Local News

WATSONVILLE—After years of playing sports on an aging field pitted by gopher holes and rutted by time, students at E.A. Hall Middle School will soon get a new playing field. The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees on June 9 approved hiring a...

WATSONVILLE—A locally brewed project of painting mile markers along the Pajaro River and Salsipuedes Creek levee system came to fruition Wednesday. Buoyed by a large pack of community members, Watsonville City Councilmember Ari Parker, Santa Cruz County Supervisor Greg Caput, city and county workers and...

After a year of ups and downs, things are looking good for wineries in the Pajaro Valley. That is according to two long-standing wineries, both nestled in the Pleasant Valley area between Watsonville and Aptos. Alfaro Family Vineyard-Winery was first established in 1997 by Richard...

By Jane Sellen SALINAS—On May 27 dozens gathered at the Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner’s office in Salinas, calling on the state and county governments to web-post advance warning of agricultural pesticide use. The event was one of several by farmworking communities across California who joined together...

CALIFORNIA—As California recovers from a historic heatwave, the State Assembly last week passed three bills by Assemblymember Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) to help fight the climate crisis, incentivize sustainable agriculture, and advance environmental justice for all.  “California has ambitious environmental goals, and the advancement of my...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville police will start handing out fines to tenants and property owners for illegal fireworks if there is evidence that they were bought, sold or set off at the property, the department announced Tuesday. Before the move, an officer needed to catch someone in the...

CENTRAL COAST—The heat wave expected to bake the inland parts of the Bay Area with temperatures as high as 110 degrees will largely miss Monterey Bay, thanks to the marine layer for which Santa Cruz County is known. National Weather Service meteorologist Gerry Diaz says...

SANTA CRUZ—The Santa Cruz Police Department is asking for the community’s help in identifying a suspect who wore a distinctive Winnie the Pooh sweatshirt while allegedly committing a burglary at the Costco store in Santa Cruz in March. In addition, the man is wanted for...

  In 1983, a group of local farmers looking for ways to manage the Pajaro Valley’s groundwater basin formed the Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency (PVWMA). A year later, the agency was officially recognized by the state legislature, who tasked them to stop groundwater overdraft...