Local News

The former Watsonville Meat Locker building — which later became Stevie G Meats — was a huge draw Thursday, but this time it was for something new: a pint of homemade beer inside a sparkling new brewery and taproom on Main Street. The Watsonville Public...

WATSONVILLE—Annrae Angel received an endorsement from the Pajaro Valley Cesar Chavez Democratic Club for Superior Court Judge at Monday night’s meeting in Watsonville. The club, which includes five Watsonville City Council members, also endorsed Measures R and Y, as well as Zach Friend for Supervisor,...

Marcia Hashimoto was 16 years old in 1963 when her Buddhist youth group asked 28-year-old Mas Hashimoto to present a slide show of his recent cross-country road trip. Mas was president of the Young Buddhist Association, and was respected throughout that community. His presentation had...

SANTA CRUZ—An Aptos woman who stabbed her husband to death during a domestic fight in 2019 pleaded guilty in Santa Cruz County Superior Court on May 18 to involuntary manslaughter. Amanda Owens also admitted to using a deadly weapon during the crime. She is set to...

WATSONVILLE—The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees has convened Friday afternoon for a special meeting to discuss appointing an interim superintendent. The board is meeting tonight to select a replacement for Michelle Rodriguez, who was abruptly fired Wednesday. But the board has broken into...

PAJARO—The tiny town of Pajaro, nestled on the most northerly corner of Monterey County, just got its first pizzeria. Thanks to a dream of Pajaro native and resident Eric Ramirez, fresh homemade pizzas are prepared in-house and baked in a brick oven at Idle Hour...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Santa Cruz County has moved to the “Widespread,” or Purple, tier of state’s Covid-19 reopening plan, which carries with it the most serious restrictions on businesses and services, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced in a lunchtime press conference Monday. The increased restrictions mean that...

WATSONVILLE—The man suspected of murdering his wife in their Watsonville home last week has likely fled to Mexico, Watsonville police said Monday. Cesar Hernandez, 47, allegedly murdered 24-year-old Brenda Elizabeth Becerra and then left her body in a Ford SUV on Mission Drive in Santa...

El Condado de Santa Cruz está aceptando solicitudes para la segunda ronda de subvenciones del Programa de Recuperación Cares del Condado de Santa Cruz para negocios pequeños afectados por Covid-19. Se otorgarán subvenciones de hasta $15,000 para brindar apoyo financiero inmediato a las empresas ubicadas...

WATSONVILLE—Two people were shot and killed in a span of just more than 48 hours in Watsonville, raising concerns about an uptick of violence in Santa Cruz County’s southernmost city. Watsonville police are investigating the shooting deaths of 19-year-old Fancisco Mora and 30-year-old Octavio Varela...