May 3 at Capitola City Hall to share your thoughts in an oral comment at the start of the meeting.  It’s important that everyone on the RTC understand how vital the future use of the rail corridor is to the community.

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Home Seller Seminar

Castro Adobe Open House January 27, 2018

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Castro Adobe in Watsonville (Larkin Valley)

Explore Castro Adobe State Historic Park during the first public open house of 2018, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, January 27th. The event will focus on the early period of the Adobe and the Castro family’s prominent role in local and California history.

Visitors can enjoy homemade nopales (aka prickly pear – a cactus salad) and fresh tortilla-making while getting the chance to share stories of their own family’s beginnings in California. Guided tours will be offered at 11:30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. A short presentation on the Castro family’s participation in the historic De Anza Expedition will start at 2:15 p.m.

The event is free. The Castro Adobe is at 184 Old Adobe Road in Watsonville. Parking is limited; please carpool. Leashed dogs are allowed only in the parking area.

If you have never been to see the Castro Adobe, this is a great opportunity – it is an amazing structure in a beautiful setting, and loaded with early Santa Cruz history.  Bring your entire family, invite your friends – but please carpool, because parking is limited.

Home Seller Seminar

Ton of Fun is Back for 2017

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Fleet Feet’s Annual Tons of Fun Training Program

Get fit, have fun, lose weight! Ton of Fun is Back for 2017, and you can’t miss with Fleet Feet Sport’s 4th annual Weight Loss & Wellness Challenge. This year, it’s starting January 9th and runs through February 27th.

Who is this for? Anyone who needs or wants to lose weight, improve their health and do it with other members of your Aptos community. The Ton of Fun program has increased the health and wellness of over 100 people each year who have collectively lost over 2,000 pounds since Ton of Fun began. That’s over ONE TON!!

The program is about much more than exercise, though – it really is all about health and wellness. The program includes weekly coaching clinics led by their team of coaches:

Nutrition & Lifestyle Coach Teresa Barsanti
Fitness Coach Doug Barsanti
Wellness Coaching with Dr. Gold Jacques-Maynes
Running & Tri coach Melani Amaris

The program also includes:

  • Weekly online coaching sessions through our private Facebook group
  • Weekly walks to keep you moving and connected
  • Private weigh-ins at Fleet Feet Sports Aptos using our exclusive Running Affair App and our medical grade scales up to 400 lbs.
  • 2 free months of ReInvention Notebook — the online resource for fitness, nutrition, and lifestyle advice

This year, they are holding two sessions each day – section 1 starts is from 6:00 to 6:45, and Section 2 is from 6:45 PM to 7:30 PM (with weigh-ins starting 30 minutes prior to the beginning of the session). Due to high demand for this program and limited space, each Section is strictly limited to 60 people. – so register now!

Click Here to Register for Ton of Fun Section 1 (6:00-6:45 PM)

Click Here to register for Ton of Fun Section 2 (6:45-7:30 PM)

Start the New Year Right with Curves Aptos!

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With the dawn of a new year, millions of people around the world will make a vow to take better care of themselves – to finally get into shape, and to stay that way. For many, that will mean signing up for a new gym membership. Many are called; but few are chosen – by the middle of March, many gyms are as quiet as they were in late December. But if you are ready for something different, start the new year right with Curves Aptos!

Curves is not a gym – it’s a fitness center and healthy lifestyle community all in one. And for the new year, they’re running a special – a $1 enrollment fee for the first 30 women in 2017 who join Curves. That’s a savings of nearly $100!

If you want to know what makes Curves Aptos different, read our business spotlight here.

Curves Aptos isn’t just looking for new members – they’re also looking for new trainers. Yes, they’re hiring! If you’re a trainer or know anyone who is, please contact Janna Malizia at 831-688-2348!

Curves Aptos

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Curves Aptos is more than just a fitness center – it’s a community of women united in the goal to live a happy, healthy and active lifestyle. A Curves membership is much different than just joining a gym. At Curves Aptos, members receive the help and support they need to reach their health and weight loss goals – and to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Curves Aptos is run by Janna Malizia, who is completely dedicated to the business of helping women in the Aptos community achieve levels of fitness they might not have thought possible.  This is true no matter your age; the Curves of today serves women of all ages, from young women in their late teens to mature adult ladies and seniors.

