COVID-19

WATSONVILLE—Obtaining a Covid-19 test in Watsonville is still a challenge for some, as long waits and limited options are plaguing those that might have been exposed and are asymptomatic but need a test to find out if they can safely return to work. The OptumServe...

WATSONVILLE—For 10 years, Youth N.O.W. has tutored and empowered hundreds of students throughout the Pajaro Valley, providing an essential outlet for those struggling to pick up various subjects in class or finding a safe space to study after the bell rings. Now, after a sudden...

WATSONVILLE—Scheduled clean-ups of the Pajaro River Levee have been postponed indefinitely after homeless advocates raised concerns about displacing people living there, according to Watsonville City Manager Matt Huffaker. Huffaker said a regularly scheduled clean-up of the levee was set for Tuesday and Wednesday. That was...

CENTRAL COAST—Most counties throughout California have now imposed some version of stay-at-home orders, which consist of a series of requests and requirements by local leaders and are designed to slow the spread of Covid-19. Gov. Gavin Newsom on Dec. 3 said that new orders keeping...

WATSONVILLE—One year ago, a report by UC Santa Cruz’s Blum Center on Poverty, Social Enterprise and Participatory Governance and Second Harvest Food Bank painted a grim picture of hunger in Santa Cruz County. According to the report, some 83,000 residents were living in households earning...

WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley Unified School District is closing its schools for the remainder of the 2019-20 year, Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez announced Wednesday.  “Being a healthy community is key to thriving in it,” Rodriguez said. “Having students in the classroom is ideal and we miss seeing their...

WATSONVILLE—Cilantro’s Parrilla Y Cantina recently celebrated its 30th anniversary, and the Mexican restaurant is not slowing down even with shelter-in-place orders in effect. The business remains open seven days a week, albeit with a limited staff, and is still offering takeout orders of about 90...

SACRAMENTO—Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday announced a plan to get meals to isolated older adults by paying the restaurant industry to prepare and deliver breakfast, lunch and dinner for them. The governor said the program was created to give a lifeline to seniors at home,...

WASHINGTON—Cathay Pacific Airways, convinced that digital proof of coronavirus vaccination will bring about the return of safe international travel, asked its pilots and crew to try out a new mobile app that showed their vaccination status on a recent flight from Hong Kong to...

A crew from the City of Watsonville were busy Wednesday installing a sculpture of a great white heron beside the Watsonville Nature Center in Ramsay Park. The art piece was created by John Cerney. • I saw on TV news this morning that there is another...