Business

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Prep School has found a home in downtown Watsonville. The Watsonville Planning Commission on Tuesday approved plans to remodel a portion of the long-vacant Gottschalks Building on Main Street into a 41,000-square-foot school. Navigator Schools, the parent organization of the charter school, and the Hansen...

WATSONVILLE—Second Harvest Food Bank’s efforts to aid Pajaro flood victims received a boost Wednesday when Staff of Life Natural Foods and Smart Chicken donated more than four tons of chicken.  With the Smart Giving Program, Staff of Life Natural Foods and Smart Chicken donated over...

WATSONVILLE—For many, the New Year feels like a fresh start. Resolutions are written and promises made to make big changes for the future. And most of these decisions—whether it’s traveling more or starting a membership at a local gym—have one thing in common: they all...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Santa Cruz County Health Officer Gail Newel said she will revise her shelter-in-place order later this week, after Gov. Gavin Newsom releases information about slightly loosening statewide restrictions. Newsom is expected to launch Stage 2 of his “Reopening Roadmap,” which will allow retail...

SANTA CRUZ—REI, an outdoor retail business with 168 stores in 39 states, plans to open a location in Santa Cruz, the company announced on Feb. 18. The 22,622-square-foot store will be located at 1660 Commercial Way, the giant warehouse that formerly held Toys “R” Us....

Staff of Life natural food store opened its second location Tuesday, a little more than two years after announcing it would make the move to the East Lake Village Shopping Center in Watsonville. Dozens of local leaders showed to the ribbon cutting ceremony Monday,...

WATSONVILLE—As many shelter-in-place restrictions remain in place due to Covid-19, state, county and city officials have looked for ways to allow businesses to open safely. This has included moving outdoors—onto sidewalks, into parking lots and even streets. Watsonville businesses have slowly been making the move,...

WATSONVILLE—First came the coronavirus in March and then the fires and smoke in August. While the CZU August Lightning Complex fire in the Santa Cruz Mountains is 100% contained, the Covid-19 pandemic continues. What have the dual disasters meant for Watsonville’s local businesses? So far,...

WATSONVILLE—In November Uriel Mendoza of Watsonville will mark 21 years of being a bus driver for Santa Cruz METRO. When asked what he liked about his job, he plainly responded, “My job.”  His preferred bus route? “I like all of them,” he said. He said his customers are...