Watsonville looks to memorialize lives lost in pandemic
WATSONVILLE—The city of Watsonville is requesting proposals from an artist, or a group of artists, to design, fabricate and install a temporary or permanent memorial to commemorate and honor Watsonville residents that have died after falling ill with Covid-19.
The request for proposals (RFP), which...
Two groups demand PVUSD trustee’s resignation, suggest recall
WATSONVILLE—The abrupt termination of Pajaro Valley Unified School District Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez continues to ripple across the district, with two efforts launched recently to ask Trustee Georgia Acosta to remove herself from the position.
A petition on change.org calls on Acosta to “resign or face...
Salud Para La Gente gets $100K grant from Kaiser Permanente
WATSONVILLE—Watsonville-based health provider, Salud Para La Gente, has received a $100,000 grant as part of a $1 million distribution of funds to Santa Cruz County organizations from Kaiser Permanente.
The grants aim to increase access to healthcare for those who often don’t have health insurance, said...
Rental assistance program available to county residents
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Renters and landlords in Santa Cruz County who have been impacted by the pandemic are eligible for more than $16 million of federal funds to help pay utilities, home energy costs and rent, county spokesperson Jason Hoppin announced Monday.
The funds are allocated...
Stimulus bill transforms options for state and local governments
Richard F. Cortez, the top elected official in Hidalgo County, at the southern tip of Texas, is so full of anticipation for the federal stimulus money that is about to flow into his county that he has memorized the precise amount and happily recites...
PVUSD, Food Bank partner in supporting families struggling with food insecurity
By Ford Kanzler, Special to the Pajaronian
The pandemic and the business closures that have come with it have hit many Watsonville residents hard. Two local institutions have stepped up to soften the blow.
After schools closed in mid-March of last year, Pajaro Valley Unified...
St. Francis falls to Scotts Valley in county’s first football game during pandemic
SANTA CRUZ—The last time the St. Francis High football team stepped foot on the field it won in a blowout against Harbor High to end the 2019 season on a high note.
The Sharks hoped that the momentum from that win would continue into the...
Geiser Field renovations could begin next week
WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville High School site council committee is still onboard with a renovation project at Emmett M. Geiser Field, but now it will not have to decide whether or not to use Measure L funds to help pay for it.
Instead, Pajaro Valley Unified School...
Projects improving pedestrian access to PV High move forward
WATSONVILLE—A trail system that would connect Pajaro Valley High School to downtown Watsonville took another step forward Friday, gaining approval from the County Zoning Administrator.
The project, headed up by the city of Watsonville, would create a 12-foot wide, 1.4-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail that...
High-powered rifles, cannabis seized in Bonny Doon
BONNY DOON—The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office confiscated an unusually large amount of cannabis and 16 rifles Tuesday at home in Bonny Doon.
Santa Cruz County spokesman Jason Hoppin said Sheriff’s Office personnel assigned to the Cannabis Licensing Office served a criminal search warrant at...
What Makes Watsonville Community Hospital—and America—Great
Thirty-three years ago, while my family was preparing for a birthday party, I decided to arrive early. My mother was shopping for a cake...
