County redistricting meeting set for Oct. 26 | News Briefs
Community members will have the chance to weigh in on how supervisorial districts will be redrawn, a process that determines what districts will look like for the next 10 years.
Every 10 years, local and federal governments redraw their districts according to Census data. Ideally,...
Watsonville Film Festival plans Day of the Dead events
WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Film Festival (WFF) will present its fourth annual Día de los Muertos event at Watsonville City Plaza on Oct. 29, featuring a screening of the animated Disney/Pixar movie “Coco” as well as music, dance and art.
The free event, which brought thousands of...
Watsonville Pilots Association sues City over housing project
WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Pilots Association (WPA) has filed a lawsuit against the city of Watsonville over the City Council’s recent approval of a proposed 21-condo development across the street from Watsonville Municipal Airport.
The lawsuit (case number 21CV02343) claims the City undercut California Environmental Quality Act...
Mobile home park prevails: Residents won’t see rent increase, for now
WATSONVILLE—A Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge on Oct. 14 sided with the residents of a mobile home park who had been battling a giant rent increase since 2017.
Attorneys for the residents say the decision supports a County ordinance governing rent increases, and has...
County picks Aranda as Artist of the Year
The County of Santa Cruz has named multi-media artist Guillermo “Yermo” Aranda as the 2021 Artist of the Year.
Every year the Arts Commission presents the award to a local artist for their achievements in performing, visual or literary arts, as well as their contributions...
As Cal Fire makes progress on Estrada Fire, questions linger about burn
WATSONVILLE—As firefighters continue to “mop up” a blaze in the Watsonville foothills sparked by a prescribed burn that went awry, some Santa Cruz County officials and residents are calling for the Cal Fire San Mateo-Santa Cruz Unit (CZU) to answer lingering questions surrounding the...
Annual Day of the Dead exhibit returns to PV Arts
WATSONVILLE—Every year, Pajaro Valley Arts (PVA) hosts an annual exhibit inspired by Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead in English), a traditional holiday in Mexico commemorating family and community members who have died.
But this year, after almost two years of the Covid-19...
County moves to oppose all sexual predator placements
After a significant portion of the Bonny Doon community mobilized to try to keep a man who raped a 21-year-old woman in the 1980s from moving to town, Santa Cruz County is now seeking changes to California law, so it can have additional tools...
Local teaching artist moves into new studio in downtown Watsonville
WATSONVILLE—Judy Gittelsohn has big plans for the downtown Watsonville arts scene.
For the past two months, Gittelsohn has been slowly but surely moving her artwork, supplies and more into her new studio at 430 Main St. Large paintings line the walls of the small yet...
Man dies from gunshot wound after shooting near Watsonville
WATSONVILLE—A 21-year-old man died Sunday night after he was shot near Coward and Carlton roads, a rural area in the outskirts of Watsonville.
The victim has been identified as Abel Ruiz.
According to Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Sgt. Dan Robbins, a passerby saw a man who...
What Makes Watsonville Community Hospital—and America—Great
Thirty-three years ago, while my family was preparing for a birthday party, I decided to arrive early. My mother was shopping for a cake...
