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Watsonville
February 19, 2026

Mural completed at Cesar Chavez Middle School

cesar chavez middle school mural
A new outdoor mural was unveiled at Cesar Chavez Middle School May 25, a joint effort between Watsonville artist Yermo Aranda, area students, instructors and others. The four-panel mural, roughly 25-by-40-feet, depicts scenes from indigenous people and a multistage chronology of the life of Cesar...

Watsonville Strawberry Festival returns Aug. 4-6 to downtown

Watsonville strawberry festival
The community is gearing up for the Watsonville Strawberry Festival 2023, a beloved annual event that celebrates the region's rich agricultural heritage. This year’s festival promises to be a delightful extravaganza, with a special focus on showcasing local arts and crafts vendors, a Berry...

New Watsonville shop features vintage clothing, candle making and more

TBH East lake village shopping center
After researching and running multiple pop-up venues, Eve Ayala and her wife, Teresa Madrigal, have swung open the doors to their new shop, TBH (To Be Honest). “We're locals, born and raised in Watsonville,” Ayala said. “We are second generation Mexican women. Our shop comes...

Watsonville High graduate eyes future leadership role

Morielle Mamaril
Two weeks after she graduates from Watsonville High School, Morielle Mamaril will travel to New York to attend a summer program at Cornell University. There, she’ll study Industrial and Labor Relations, a major specific to Cornell she says will prepare her for a career that...

Gas pipeline rupture stalls city

Riverside Drive was closed to traffic and two homes were evacuated Wednesday afternoon between Union  Street and Marchant Street after construction crews ruptured a natural gas line. Watsonville Fire officials said the pipeline break was reported at 2:29pm in a section of the road that...

Homeless population assists flood recovery in Watsonville, Pajaro

watsonville works cleanup flood
WATSONVILLE—As the waters recede from the recent floods that ravaged South Santa Cruz and North Monterey counties, residents have been returning to their homes and starting to clear the debris that overtook their dwellings.   In Watsonville, homeowners are getting help from members of the community...

PVUSD high schools see record-high graduation rates

pvusd trustees
Late in 2022, when officials from Pajaro Valley Unified School District took a look at its high school seniors, they noticed a disturbing trend: many were not meeting their graduation requirements and were at risk of not receiving their diplomas. And so Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez...

Briefs: Pesticide meeting set for Monday; Halloween events on tap

Watsonville pesticides
Pesticide meeting set for Monday The California Department of Pesticide Regulation will hold a meeting Monday from 4-6:30pm at the Family Center in Ramsay Park regarding pesticide use and regenerative farming.  “It is a rare in-person opportunity for the public to demand pesticide reduction and elimination...

Fire at Circle Church possibly arson

circles church
Santa Cruz Fire Department investigators believe that a fire that broke out Tuesday inside the former Garfield Park Church was deliberately set, the department announced on Facebook. According to SCFD, firefighters responded to multiple calls of smoke and flames seen at the now-closed church—also known...

County’s plan for aging seeks community input

Santa Cruz County is presenting a Master Plan for Aging (MPA) survey residents can take that will help county leaders craft a plan to meet the needs of its rapidly growing senior population. When it is complete, the county’s MPA—called “Age Well Santa Cruz County”—will...
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LEVEE MONEY The Pajaro River meanders through a course of trees and brush near downtown Watsonville.

Padilla, Schiff secure $54M for Pajaro River Levee

U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla announced Tuesday that he and Sen. Adam Schiff secured $54 million in federal funding for the Pajaro River Flood Risk...