Local News

WATSONVILLE—In the days leading up to the first countywide economic shutdown, Lona Martinez thought the possibility of a mass closure was a rumor sparked by those looking to scare the public. “I thought it was a bunch of hype,” she said. “And then it happened...it...

I’m seeing more and more places setting up makeshift outdoor eating spots to accommodate customers during the Covid-19 crisis where officials are not allowing indoor dining. Today a worker was busy putting up a tarp roof over a new outdoor seating area at Taqueria...

Every August for the past five years, Watsonville organization Pajaro Valley Pride (PVP) has held an event to show support for and celebrate the LGBTQ+ community in South Santa Cruz County. But due to Covid-19, the annual march and celebration were canceled, sending organizers back...

WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley Unified School District’s students will engage in distance learning for the entire first semester of the 2020-21 school year, the Board of Trustees unanimously decided on Wednesday. The distance learning model is intended to slow the spread of Covid-19.  The district decided to keep...

After the Loma Prieta Earthquake hit Watsonville in October of 1989, a group of people from St. Patrick’s Church established an emergency feeding program, aiming to support those affected by the disaster. Now, 30 years later, Pajaro Valley Loaves and Fishes (PVLF) is once again...

SANTA CRUZ—A man was shot and killed as he sat in a car on the westside of Santa Cruz Tuesday afternoon. He has been identified as Juan Antonio Ruiz, 28, according to the Santa Cruz County Coroner’s Office.  The initial call to emergency dispatchers reported a...

BOULDER CREEK—The California Highway Patrol arrested a Boulder Creek man Tuesday following a lengthy investigation into a fatal vehicle crash two weeks ago in the same Santa Cruz Mountains town. Cody McGhee, 31, was arrested in San Jose on suspicion of the hit-and-run death of...

Watsonville Fire Capt. Matt Ryan (right) pays thanks to fellow firefighters from multiple agencies, various police, family and friends Tuesday morning at a farewell breakfast on his final shift as a firefighter. Born in 1962 at the old Watsonville Community Hospital, Ryan said he...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Gyms, barbershops, beauty salons, places of worship and shopping malls across Santa Cruz County will all have to close their indoor services on Tuesday, county health officials announced Monday. Retail and existing outdoor restaurant operations are unaffected by the new county health orders...

WATSONVILLE—Gov. Gavin Newsom on July 24 revealed a new temporary housing program that aims to help agricultural workers across the state better protect themselves and their families during the Covid-19 pandemic. Housing for the Harvest will offer temporary hotel housing to workers who need to...