PVUSD trustees to appoint interim superintendent
The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees on Wednesday are scheduled to appoint an interim superintendent to take the top spot while the district conducts a national search for a permanent one.
Also during that meeting, the trustees will select a firm to...
Watsonville Hospital nurses ratify contract
After five months of negotiations, nurses at Watsonville Community Hospital have ratified a three-year contract that they say helps to improve patient safety and increase nurse retention.
The California Nurses Association, which represents 250 nurses at the hospital, made the announcement on Dec. 9. It...
National group urges flood control funding formula changes
The National Association of Counties (NACo) on July 21 voted unanimously to urge the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) to change the way it funds flood control projects for economically disadvantaged communities.
Currently, the ACOE uses a 1:1 benefit-cost ratio when figuring the feasibility...
Voters opt for smaller, streamlined system
For decades, voters on election day went to their respective polling places—roughly 160 in Santa Cruz County—where they would be handed a ballot for the candidates and races specific to their districts.
It was a time-honored tradition, and—for one day—a community gathering spot, with many...
Grand Jury looks at Behavioral Health Division
The Santa Cruz County Behavioral Health Division (BHD) is underfunded and understaffed, which hinders its ability to provide services to low-income patients, young people and jail inmates with mental health needs.
A lack of bilingual staff, furthermore, makes delivering mental health services to Latinos challenging.
That’s...
Watsonville Hospital board approves nurses’ contract
The Pajaro Valley Health Care District Board of Directors on Dec. 21 approved a three-year contract with its nurses, two weeks after the nurses’ union ratified it.
The approval came after six months of bargaining. Nurses say the contract helps improve patient safety by increasing...
$2 million grant for METRO will help launch Watsonville housing project
The Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District has received a $2 million grant that will be used to redevelop the Watsonville Transit Center into an affordable, transit-oriented housing development.
The funding will cover the architecture and engineering phase of the project, a process that will begin...
Photo story: Fill the Fire Truck effort aids in toy drive
Watsonville’s interim Fire Chief, Corey Schaefer, shows a sampling of the new toys that locals donated first-ever Fill the Fire Truck Toy Drive Dec 13 at Fire Station 1. “We had a good showing and we’re pleased with today's outcome,” Schaefer said. The toys...
PHOTO: Fashion of the past
A Christmas tree is dressed up with a Victorian-era dress at the Pajaro Valley Historical Association. A wealth of early day garb is part of the PVHA's exhibit where visitors are welcome to stop by and get a taste of earlier times in the...
PVUSD trustees slash 80 teacher positions in revote
The Pajaro Valley Unified School District voted Monday night, during a specially scheduled meeting, to cut roughly 80 teacher positions.
The reductions include 30 elementary multiple-subject teaching positions, 10 middle school core teaching positions, and counseling staff. Additional cuts to single-subject teachers include five in...
Letters to the Editor Dec. 12-26
Praise for Watsonville Fire Chief Lopez
In 1996, I took my New School students to the Watsonville Fire Department on Second Street for an educational...




















