Local News

WATSONVILLE—A 53-unit affordable housing development planned for the heart of Freedom Boulevard received a $2 million loan thanks to Monterey Bay Economic Partnership and Housing Trust Silicon Valley, the agencies announced Thursday evening. The development will bring much-needed affordable housing for families earning 20-60% of...

Pajaro Valley Arts’ 14th annual “Sculpture Is: In the Garden” exhibit will return to Sierra Azul Nursery and Gardens on July 1. It will be the organization’s first in-person exhibit since the countywide shelter-in-place order prompted the closure of its indoor gallery on Sudden Street...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—As arrangements are being made for the memorial of Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Sgt. Damon Gutzwiller, who was gunned down June 6 in Ben Lomond, local colleagues and fellow law enforcement personnel are gathering their thoughts about the man with the beaming...

WATSONVILLE—Every year Farm Discovery at Live Earth aims to reach thousands of young people to teach them about farming, nutrition and health, environmental literacy and more. The organization is headquartered at Watsonville’s Live Earth Farm, which plants crops in the fall that are eventually...

WATSONVILLE—The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees on Wednesday took a look at the district’s use of police officers on high school campuses, an issue that has taken the forefront across the U.S. in the wake of several recent high-profile cases of...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Police Department will help conduct 10 community listening sessions and the city will create a police oversight committee in hopes of increasing community trust and accountability in local law enforcement, Chief of Police David Honda announced during Tuesday afternoon’s Watsonville City Council...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Planning Commission tonight will see staff’s proposed changes to the city’s rules for accessory dwelling units (ADUs), also known as “granny flats” or “granny units.” The proposed changes, in short, would bring the city’s rules in alignment with several state housing bills passed...

APTOS—Siding construction is underway on The Hideout restaurant that was largely destroyed by fire in May 2019. Workers from Costa Bella Builders are behind the rebuild of the popular eatery nestled beneath a canopy of redwoods at 9051 Soquel Drive between Rio del Mar and...

CENTRAL COAST—The Paycheck Protection Program helped save at least 17,000 agricultural jobs throughout the tri-county area, according to data released by the Small Business Administration on July 6. The program, a part of the more than $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES)...

After the Loma Prieta Earthquake hit Watsonville in October of 1989, a group of people from St. Patrick’s Church established an emergency feeding program, aiming to support those affected by the disaster. Now, 30 years later, Pajaro Valley Loaves and Fishes (PVLF) is once again...