Local students participate in American Legion civics program
WATSONVILLE—Three students from Watsonville recently took part in a weeklong summer program in Sacramento that teaches young people to be part of their local and state governments.
The program—called Boys State—is sponsored by the American Legion. The event includes such activities as mock legislative sessions...
Watsonville Hospital sale is official
WATSONVILLE—After months of fundraising during which organizers scraped together more than $65 million, Watsonville Community Hospital will become a now publicly owned entity as of midnight on Sept. 1.
The Pajaro Valley Health Care District (PVHD) signed the paperwork on Wednesday, making the sale official.
State...
Caltrans proposes ‘bold’ $25M reimagining of Watsonville’s Main Street
WATSONVILLE—The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the City of Watsonville are on the cusp of beginning a 10-year endeavor that will completely reshape the city’s major arterial road.
Caltrans has committed to a $25 million renovation of its roughly seven-mile thoroughfare of Highway 152...
Andy Vargas Foundation hands out scholarships, prepares for concert
Daisy Fernandez has loved music since she was a child. She began singing when she was barely 3 years old, encouraged by her musically inclined family.
But despite this passion, Fernandez had not had much teaching or performance experience.
“I always wanted to take classes and...
Carrillo sentenced to life in prison without parole
SANTA CRUZ—The man who slaughtered Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Sgt. Damon Gutzwiller during a violent crime spree two years ago was sentenced Friday to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Steven Carrillo, 34, also received prison time for attempting to kill four other...
Hospital to begin under new owners Sept. 1
WATSONVILLE—With the purchase of Watsonville Community Hospital now a certainty, the nonprofit formed to make the acquisition got another bit of good news Tuesday when Kaiser Permanente announced it was donating $4.5 million to the cause.
With a goal of $67 million to cover the...
Victims ID’d in fatal plane crash
WATSONVILLE—The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Coroner has identified the three victims in a midair collision between two airplanes on Aug. 18 above Watsonville Municipal Airport.
Carl Kruppa, 75, and Nannette Plett-Kruppa, 67, both of Winton, Calif. were aboard the Cessna 340 twin-engine plane, while Stuart...
Federal investigation into fatal plane collision underway
WATSONVILLE—The National Transportation Safety Board has begun its investigation into a Thursday mid-air collision between two airplanes above Watsonville Municipal Airport that killed three people and one dog.
NTSB Airsafety Investigator Fabian Salazar said during a Friday afternoon press conference that the probe into the...
Multiple people dead after planes collide at Watsonville airport
UPDATE, Aug. 19: Federal investigation into fatal plane collision underway
ORIGINAL ARTICLE:
WATSONVILLE—Two men, a woman and a dog died in a mid-air collision between two small private planes above Watsonville Municipal Airport Thursday just before 3pm.
One witness, who went by the name Steve, said he...
Five local elected seats to go unopposed
WATSONVILLE—Kristal Salcido says that she had for months planned to spend the final weeks leading up to the Nov. 8 election walking door-to-door throughout Watsonville’s Fourth District to drum up support for her city council run.
On Wednesday, Salcido received the news that whether or...
Protest, film target pesticide regulations
About 40 people gathered outside the CineLux Green Valley Cinema in Watsonville Friday to protest new regulations by the Department of Pesticide Regulation regarding...