Local News

Barricades were recently taken down where Atkinson Lane meets Freedom Boulevard during construction of the new Tabasas Gardens homes (shown here). The lane had been closed to allow for construction for more than a year.

SANTA CRUZ—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors retooled the county’s syringe exchange program during its Dec. 10 meeting, limiting the amount that people can trade for clean ones on behalf of other people.  This practice, known as secondary exchange, is believed by advocates to...

Today is May 5 and an important day in Mexican history: Cinco de Mayo, a holiday that celebrates the Mexican army’s victory over France at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862 during the Second Franco-Mexican War. Also known as Battle of Puebla...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Public Health Division announced Wednesday morning the eighth death of a resident due to Covid-19. The resident, who died in their home, was a Hispanic male in his early 40s who lived in South County. While the individual had...

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday signed legislation that will expedite the reconstruction of the Pajaro River Levee, moving construction start and completion time years earlier than anticipated. Assembly Bill 876 fast-tracks the work by exempting the project from certain local environmental laws and regulations under...

When Vanessa Quiroz-Carter and Maria Orozco were sworn in late last year as Watsonville’s Mayor and Vice-Mayor, it was only the second time in the city’s history two women have held the roles. The first was in 2019, when Rebecca Garcia and Trina Coffman-Gomez sat...

APTOS—Cynthia Jimenez-Gutierrez says she found inspiration to become a financial planner by helping her immigrant parents with their fiscal issues. After her education, she hopes to make a life in her community helping other immigrant families. “I like to work with money,” she said. “I thought,...

WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley Pride (PVP) will hold its annual in-person march and celebration Sunday at the Watsonville YWCA, for the first time since 2019. PVP, an organization aiming to support South Santa Cruz County’s LGBTQ+ community, had been holding Pride events in Watsonville since 2016. Throughout...

SANTA CRUZ — The night sky was lit brightly with bolts of flames and electric lights Saturday evening during the annual Glow event at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History. The festival of fire and light drew a huge crowd to a closed-off...