District’s SRO discussion set for Sept. 15
WATSONVILLE—The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees will consider restoring its School Resource Officer (SRO) program, just over one year after they canceled it.
The trustees voted unanimously on Wednesday to discuss the issue during an emergency meeting on Sept. 15.
The meeting will...
Report: Watsonville dense in ‘predatory’ lenders
WATSONVILLE—Alternative lenders outnumber mainstream lenders by more than 3-1 in Watsonville.
That’s according to a joint report from Santa Cruz Community Ventures (SCCV) and UC Santa Cruz’s Blum Center presented to the public in Watsonville’s Civic Plaza on Tuesday.
The report, called “Mamas con Mas,” identified...
National 9 Motel demolition slated for next week
WATSONVILLE—The National 9 Motel in the heart of the city will be razed in the coming days to make way for a four-story, 80-room Hilton Home2 Suites hotel.
Kamalesh Patel, the owner of the half-acre lot at 1 Western Drive, was issued a demolition permit...
Trustees show support for students to vote
Pajaro Valley Unified School District’s governing body on Wednesday took the first step toward allowing students to vote in district elections and help choose the trustees that represent them.
The board voted to form an ad-hoc committee that will talk to students, families and community...
Police seeking church vandal
WATSONVILLE — Watsonville Police is asking for help in identifying a man who was caught on camera vandalizing St. Patrick’s Church on Tuesday afternoon.
Surveillance footage shows the suspect walking toward the front doors of the church with a spray paint can in hand. About 15...
7-Eleven hands out hundreds of free pizzas on Christmas Eve
WATSONVILLE—A line was already forming in front of 7-Eleven on Main Street before 11am on Christmas Eve as people eagerly awaited Santa Claus—and pizza.
Sherry Dang and Kirk di Cicco, owners of local franchised 7-Elevens, handed out 500 free pizzas at the store, plus 200...
Biden changes PPP rules to help the self-employed
By Stacy Cowley and Jim Tankersley, of The New York Times
Aiming to put its own stamp on the Paycheck Protection Program, the Biden administration on Monday abruptly changed crucial program rules in ways intended to help the smallest and neediest companies, which have sometimes...
Watsonville’s first comic-con event set for Sunday
WATSONVILLE—Starting an event centered around comics, art, fantasy and the collectibles that those realms inspire was something Francisco “Paco” Estrada had first dreamed up when he was elected into the Watsonville City Council in 2018.
The idea was, Estrada says, to give kids—and adults—a safe...
Body found on Larkin Valley Road
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office has opened an investigation after deputies found a body on Larkin Valley Road.
On Oct. 3 at approximately 6:59pm,...
