Local News

WATSONVILLE—An inmate at the Rountree Medium Facility on the outskirts of Watsonville escaped Friday afternoon, leading to an intensive search that ended with his capture later the same day. Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Ashley Keehn said Christopher Dicochea escaped around 3:45pm from the correctional center on...

The new Arco gas station and adjoining am-pm mini-market opened Monday on Lee Road. Situated in the Pajaro Dunes Center between Riverside Drive and Beach Road the Arco, with nine pumps and 18 filling stations, shares the same lot with the new (but not...

In celebration of the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History’s (MAH) 25th anniversary, the RedBall Project, a global art installation that has been to over 30 cities since 2001, is coming to Santa Cruz County. And now, after a countywide search by MAH staff...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Hearing calls from fellow commissioners to take a “timeout” so that deep divisions between Santa Cruz County residents about the proposed 32-mile coastal rail trail can subside, a push during Thursday’s five-hour meeting to reconsider the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission’s...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—If Sunday’s Basin Fire is any indication of what 2021’s fire season will bring, San Mateo-Santa Cruz Unit Chief Ian Larkin and the mountains surrounding Santa Cruz County are in for a bumpy ride this fire season. The roughly 7-acre blaze among the...

WATSONVILLE—The city of Watsonville over the next eight months will undergo its decennial citywide effort to redraw the lines of its elected districts. Every decade following the release of census data, cities and counties must adjust their district lines to account for possible shifts in...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The county’s tourist hotspots—along with its restaurants and hotels—can expect a slight uptick in business this summer from Californians seeking to hit the road for short road trips, according to a survey released Wednesday by Visit Santa Cruz County (VSCC). This prediction is...

Founded in 2013, the Birchbark Foundation grew out of what local veterinarian Dr. Merrianne Burtch saw as an unmet need in the community.  Burtch noticed that pet owners were facing fixable yet unaffordable crises with their animals, which often resulted in the only option being...

After more than a year of closures due to Covid-19, museums, galleries and other cultural institutions across Santa Cruz County are once again opening their doors to visitors. To further encourage people to return, they have come together to create Santa Cruz Museum Month.  Throughout...

APTOS—The last time the Aptos High boys soccer team beat Watsonville High the Nintendo Game Boy was a hot item, “Home Alone” was the top movie and Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby” was No.1 rap song in the nation. That was 30 years ago, but...