Community

After 133 people died in Santa Cruz County in 2023 after overdosing on Fentanyl, the Sheriff’s Office has launched a new way to address the problem, with a special focus on the people who deal the dangerous drug. The Fentanyl Crisis Response Team includes five...

Caltrans is scheduled to close both directions of Highway 1 for a 24-hour block on March 23/24 to make way for the demolition of the 1948 Capitola Ave. overcrossing.  Kevin Drabinski, spokesperson for Caltrans, said the work is the second phase of the three-phase project...

For Michelle Martinez Kamalani and her mother, Judy Martinez of Watsonville, Memorial Day meant setting time aside to visit Valley Catholic Cemetery.  With an electric weed-whacker, a whisk broom,  hand clippers and two bunches of fresh flowers, the pair wandered through the rows of flower-festooned...

A new art show has opened at the Pajaro Valley Arts Sudden Street Gallery.  With nearly 30 artists, "Take Aways: Art To Go!” marks the gallery’s 40th year and covers a wide spectrum of  art mediums, from rusted steel, ceramics and paint, to cast concrete,...

A work crew hauls a large boring machine out of trench at Riverside Drive and Blackburn Street in Watsonville  Crews have finished the roadwork for the College Lake Integrated Resources Management Project, which will provide a 30-inch water main to transport treated water from a...

The annual Obon Festival will take place July 21 at the Watsonville Buddhist Temple. Open to the public, the event will include entertainment, a vendor’s market, childrens’ games and an array of traditional foods. The festival culminates in a dance, known as Bon-Odori, which participants practice...

A Watsonville man was arrested on suspicion of DUI Monday afternoon after a two-vehicle crash. Watsonville Police officer Bobby Rodriguez said the suspect was driving a red Chevy Silverado  pickup westbound on Martinelli Street around 4:30pm. Witnesses told police that the driver ran a stop...

Several community leaders and community members gathered at MacQuiddy Elementary School Tuesday evening to call on Driscoll’s, Reiter and other companies to stop using toxic pesticides around schools. “Choosing to farm organically is a decision based on hope and a deep understanding of our interdependence...

Water surges through the asphalt along the 300-block of Ford Street Monday afternoon where a man reportedly ran into a fire hydrant with his Chevy Silverado pickup. Watsonville Police said the man struck the hydrant just after 5pm, triggering a water main break beneath...

Nearly three decades ago, the Queer Youth Leadership Awards (QYLA) was created to honor young lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people (LGBTQ+) whose advocacy and activism have made notable impacts on their communities. Created by the Queer Youth Task Force, the annual ceremony is...