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Watsonville
April 26, 2026

PHOTO: Know your local businesses

People pour into the Seascape Golf Club Wednesday afternoon for the 33rd annual Business Showcase put on by the Aptos and Capitola-Soquel Chambers of Commerce.

Melee over food cart captures community attention

Linda Garcia hot dog
SANTA CRUZ—A recent clash between a Santa Cruz restaurant owner and a mobile hot dog vendor has drawn countywide attention, forcing one restaurant to close its doors and prompting demonstrations that have drawn hundreds of supporters. According to Santa Cruz Police spokeswoman Joyce Blaschke, the...

Paycheck Protection Program again under scrutiny after list of recipients released

paycheck protection program watsonville
The half-trillion-dollar loan program advertised as a lifesaver for the country’s struggling small businesses is again under fire after the Small Business Administration on Monday released a list containing hundreds of recipients of the program, revealing that several private equity-backed chains owned by members...

Corralitos Coffeehouse moving into vacant Second Street cafe

second street cafe
By Abigail Acosta, Special to the Pajaronian WATSONVILLE—The owners of Corralitos Coffeehouse will be closing their doors in Corralitos on Aug. 22 and moving their operations to downtown Watsonville. Greg Bobeda and Lacey Dent will take over the location formerly occupied by Second Street Cafe between...

Local companies gift Second Harvest new parking lot

WATSONVILLE—Since the outbreak of Covid-19, Second Harvest Food Bank Santa Cruz County has been distributing almost twice as much food to local families than usual. As such, the organization’s parking lot is now full of distribution and refrigeration trucks, forklifts and storage containers. Staff, volunteers...

Photo: National 9 Motel in downtown razed

National 9 motel watsonville
A crew from Randazzo Enterprises use an excavator to demolish the National 9 Motel in downtown Watsonville Wednesday to make way for a four-story, 80-room Hilton Home2 Suites hotel. Approved as a La Quinta Inn by the Watsonville City Council in 2016 and revised...

Beer Mule opens in Watsonville

The owners of Beer Mule were hoping for an easy “soft opening” when they announced their first night via Instagram on Saturday.

New laundromat opens in East Lake Village

robert ruiz laundry room east lake village shopping center
A new laundromat has opened in the East Lake Village Shopping Center.  Owner Robert Ruiz said Laundry Room features 30 driers and 35 heavy-duty washing machines that can handle from two to eight loads (80 pounds) of wash. The 2,000-square-foot facility, which replaces a former laundromat...

Owner of Nick’s TV leaves behind legacy

WATSONVILLE —  For more than 30 years Nicholas Diaz spent long workdays buried in the back of televisions and other broken appliances. He was living his dream of being a neighborhood repairman. That dream came to a horrific close Sept. 1 when he died in a car...

Watsonville Hospital announces new CEO

Steven Salyer watsonville hospital
WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Community Hospital has a new chief executive officer.  Steven Salyer, who has 14 years of leadership experience in hospitals throughout the U.S., started the position on July 6. The hospital announced the move on July 14. Salyer previously served as chief operating officer at UP...
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Letters to the Editor, April 24-30

Keeping our eye on the Clock My father, an Air Force fighter pilot, and our family, were stationed in Yokohama Japan in 1947 as part...