The Curves program focuses on building lean muscle during their high intensity 30 minute workouts. Members are free to come to as many Curves sessions as they like. It’s circuit training, with a special Curves twist. Every member has a coach, who will teach proper form and challenge members to take it up a notch – when they’re ready.

The weight machines are all double-resistance hydraulic machines, and your workout on each machine is recorded with the proprietary Curves Smart system. The results are constantly analyzed and your machine makes adjustments automatically to help you meet your goals.

And don’t think that Curves is just about resistance training with machines. Members are encouraged to participate in as many classes as they want. They offer cardio boxing, boxing combo, cardio jam, body blast, body basic, arms +, balance, yoga chisel and PowerFlex. These classes are what creates options for all levels of fitness, all ages and cross-trainings. With all that Curves has to offer, you’ll never plateau in your training.

And while you can come as much as you want, if your resolve weakens and your participation drops, you’ll get the support you need. You see, at Curves Aptos, they care about their members, and members who don’t show up can expect an encouraging phone call to get them back into the center, and back on track for their lifestyle goals.

Curves Aptos is all about getting lean, healthy, and staying that way. But it’s also about having fun with women just like you who share the same goals as you.

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See also: Curves Facebook Page

Curves Aptos Video – Meet Janna and Shila

Curves Aptos Photo Gallery

Fleet Feet Sports is Honored as One of 50 Best in USA

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Fleet Feet Sports in Aptos Named one of 50th Best in USA!
Fleet Feet Sports in Aptos Named one of 50th Best in USA!

Did you know that Aptos is home to one of the very best running shops in the entire US of A?  For the third time in four years, Fleet Feet Sports is honored as one of the 50 Best in USA by Running Insight and Competitor Magazine.

Fleet Feet Sports Aptos took its place among the country’s elite retailers following an extensive nomination and review process throughout 2016. The judging culminated in the store’s recognition at a gala awards ceremony in Orlando on Dec. 1, 2016, as part of The Running Event, an annual conference and trade expo for specialty running retailers.

Fleet Feet Sports in Aptos was selected after a rigorous vetting process that rated the store on its service, product knowledge, merchandising and community service. The shop will be featured in a special issue of Competitor magazine distributed nationally. The store will also receive a commemorative plaque to mark the award. Each of the 50 Best winners will also share the award with consumers via a special window sign supplied by Competitor that indicates the store as a 50 Best 2016 winner.

The process of compiling a list of the top 50 running shops in the country began early in 2016 when Formula 4 Media, with the help of Competitor Magazine, began to collect and evaluate nominations from runners, soliciting feedback from consumers on their favorite running stores. More 16,000 individual customer nominations were received.  A panel of industry experts from Franklin Resource Group mystery shop nominated stores to evaluate on 20 different aspects of retailing, including product knowledge, environment, vendor relations and community involvement.

Fleet Feet Sports in Aptos
Fleet Feet Sports in Aptos

Congratulations to Russ and Tina Coillot of Fleet Feet Sports!  They have been tremendous supporters of our Aptos community and it’s wonderful to see their shop receive the recognition it so richly deserves.

 

Valencia Hall and Post Office

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valencia-hall-bw

The Valencia Hall and Post Office are all that remain of the once thriving community of Valencia. Built circa 1884 by Frederick A. Hihn for his Valencia logging mill workers and their families.  Valencia Hall originally served as a community meeting place for dances, Sunday school, the Lyceum and Literary Society. In the 1920s ownership transferred to the Valencia Farm Bureau when it served as a gathering place for many community events. In 1976, after decades of neglect, the buildings became the property of the County of Santa Cruz. Today, it is on the National Register of Historic Places (#84001201) maintained and operated by the Santa Cruz County Parks Department as a party and wedding venue.

The buildings on the property were originally located a few dozen feet from their current location, but were moved across Bear Creek Road and Valencia Road to their current location in the late 1980s. Santa Cruz county purchased the parcel of land where the structures are currently situated in 1986.

