Local News

WATSONVILLE—After spending more than a decade as a tattoo artist in Silicon Valley, Pepe Nunez has returned home.  Classic Calavera Tattoo is set to open soon in a location near the intersection of Freedom Boulevard and Green Valley Road that previously housed a bike shop.  Even...

By Patricia Cohen, of The New York Times New claims for unemployment fell last week, the government reported Thursday, the latest sign that the labor market’s recovery, however slow and unsteady, is continuing. “The numbers look encouraging on the face of it,” said Gregory Daco, chief...

The new Capitola Avenue overcrossing at Highway 1 opened to the public last week after a two-year closure.  The heavily-used corridor for motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians between Soquel and Capitola villages is the first completed component of the Highway 1 Auxiliary Lanes and Bus-on-Shoulder Project...

WATSONVILLE—Lizz Weihrauch knows firsthand the transformative power of music. Twenty-three years ago, Weihrauch was a single mother looking for a way to introduce her son, who was born with Down syndrome, to music. They tried out a number of programs and classes, searching for the...

Tens of thousands of people descended upon downtown Santa Cruz Saturday morning to march for the rights of women.

Help plant flowers at the fairgrounds The Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds Foundation is seeking volunteers to plant flowers for the upcoming Santa Cruz County Fair.  A workday is scheduled for July 27 at 4pm.  Planting will begin at 4pm and will wrap up by 6:30pm at which...

SANTA CRUZ—A total of 55 inmates and seven guards at Santa Cruz County Main Jail have tested positive for Covid-19, Sheriff’s spokeswoman Ashley Keehn announced Thursday. None of the cases have resulted in serious illness or hospitalizations, and a majority are asymptomatic or are experiencing...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Chief of Police David Honda will give a presentation on "community oversight and engagement" to the City Council at today's virtual meeting. The meeting begins at 2pm. To participate visit https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/794248253 or call 1 (786) 535-3211 and enter access code 794-248-253. The Watsonville Police...

WATSONVILLE—When the Loma Prieta earthquake struck at 5:04 p.m. on Oct. 17, 1989, Second Harvest Food Bank CEO Willy Elliott-McCrea was in Watsonville, talking about disaster preparation. It was a strange bit of irony, and it took the presence of then-Watsonville Fire Chief Gary Smith...

WATSONVILLE—When the Santa Cruz County Fair opened Wednesday, Watsonville resident Manuel Monroy was one of the first ones through the gate, his 3-year-old son Leo at his side for the boy’s first fair experience. On their agenda was the popular All Alaskan Pig Races, a...