Local News

APTOS—A blaze that Aptos/La Selva Fire said was likely started by a homeless person seeking warmth has felled one of the towers that once reached into the sky alongside Highway 1 in Aptos. The tower was part of a quintet of now-silent radio antennae that...

SANTA CRUZ—Class of 2020 Salutatorian Michelle Soriano says she has come out of Pacific Coast Charter School a changed individual. “I’m leaving as a different person—but in a good way,” Soriano said. “I feel like I’m better at looking out for myself, and not just...

SOQUEL—Two employees who work at the Safeway grocery store on 41st Avenue in Soquel have tested positive for Covid-19, company spokeswoman Wendy Gutshall said. One employee has not worked since May 23, and the second since May 30, she said. “That store has been through multiple...

WATSONVILLE—A 72-unit affordable housing project on Miles Lane off Freedom Boulevard is moving forward. The Watsonville City Council at its Tuesday meeting unanimously approved the development, a joint project between MidPen Housing and Encompass Community Services that will reshape a 4.7-acre lot which has mostly...

WATSONVILLE—One of the pillars of the Watsonville Fire Department, Capt. Matt Ryan, will soon retire. That means on July 27 a mountain of experience in the world of fire and rescue will walk out the door. It also means a departure of a giant player...

WATSONVILLE—A huge line of vehicles is almost constant now in front of A&S Metals on West Beach Street. It’s one of few spots the public can cash in its recyclables, which, for some, have been piling up around the house since the novel coronavirus shuts...

WATSONVILLE—The West Coast Ravens Fly Formation Team shot through the sky over Watsonville Saturday.  The flyover show was meant to celebrate the Fourth of July, as the city’s recurring Fire in the Sky event was canceled due to Covid-19. It was organized by the City...

MONTEREY COUNTY—Businesses across the Pajaro River Bridge were dealt another tough blow this week, as Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday called for Monterey County restaurants, wineries, movie theaters, zoos, museums and card rooms to close their indoor operations.  Newsom also said the county’s bars must...

Watsonville Police crisis negotiators are speaking with a man who allegedly took his daughter from her mother’s Watsonville residence after an argument Sunday night.

LA SELVA BEACH—Fire ripped through an historic building on the Monterey Bay Academy campus Saturday night. By Sunday morning all that remained of the former auditorium on the coastal outskirts of Watsonville were a few remnants of framework that protruded through a bed of ash. Firefighters...