Our news reporter Ryan P. Cruz is always at council meetings, covering courts and crime, or reporting on community updates like transportation and housing. This week, we get to peek behind the news curtain and get to know Ryan.
Where was your start in journalism? If you weren’t a writer, what job do you think you’d have instead? I’ve always wanted to write, but I really got serious with journalism at Santa Barbara City College’s student newspaper, The Channels. During my time there, I really fell in love with reporting and telling other people’s stories. If I were to be doing anything else, though, I would be back in the kitchen — I was lucky enough to cook at a few amazing restaurants (Scarlett Begonia, Sama Sama Kitchen, Revolver Pizza) and will always remember those times.
What got you started at the Independent? What is your favorite section of news to cover and why? I got started at the Indy when I was freelancing (while working at Revolver) and ran into Nick Welsh at an event we were both covering. We chatted a bit about writing, and next thing I knew, the Indy was offering me a full-time position. Growing up in Santa Barbara, I always wanted my byline in the Independent, and when I got the job, I wanted to make sure that my stories reflected the beauty and diversity that I saw in my hometown all my life.
Tell me about the cover story you just finished. What has been the hardest or easiest part to tackle with this story? The cover story this week is all about the “builder’s remedy,” an obscure quirk in housing law that’s really become a problem in California because it shifted the power over to developers in some ways. It can be challenging to write about complex housing law and make it interesting, but it’s a bit easier when everybody already sees the real-world impacts of the housing crisis on their daily lives.
What are you looking forward to working on this year? Are there any projects you’re going to be doing? It’s an election year, which means that there will be plenty of excitement to follow along. I’m also looking forward to writing more about housing as Santa Barbara continues to tackle its severe need for truly affordable housing. I want to explore more of what that means to the people, and how it may change the entire makeup of the city as lower-income, working-class residents are priced out.
Are you from Santa Barbara? What is your favorite local thing to do? I was born and raised in Santa Barbara, and apart from a couple years in San Francisco for art school, I have always lived here. I love a bike ride and a good meal, and Santa Barbara is perfect for both. I also live close to the downtown area, so it’s always nice to take a stroll along State Street.
What are some things you do to relax when you’re not working? What are some things you do when you want to have fun? I’m usually pretty busy — covering city council meetings, running to events and interviews, or juggling a few stories at once — but I do try to keep my sanity by having daily down time. For me, that means shutting the laptop and picking up a book or watching some sports/streaming on TV. On weekends, there’s usually some sort of get-together with my family (my grandma, her six children, 17 grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren all live in town) or else I try to plan a fun adventure or cook a homemade meal with my girlfriend.
