City Council trades barbs over mayor’s proposed conference attendance
WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville City Council returned from its summer recess with a heated verbal scuffle between mayor Jimmy Dutra and councilman Lowell Hurst over the former’s proposed trip to a conference in Southern California.
Dutra at Tuesday’s meeting was asking his peers to approve using $1,134.05...
Watsonville police arrest 2 in drugs, weapons bust
WATSONVILLE—A man and a teen were arrested Tuesday morning after police found a quarter kilo of cocaine with a street value of about $17,000, a knife and an untraceable handgun while serving a search warrant on the 100 block of Mañana Lane.
During a traffic...
Police: Man, woman found dead in apparent murder-suicide
CAPITOLA—A man and a woman died in what police believe to be a murder-suicide in Capitola and Aptos.
The Capitola Police Department on Monday said that, through preliminary evidence, investigators linked the killing of 65-year-old Alice Jane Daugherty on the 4300 block of Diamond Street...
Watsonville’s Mayor For The Day contest returns
WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley Unified School District high school and middle school students are encouraged to submit essays for the Mayor For The Day contest, which will give one student the chance to spend the day with Watsonville Mayor Jimmy Dutra.
In 2019, Yocelyn Gonzalez, then a...
Watsonville man dies in Highway 25 crash
A Watsonville man died and five other people were injured Saturday night in a multi-vehicle crash just north of Hollister, according to the California Highway Patrol.
About 7pm, a 27-year-old man from Tres Pinos, driving a Mazda 3 sedan, attempted a U-turn from the northbound...
Watsonville Police Department welcomes three new officers
WATSONVILLE—Three new officers began their new careers with Watsonville Police Department on Aug. 16, and are now in the early stages of WPD’s 6-month field training program.
Francisco Felix, Jasmine Tirado and Johnny Miranda are now riding along with experienced officers as they learn their...
Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore opens
WATSONVILLE — Habitat for Humanity of Monterey Bay threw open its doors at a grand opening ceremony Thursday for the relocation of their ReStore at 555 Main St. in Watsonville.
The festive event drew community members, business people, Restore staff and area dignitaries, including Watsonville Mayor...
Food service industry faces unprecedented labor shortage
Two weeks ago, Amelia Loftus, owner of Hidden Fortress Coffee Roasting, was on the brink of closing her cafe in Watsonville just shy of its five-year anniversary.
The shop, located at the end of a sleepy business complex on Hangar Way, had been struggling to...
USDA announces increase to CalFresh benefits
WATSONVILLE—Starting on Oct. 1, anyone receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, known in California as CalFresh, will see a slight increase to the amount they receive each month.
The changes to the federal Thrifty Food Plan comes thanks to the U.S. Department of Agriculture...
George Washington statue relocated
WATSONVILLE—A bust of U.S. President George Washington was removed from Watsonville Plaza on Thursday.
In February Watsonville City Council voted 5-2 to move the statue to the Main Branch of the Watsonville Public Library. The decision stemmed from national social unrest during the uprising...
Sharks begin to heat up at the right time | High...
St. Francis High baseball head coach Ken Nakagawa has no doubt this year’s group is talented enough to go on a Central Coast Section...
