Business

WATSONVILLE—A new program has launched at Envision Fitness & Nutrition in downtown Watsonville, aiming to support youth by teaching them about health, wellness, stress management and more. Envision opened in 2020, during the height of the pandemic. They began with virtual health and fitness classes,...

It has not been an easy harvest season for California apples. When temperatures shot up into the 100s in August and September, sparking wildfires across the state and harming numerous agricultural commodities, apples were one of the hardest-hit crops. The fruit is susceptible to...

WATSONVILLE—It has been one century since Granite Construction was founded,  and since then it has become a construction juggernaut, with subsidiaries throughout the U.S. and projects that include dams, interstate highways, airport runways and skyscrapers. The company celebrated its centennial birthday on June 23 at...

WATSONVILLE—A new mural against an exterior wall of the new Adult and Children’s Behavioral Health facility in the County complex on Freedom Boulevard is nearing completion.  Watsonville artist Bruce Harman said he started the massive work at the end of August and has squeezed in...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—For many, Spring has always been the season to clear out unused and unneeded items from garages, attics and closets. And with people at home during shelter-in-place, Spring cleaning has increased exponentially. “People are cooped up with nothing to do,” said Alan C....

In 2019, a new kind of restaurant settled into The Hangar complex near Watsonville Municipal Airport. Mr. Z’s Crepes and Teas, created by owner Rocky Patel, offers a wide selection of offerings: Fresh savory and sweet crepes, bubble teas, waffles, acai bowls, coffee drinks...

WATSONVILLE—After spending more than a decade as a tattoo artist in Silicon Valley, Pepe Nunez has returned home.  Classic Calavera Tattoo is set to open soon in a location near the intersection of Freedom Boulevard and Green Valley Road that previously housed a bike shop.  Even...

When Phoenix Artemisia decided to open a yoga studio in Watsonville in 2016, no other location around the city grabbed her attention more than downtown. That was despite some pushback from friends, who had concerns about her safety and that of her clients.  Artemisia, ever the...

WATSONVILLE—The developer behind a 150-unit housing project off Ohlone Parkway is asking the Watsonville City Council for a one-year extension on the project’s approval. First approved by the council in 2018 as Sunshine Vista, Hillcrest Estates was set to transform an 11-acre junkyard at 511...

The Hiccuping Dragon is a small hot dog stand nestled in Rio Del Mar Esplanade. With a beachside real estate, ocean views and a steady crowd of hungry beachgoers, Hammond couldn’t have picked a better spot for his four-month-old stand.