Local News

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Supervisors on Tuesday ratified an emergency declaration for the winter storms that occurred on Dec. 13. County Administrative Officer Carlos Palacios made the initial declaration on Dec. 21. The decision will allow the county to receive state funding under...

WATSONVILLE—A man and woman were found dead in a home in Pajaro Village on Christmas Eve in what police believe to be a murder-suicide. Watsonville Police Department Sgt. Mike Ridgway said officers were led to the man and woman by a relative. The Santa Cruz County...

WATSONVILLE—The entire kindergarten class of Starlight Elementary School will be sporting new sneakers come the start of the New Year, thanks to the efforts of a high school student at Mountain View High School. Bridget Stuebner said she learned of a previous shoe give-away from...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—During 2021, 95 people died while homeless, a distressing increase from the 58 who died last year and 77 in 2019.  Those numbers, delivered Tuesday during the 23rd annual Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day ceremony, were more than an ugly milestone, said David Davis,...

WATSONVILLE—After operating for years in Santa Cruz, Elderday Adult Day Health Care will soon relocate to Watsonville. The move comes thanks to a $2.5 million grant from Central California Alliance for Health, which Elderday will use to purchase and modernize the space at 521 Main...

WATSONVILLE—Situated along the western coast of São Jorge Island in Portugal is Velas, a historic port town with a population of just over 5,580 people. Located in the Azores, the city is one of the oldest settlements on the island, boasting incredible ocean views...

Police search a vehicle and home on the 500 block of Green Valley Road Wednesday. A Watsonville man was arrested near the home on suspicion of robbing the Rite Aid store on Freedom Boulevard just 24 hours earlier. Watsonville spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said police were...

WATSONVILLE—The city of Watsonville and a local homeless union have come to an agreement that will dismantle the encampment on Bridge Street where some 25 people are currently staying. The two parties hammered out the terms of the agreement in a whirlwind series of telephonic...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Since it was launched in December of last year, the County of Santa Cruz’s Neighborhood Courts Program (NCP) has rerouted 45 misdemeanor criminal cases away from the traditional justice system and out into the community.  A restorative justice-based program of the County District...

PAJARO—For more than 30 years, the Casa de la Cultura organization in Pajaro has held its annual Food and Gift Christmas Giveaway, offering families a chance to receive free presents, food, clothing and more during the holiday season. Sister Rosa Dolores Rodriguez, executive director of...