Business

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—The Watsonville Planning Commission at its Monday meeting will look over plans for a proposed mixed-use apartment complex in downtown. A project from local developers Bill and Neva Hansen, The Residence at 558 Main is a proposed four-story, 50-unit apartment building that, if approved, will...

Spring is here, and with it comes warmer temperatures, more outdoor activities and a surge in home gardening.  But with unpredictable weather patterns increasing, as well as the ongoing drought in California, there is plenty more to think about now when choosing what to plant...

The folks at East Lake Village Shopping Center kicked off the holiday season with their Shop Small Saturday event, where businesses there welcomed the public to an all-day festive celebration. The event included: • Santa and Mrs. Claus greeting  • Coffee and Cars Car Show hosted by...

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 — The new Hampton Inn & Suites on Lee Road is slated for an early March opening. Owner Juggy Tut said he is excited about the doors finally swinging open at the 112-room, four-story inn that has largely been constructed during the pandemic. “We’re looking...

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—Though some rural counties are allowing restaurants to open for dine-in service, Santa Cruz County officials are still several days away from giving their restaurateurs the green light. That’s according to county spokesman Jason Hoppin, who on Tuesday said testing and contact tracing...

A long-standing fitness center—Toadal Fitness—has opened a new location at 25 Penny Lane in Watsonville. With other locations sprinkled around the county including downtown Santa Cruz, Live Oak, Westside Santa Cruz and Scotts Valley, the Watsonville location threw a soft opening Monday. “While the previous...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville City Council on Tuesday sold the Resetar Parking Lot in downtown to the Ow family for $542,850. The 40-space lot at 535 Main St., also known as Parking Lot No. 4, is used daily by multiple businesses in downtown, including county-wide nonprofit Community...