COVID-19

WATSONVILLE—One week after the Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees approved a distance learning plan for the 2020-21 school year, the district signed an agreement with the teachers’ union on Thursday that approves the finer details of how teachers will return to...

By Eduardo Porter, of The New York Times What should the president do about jobs? For 30 years, Democratic administrations have approached the question by focusing on the overall economy and trusting that a vibrant labor market would follow. But there is a growing feeling...

Covid-19 vaccinations for Santa Cruz County residents are being expanded to include workers in education and childcare, emergency services, and food and agriculture industries, the county announced today. Eligibility will be based on occupation definitions from the California Department of Public Health, according to the...

Various Bay Area health officers are asking communities to keep their Halloween and Dia de Los Muertos celebrations small to help slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. Traditional trick-or-treating and attending large parties are both considered high-risk activities, according to health officials, because it...

WATSONVILLE—Fruition Brewing owner David Purgason was making deliveries on Calabasas Road when he suddenly had an idea. As he drove by Whiskey Hill Farms, he remembered it was the site of Blume Distillation, a biofuel technology company that converts waste into alcohol-based fuel and other...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville renters struggling to keep up with their monthly payments because of the Covid-19 pandemic could soon receive some relief. The Watsonville City Council at its Tuesday meeting approved the use of $100,000 from its general fund to establish an Emergency Rental Assistance Program for...

By Emanuel Lee, Hollister Free Lance Sports Editor Calling it the “document we’ve been waiting for,” Central Coast Section Commissioner Dave Grissom said the California Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) recent release in regards to youth sports gives him and the other 10 section commissioners...

PAJARO—A mass vaccination clinic in Pajaro aimed at North Monterey County residents struggling to find the vaccine will go on as planned Friday, thanks to quick work from Dignity Health-Dominican Hospital and organizer Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance (PVPSA). PVPSA CEO Erica Padilla-Chavez says...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District (METRO) is stepping up to help battle the pandemic in offering free local transit rides to and from Covid-19 vaccination appointments in Santa Cruz County. METRO spokeswoman Danielle Glagola said riders who are interested in using METRO...

WATSONVILLE—A family of a man who died from Covid-19 at Watsonville Post Acute Center (WPAC) has sued the facility. Donald Wickham, 94, died on Oct. 10. He was one of 16 residents who died after contracting the virus. According to the lawsuit filed Nov. 10 by...