Business

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...

WATSONVILLE—Two Watsonville area charter schools received funds through the federal Payroll Protection Program (PPP), the $660 billion initiative created to use taxpayer dollars to help keep small business and nonprofit organizations afloat. Watsonville Prep School, which received more than $1.7 million, and Ceiba College Preparatory...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—A recent reduction to employees in the Kaiser Permanente corporation—about 200 positions—will not reach Santa Cruz County, a spokesman said Tuesday. One of the largest private employers in California, the company has more than 149,000 employees and 16,000 physicians in the state. In addition,...

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...

WATSONVILLE—As the second day of Santa Cruz County’s shelter-in-place order dawned Wednesday morning, Watsonville Yoga, Dance and Healing Arts owner Phoenix Artemisia was busy setting up for class—just not as she normally does. Artemisia’s mat was unrolled on the ground of her studio on Main...

This past Presidents’ Day on Feb. 18, Juan and Paula Diaz had more reason to celebrate than just the national holiday. The date also marked the 10th anniversary of their family restaurant, Cowboy’s Corner Cafe, located on Main Street in Watsonville.

WATSONVILLE—Rocky Patel said he was largely inspired to open his new restaurant, Mr. Z’s Crepes & Teas, by his two children. “They are boba tea fanatics,” Patel said. “My 15-year-old son especially loves it. I was like, sure, let’s go all-out and do this.” Boba, also...

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...

Four Winds Growers, a fourth-generation, family-run business in Watsonville specializing in citrus trees, has seen major growth in sales since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.  Aaron Dillon, who runs the business with his siblings, says that the surge is likely due to people who...