County’s places of worship, retail stores allowed to open at reduced capacity
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Santa Cruz County Health Officer Gail Newel on Tuesday revised her shelter-in-place order to align most of the county’s restrictions with that of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s stay-at-home order.
The new county order will open places of worship, in-store retail, outdoor museums and limited...
Jacob’s Heart gets $10,000 donation
WATSONVILLE—Covid-19 restrictions are keeping many people at home, forcing thousands out of work and making day-to-day chores exponentially more difficult.
Imagine, then, the added challenges facing families whose children are affected by cancer, says Lori Butterworth, founder and director of Jacob’s Heart Children’s Cancer Support...
Adult education graduates find prosperity by looking within
WATSONVILLE—When April Ortiz became pregnant during her senior year at Watsonville High School, severe morning sickness and other complications sidelined her education.
Then came the birth.
“Mothering was a new life and a new experience,” she said.
Ortiz, now 26, received her GED on May 22 from...
Dominican Hospital operator announces merger
Dignity Health, which operates Dominican Hospital in Santa Cruz, announced Friday that it has merged with Catholic Health Initiatives to form CommonSpirit Health.
Good Times purchases Press Banner
SCOTTS VALLEY—Santa Cruz’s Good Times weekly has purchased the Press Banner from Tank Town Media just as the Santa Cruz Mountains newspaper prepares to celebrate its 60th year of publishing.
The Scotts Valley-based weekly, which, in addition to serving the city of 11,500, covers Boulder...
County kicks off budget hearings
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday kicked off its annual budget hearings, a four-day marathon in which the board approves the county’s budget priorities for the coming fiscal year.
During the hearings, each of the county’s departments present their individual...
Deputies make arrest in connection to pipe bomb found in Boulder Creek
SCOTTS VALLEY—The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office arrested a 34-year-old Boulder Creek resident in connection to explosive devices found earlier this week while responding to the CZU August Lightning Complex fire in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
SCCSO Chief Deputy Chris Clark in a Saturday evening...
New PV Arts exhibit features local artists
WATSONVILLE—For the past year, a group of five local artists has held a series of virtual pop-up art sessions, where participants learned about the artists’ process and were given guidance on how to create their own work.
Now, Pajaro Valley Arts (PVA) is displaying the...
Santa Cruz County schools prepare for closure
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Starting Monday, thousands of students across Santa Cruz County will be out of school for at least one week after county education officials closed every school in response to the growing threat from coronavirus.
But teachers and school employees will be required to...
Watsonville holds vigil for woman shot and killed by ICE
Around 150 people gathered in Watsonville Plaza Thursday night in a vigil for 37-year-old Renee Nicole Macklin Good, who was shot and killed by...






















