Local News

WATSONVILLE—The city of Watsonville is expected to resume negotiations with the Pajaro Valley Arts (PVA) Council for the sale of the Porter Building after no affordable housing developers showed serious interest in the historic landmark. Watsonville and PVA earlier this year had begun early discussions...

PAJARO—One person was killed early Sunday morning when a suspected drunk driver crashed head-on into their vehicle in Pajaro, California Highway Patrol officer Jessica Madueño said. Officers say the suspect, identified as Israel Cruz, 47, was driving east in a Toyota pickup on Hall Road...

At midnight, it became official: California is open. Of course, the coronavirus pandemic isn’t over, and life isn’t back to the way it was before most of us had heard of the mysterious, deadly illness we now call Covid-19. But the lifting of nearly all of...

The Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County is honoring the achievements of 32 students with $308,450 in scholarships, funded by a number of local donors. Donors ranged from everyone from the Henry Cowell family to individual donors inspired by the ongoing Black Lives Matter...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Masks, capacity limits and several other mandates imposed by the state to slow the spread of Covid-19 will all become a thing of the past on Tuesday. And while Santa Cruz County health officials in their first press conference since May called...

The RedBall Project, a global public art installation that has been to more than 30 cities since 2001, visits the Cabrillo College Watsonville Center Friday. The display is in celebration of the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History’s 25th anniversary. The 15-foot blow-up...

CENTRAL COAST—A 3.3 magnitude earthquake rumbled through the Central Coast early Friday, shaking some from their sleep. The U.S. Geological Survey reported that the temblor struck at 3:35am roughly 2.5 miles north-northwest of Aromas and about 7 miles east of Watsonville. The USGS said there were...

25 years ago on June 11, 1996 The Agricultural History Project’s Farm Implement Shed was completed and ready for dedication. Located just inside the fairgrounds’ main entrance, it is now used mainly for exhibits, but will eventually display large, antique farm implements. They will include...

Asked to describe this year’s crop of graduates, Watsonville High School Principal Clara Fernandez lauded the 439 Wildcatz of the class of 2021 for their resiliency and determination to make it through more than a year of distance-learning instruction. Roughly 99% of all seniors, Fernandez...

WATSONVILLE—On Sunday Pajaro Valley Pride (PVP), a local nonprofit aiming to support and advocate for South County’s LGBTQ+ community, will hold its first in-person fundraiser since the start of the pandemic. “Raise a Pint to the Qmmunity” will feature a drag show, with local and...