Local News

WATSONVILLE—A man was seriously injured Saturday afternoon when his motorcycle plowed into a jeep SUV on Harkins Slough Road in Watsonville.  Watsonville Police Sgt. Mike Ridgway said the man was riding a Suzuki motorcycle southbound on Harkins Slough road around 3:30pm. A man driving a...

These are a collection of images from our photojournalist Tarmo Hannula that did not make it into stories, but we think should be enjoyed. Do you have a photo you’d like to be considered for our gallery? Send it to [email protected].

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY —Strawberries remain the county’s biggest crop, with an estimated value of $220,653,000 on approximately 2,578 planted acres. That’s according to the 2018 crop report released Thursday by Santa Cruz County Agricultural Commissioner Juan Hidalgo. The report showed an overall production value of more...

Baba Hari Das died peacefully at his home in Bonny Doon Tuesday morning.

WATSONVILLE—Swift efforts are underway to open a new Habitat for Humanity ReStore in downtown Watsonville.  The national second-hand retail store is aiming for a mid-August soft opening in the behemoth 9,700-square-foot building at 555 Main St. that once served as a grocery store, a furniture...

Editor's note: This story was updated from a previous version. WATSONVILLE—A fire at an apartment complex on Clifford Avenue late Christmas Eve displaced 20 people and severely damaged four adjoining units, Watsonville Fire Battalion Chief Kirt Vojvoda said. According to Vojvoda, the blaze began at about...

When Aptos High School Principal Alison Hanks-Sloan sent a letter on March 16 to the Pajaro Valley Unified School District community announcing she would not be returning for the 2025-26 school year—and that her last day will be June 30—district officials told The Pajaronian...

WATSONVILLE—Juan Carlos Pozo Block has spent the past two decades teaching in Watsonville, working with students from various backgrounds and levels of education. This year, that experience culminated in a new book in which the author, who goes by the pen name JC Pozo, shares...

Located on a busy thoroughfare between Aptos and Watsonville, Bamboo Giant Nursery and Gardens (BGNG) could easily be driven past without a second glance.  But the nursery, tucked into the side of a hill in a rural, forested section of Freedom Boulevard, is actually one...

Santa Cruz County officials on Friday cut the ribbon on the first new park to open in South County’s unincorporated region in decades. The 38.5-acre Valle del Pájaro (Valley of the Birds) County Park, under the mantle of Department of Parks, Open Space and Cultural...