Local News

WATSONVILLE—A line was already forming in front of 7-Eleven on Main Street before 11am on Christmas Eve as people eagerly awaited Santa Claus—and pizza. Sherry Dang and Kirk di Cicco, owners of local franchised 7-Elevens, handed out 500 free pizzas at the store, plus 200...

The City of Watsonville has named longtime firefighter Corey Schaefer as its next fire chief following the retirement of Chief Rudy López. Schaefer, a 27-year veteran of the Watsonville Fire Department, has served as acting fire chief since August and was selected after a recruitment...

Do you have a recent photograph you’d like to share? Send it to us for consideration by emailing it to [email protected] or mailing it to 21 Brennan St., Suite 14, Watsonville, CA 95076. Please include a brief description of the photo as well as the name...

A Watsonville firefighter helps clean up the scene of a two-vehicle crash on East Lake Avenue at Blackburn Street Thursday night. Watsonville Police spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said Margarito Martinez-Garcia, 19, was traveling westbound in a Honda Accord at 7:20pm when he plowed into the...

Live music, information tables, food and speeches was the tune of the day in Romo Park in downtown Watsonville at the annual Labor Day gathering Monday.  Put on by the Monterey Bay Central Labor Council, the event showcased the essence of Labor Day—to pay tribute...

Watsonville firefighters are responding to a crash at the intersection of Freedom and Airport boulevards, where the driver of a Ford F-150 truck lost control, tore through a planter bed and a wooden fence and then crashed into a vehicle parked at an urgent care clinic.

Pajaro Middle School got a major landscape overhaul Saturday during a four-hour community event, which included the planting of shade trees, native plants, edible gardens, a fruit tree orchard, and other environmental conservation features. The so-called Celebration of Trees project was staged by Watsonville Wetlands...

PAJARO—Pajaro/Sunny Mesa Community Services District, the agency that provides water to the Pajaro area, has lifted a do-not-drink order that came in the wake of the March 11 flood. The April 7 decision came nearly a month after the Pajaro River levee broke and released...

Encompass Community Services in Santa Cruz announced Wednesday that its Head Start and Early Head Start programs are facing an immediate funding crisis due to sudden federal policy changes.  Unless funds are restored, the organization said, Encompass will be forced to close 15 classrooms and...