Five Things You Need to Know

Welcome to “Five Things,” Scotts Valley Patch’s newest weekly feature. Five Things will run each Monday, giving you a rundown of some of the things that you need to know about for the week. Whether it’s fun, educational, civic minded or community related, we want you to know about it. If there is something you would like to see featured in an upcoming Five Things, email Shannon.burkey@patch.com.

1. After a nearly month-long hiatus, the Scotts Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees will reconvene Tuesday night for what may be a tough meeting. The board will be holding a public hearing to review and consider the preliminary 2011-2012 SVUSD budget. The board will take comments from the public so if you have something to say on the subject, now is your chance. The meeting is at 6 p.m. at One Civic Center Drive in the City Council Chambers.

2. It may not be a new business in town, but the look and feel is all new at the McDonalds on Mt. Hermon Road after a big remodel. Stop by the restaurant at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday for the Grand Re-Opening celebration and ribbon cutting. Kids will be able to get their pictures taken with Ronald McDonald himself and everyone will get a firsthand look at the new state-of-the-art facility, which features a unique modern interior décor using recycled materials.

3. In case you didn’t know, Tuesday is Summer Solstice and the weather for the longest day of the year is supposed to be gorgeous and in the 70s. It will be the perfect day for exploring outdoors, playing in one of Scotts Valley’s many parks or even for venturing to the beaches in Santa Cruz. Whatever you decided to do, just get out and enjoy this year’s Summer Solstice.

4. Speaking of the outdoors, for those of you who are gardening enthusiasts, you are in luck this weekend. The annual Garden Faire is being held in Skypark on Saturday with a theme of “Celebrating Abundance.” The faire is free and will include speakers, demonstrations, garden-related goods and services and food and entertainment.

5. And finally, if nothing has caught your attention yet, this next community event is sure to. Skypark’s free summer concert series is back with the first concert happening on Sunday. There will be a barbeque provided by Scotts Valley service clubs, wine from Skov Winery, beer and soft drinks from the Kiwanis and, of course, music. Blues musician Mike Annuzzi will hit the stage first, followed by the Kaye Bohler Band. And the best part is that all of the money made from the concessions will be donated to the music programs at the four Scotts Valley schools.