Local News

WATSONVILLE—A Watsonville man died early Tuesday morning when he was struck by a car as he walked along West Beach Street. Watsonville Police spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said the 42-year-old victim was walking partially in the westbound lane in front of Big Creek Lumber, 1400 W....

WATSONVILLE—Gerry Kall on Friday celebrated her 101st birthday in Watsonville, the town she was born in. Thanks to a gathering of relatives, friends, Katie Nuñez, Watsonville Senior Center’s older adult services supervisor, and a handful of folks who cheered out the window of the cars...

For the past decade, local author Joyce Oroz has steadily released volumes of her Josephine Stuart Mystery Series. And now the 12th book has joined the lineup. “Lost and Bound” follows the series’ titular character, Josephine Stuart, as she investigates the death of a woman...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—A group of Santa Cruz residents filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Sacramento County Superior Court to stop the Harm Reduction Coalition of Santa Cruz County (HRC) from continuing its syringe services program. Launched in 2018, the nonprofit HRC—and “harm reduction” programs in general—operate...

CENTRAL COAST—The Bay Area region designated in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s regional stay-at-home order is expected to fall below its baseline Intensive Care Unit (ICU) bed capacity sometime this weekend, meaning several industries will face more restrictions put in place to curb the spread of...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville police on Thursday arrested a Watsonville man for a stabbing in late November that they say left his victim in critical condition. Angel Fernandez, 24, was charged with attempted second-degree murder. He was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail in lieu of $150,000 bail,...

WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley Unified School District students will wait at least two extra months to return to their classrooms, the district’s trustees unanimously voted Wednesday. The district was planning to begin a hybrid version of in-person learning starting in January, but a recent surge of Covid-19,...

WATSONVILLE—For the second year running, a group from Watsonville’s Filipino community is releasing a calendar highlighting family histories.  The “Watsonville is in the Heart” calendar is part of the Tobera Project, an ongoing project aiming to preserve, honor and celebrate that history, especially those of...

CENTRAL COAST—The Clinica de Salud del Valle de Salinas (CSVS) is now hosting a pop-up Covid-19 testing site every Saturday at Las Lomas Market, bringing a much-needed resource to the small rural community in the northern reaches of Monterey County. The pop-up site is one...

Santa arrived in an R44 Robinson helicopter at Ramsay Park Wednesday. On the ground, he joined Mrs. Claus where the pair hopped in a 1967 Crown fire engine and headed out to begin a lengthy tour of Watsonville. Over the course of six days, Santa...