Both structures are built to last, constructed out of old-growth redwood. Many of the double-hung windows are original; the glass has become wavy with age. The post office building has some original 1880s wallpaper along the ceiling, which is deteriorated and protected by plexiglass. The pot-belly stove in the building is said to be original as well. The kitchen and bathroom area in the Hall building are said to have been added in the 1920s.

If you wish to reserve Valencia Hall, you can do so by contacting the Santa Cruz County Parks Department. Your reservation will include:

  • The hall
  • Kitchen facilities
  • 60 chairs
  • 14 six-foot rectangular banquet tables
  • Up to 80 guests

On weekends, there is an eight hour minimum time to book the facility, including preparation and take-down. During the week and in winter, hourly rentals may be available. There is an additional fee for a sound permit ($250-$300 for 5 hours of music) and another fee for an alcohol permit if you wish (another $250-$300, for four hours of alcohol service). The property is fully wheelchair accessible, and there is parking for approximately 45 vehicles. Reservations can be made up to a year in advance, and set-up and clean-up are the responsibility of the party.

Valencia Hall Video

Valencia Hall Photographs

Valencia Post Office

Thanksgiving Day Turkey Burner

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Rocky's Thanksgiving Day Turkey Burner
Rocky’s Thanksgiving Day Turkey Burner

Worried about busting your waistline this Thanksgiving Day? If you’re concerned about what indulging in a 3,000 calorie meal could mean for your health, you’re not alone. The good news is that while we celebrate all we are thankful for by overindulging in a way that might make Boss Hogg blush, you do have a great opportunity on Thursday to make a positive difference for your body and your health.

Rocky’s Fitness Center in Pleasure Point is once again having its traditional Thanksgiving Day Turkey Burner. Rocky’s is run by Aptos resident Rocky Snyder, and he’s been running a fitness center in Santa Cruz county for decades. It’s very well known by many athletes, surfers, and health care professionals in the area for its distinctive approach to physical fitness training.

Members of the community are invited to go down to Rocky’s Fitness on Thursday, November 24th at 9 AM for a FREE one hour fitness session. Check it out and see what you think – Rocky’s is also running a Winter Workout special, with a three-month membership on sale for $249 which is a heck of a deal and includes a free t-shirt! It’s suggested that you get there a bit earlier than 9:00 AM as parking may be a bit hard to find. Get on down to Rocky’s and get your metabolism geared up for the feast to come!

Polo Grounds Restroom Now Open for Business!

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Polo Grounds Restroom Ribbon Cutting
Polo Grounds Restroom Ribbon Cutting

Polo Grounds Park in Aptos is well known to many area families; many weekends of the year, the park hosts up to 2,000 people who come to play soccer, baseball, ride their BMX bikes, walk their dogs, and other sports and recreational activities. Until now, all these thousands of weekly visitors had only a few portable chemical toilets to use to satisfy the call of nature.

That’s all come to an end now, as the Santa Cruz County Parks Department officially opened the new restroom and concession building at the Park. Parks Director Jeff Gaffney got the proceedings rolling, and soon turned the microphone over to Jay Johnson, the general contractor for the project. The project had also been championed and supported by the Cabrillo Host Lions Club, and their President also spoke at the event. Supervisor Zach Friend also made extensive remarks, and then it was time to cut the ribbon and tour the new facility.

The Restrooms are open but there’s still room for improvement! Support the Cabrillo Host Lions Club in their work by buying a personalized brick which will be installed at the site. Bricks are just $100 for a 4×8 or $150 for a 12×12.

After the ceremony, Jay Johnson shared some interesting details about the facility. It is actually a pre-fabricated structure manufactured in Oregon, and was brought to the site on three flatbed trucks. It came already painted with anti-graffiti paint. The front third of the building is the concession area, with a window for service and several sinks. Most of the center of the building is a utility hallway, which makes it easy to access and maintain the mechanicals (plumbing, electricity, etc.) for the building. There’s also a cool bottle filler above the water fountains built into the rear of the building by the bathroom doors.

You can see a video below of the ceremony, and a gallery of photographs showing the inside of the building below that. In more ways than one, having this new restroom facility at the Polo Grounds will be a big relief for the Aptos community.

Polo Grounds Restroom Ribbon Cutting Video

Photos of new Polo Grounds Restroom and Concession Building