Local News

I started working for the Pajaronian in February 1997. As a news gatherer, that translates to a lot of blank pages being filled over the years with news and photos of what’s going on. Of those 23 years as a journalist, 2020 most assuredly...

APTOS—A Watsonville man was arrested Friday and charged with driving under the influence of drugs after allegedly striking an 88-year-old man, California Highway Patrol Officer Sam Courtney said. Joseph Granados, 29, was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail in lieu of $10,000 bail, jail records...

Sunk into dirt after left on edge of farm

A new of the long-running “Moveable Mural Project” is in the works by Santa Cruz County high school students in the Teen Artes Summer Program. Under the umbrella of Pajaro Valley Arts, 18 students from eight schools started painting the large wood panels Monday...

WATSONVILLE—With roughly 64% of Watsonville having already taken the 2020 Census, the community is keeping pace with the state and national self-response rate. That, Deputy City Manager Tamara Vides said, is something to be proud of, considering the unprecedented circumstances the community has faced during...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Police Department lifted all evacuation warnings in the City of Watsonville on Monday.  Access into Pajaro from Watsonville is still closed off by the Monterey County Sheriff's Office and will remain closed until Monterey County officials lift the road closures.  Santa Cruz County officials have...

Watsonville is testing a pay-to-park program along parts of Aviation Way, a 30-day pilot that City Manager Tamara Vides said will be used to gauge the feasibility of future metered parking. Customers who recently visited the strip of restaurants at 45 Aviation Way—including Honeylux Coffee,...

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a plan that will allow people to smoke pot at local cannabis dispensaries the way they drink at bars. The new ordinance will allow onsite consumption of marijuana products at dispensaries in the unincorporated parts...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville High School community last year was shaken when a beloved three-decades old mural on the wall of the school’s cafeteria was painted over during a construction project. The move, directed by site administration and the district facilities department, outraged the artists involved in...