Local News

Have a recent photo you’d like to share? Send it to us for consideration by emailing it to [email protected] or mailing it to 21 Brennan St., Suite 14, Watsonville, CA 95076. Please include a brief description of the photo as well as the name...

Tarmo Hannula: Robert "Rolo" Leonardich hung up his keys at the Watsonville Police Department Friday for the last time after 41 years of service. About 50 people packed into the briefing room at WPD to share cake and words of respect and recognition of...

WATSONVILLE—A Watsonville gang member who led officers on a brief foot chase on New Year’s Day has been booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail. Geovanni Lopez, 32, faces several charges, including being a felon in possession of a firearm and resisting arrest. Lopez, who had...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Planning Commission on Tuesday made several recommendations to the City Council on proposed changes to the city’s cannabis ordinances. The body’s recommendations were a near carbon copy of those provided by staff with an additional amendment asking the city to favor local and...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The World Health Organization on Thursday declared the spread of coronavirus a global health emergency, saying that its spread can still be halted if all countries take strong countermeasures. “...all countries should be prepared for containment, including active surveillance, early detection, isolation and...

Tarmo Hannula It’s the last day of January 2020. • I noticed a paint crew has started a major paint job on the historic home on the corner of East Beach and Lincoln streets. That’s the towering white place with tall majestic columns, almost identical to the...

WATSONVILLE—The Crosetti Building at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds was almost unrecognizable Saturday evening, decked out for the Pajaro Valley Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture’s 58th annual Gala and Dinner. Going for a “Roaring ‘20s” theme, the inside of the building was decorated in black,...

A crew from Santa Cruz Signs was busy Tuesday installing signage for the new facility of Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance on East Lake Avenue at Brewington Avenue. PVPSA is a local nonprofit that aims to improve the quality of life of students...

WATSONVILLE—The California Landscape Contractors Association (CLCA) recently presented various awards to K&D Landscaping, Inc., a Central Coast landscape contractor, during its annual convention.   “The awards represent peak excellence within the landscaping industry and aim to shine a light on the talent and hard work...

WATSONVILLE—Meri Henriques Vahl vividly remembers her first major exposure to the world of art quilts.  Vahl was born in New York in 1945, and years later, during a visit to the Frick Museum in the Upper East Side of Manhattan with a friend, she viewed...