Local News

WATSONVILLE—From an early age, Marc Sander could tell he thought and felt a bit differently from his peers. One day, while playing basketball with a group of kids in his neighbor’s driveway, he became increasingly frustrated with how they were playing the game. They...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The loud boom that echoed over much of Santa Cruz County late Thursday evening—and the fireball streaking across the sky that accompanied it—was probably a piece of natural space debris roughly the size of a volleyball that entered the earth’s atmosphere and...

WATSONVILLE—Scores of restaurants around Watsonville have been hit hard by the outbreak of COVID-19. With shelter-in-place orders in effect, residents are asked to stay inside and limit their time near crowds. This includes going to sit-down restaurants, coffee shops, breweries and the like. As such,...

WATSONVILLE—A 33-year-old Watsonville man died in a solo-vehicle crash just before midnight Tuesday on Riverside Road, or Highway 129. California Highway Patrol officer Sam Courtney said the victim was driving a 1999 Lexus west on Riverside Road south of Lakeview Road with a 44-year-old female...

WATSONVILLE–A typical day of soccer camp for Miranda Mathiesen is passing the ball back and forth to her teammates, followed by some light footwork to help with juking defenders. It doesn’t sound like much, but for her and the rest of the Pajaro Valley United...

WATSONVILLE—The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office released the names of the two men who were shot and killed on Saturday in Watsonville in separate shooting incidents. The first victim, who was shot near Marchant and E. Front streets around 5:30pm, has been identified as Rafael Salcedo,...

After a contentious meeting on Tuesday, a divided Watsonville City Council approved in concept several amendments to its retail cannabis ordinances, a move intended to ease the regulatory burden for a burgeoning industry already beleaguered by local, state and federal regulations. City officials say the...

WATSONVILLE—A man and woman were found dead inside a van parked in the parking lot of the Rodeway Inn in Watsonville on Tuesday afternoon. Watsonville Police Department Sgt. Juan Trujillo said police were dispatched to the Rodeway Inn on West Beach Street near Highway 1...

This story has been updated from a previous version. A cascading wave of fiscal challenges such as the election of President Donald Trump, his One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) and a cyber attack, has Watsonville Hospital’s leadership team worried that it will not have...

Peanut brittle, milk, dark and white chocolates, pecan buds, hazelnut truffles, butterscotch squares, chocolate walnut fudge—does this list have your attention? If so, good news is here: See’s Candies has opened a pop-up store in Watsonville as a test run. Situated in Watsonville Square, a few...