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Watsonville
July 5, 2025

Arts Council launches emergency grants during COVID-19 crisis

Since the County of Santa Cruz issued a shelter-in-place order March 17, local artists have faced uncertain futures. With venues and schools closed and events either canceled or postponed, individuals and organizations are now out of work and struggling to get by.  According to Arts Council...

Work continues on Freedom Blvd. | About Town

A construction crew continues was at work on a lengthy underground sewer project along Freedom Boulevard Friday in Watsonville. • Rain fell most of the night and into Monday morning around the Central Coast. Early showers welcomed the day as another weather system meandered through the...

Santa Cruz County names ‘alternate care’ sites for COVID-19 patients

Santa Cruz County
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The County of Santa Cruz on Monday announced that it will use two facilities to care for 100 people who have tested positive for COVID-19 – and need to be isolated – but are not critically ill. County officials are also looking to...

Small business lifeline | About Town

A painting crew has been busy adding a fresh coat of paint and a new look Thursday and Friday to the long-standing Beach Street Cafe on West Beach Street. Help is on the way for small businesses hit by sweeping closures, layoffs, and downsizing because...

Man arrested for burglary, looting Watsonville business

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville police on Thursday arrested a man for allegedly burglarizing a business that is making hand sanitizer for the ongoing coronavirus epidemic. Dustin Dean Davis, 47, was charged with burglary, looting during a state of emergency and violating the county’s shelter-in-place order. He also faces...

Sheriff’s deputies to crack down on prohibited gatherings

beaches covid-19
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The shelter-in-place order imposed on March 31 by Santa Cruz County Health Officer Gail Newel allows activities such as walking, hiking, bicycling and running. Anyone participating in those activities must comply with social distancing requirements, and large gatherings are prohibited. Health officials say...

Health officer: everyone should cover face when out

Santa Cruz County
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Santa Cruz County Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel on Friday recommended that everyone cover their mouth and nose with cloth when leaving their homes to protect themselves from coronavirus. The guidance, which comes from the California Department of Public Health, is in addition...

Watsonville police arrest suspected serial burglar

WATSONVILLE—A man suspected of at least three burglaries in the Watsonville area was arrested Tuesday after allegedly breaking into a truck and stealing tools. Benjamin Sanchez, 48, faces three counts of felony burglary. He was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail in lieu of $10,000...

Funeral homes adjust to COVID-19

WATSONVILLE—As the world adjusts to the spread of COVID-19, big changes are underway at area mortuaries and funeral homes as well. Gone are the days—for now—of large gatherings, whether at a football game, concert, theater or at funerals and graveside services. That puts congregating to...

Local breweries donate expired beer for sanitizer production

WATSONVILLE—Fruition Brewing owner David Purgason was making deliveries on Calabasas Road when he suddenly had an idea. As he drove by Whiskey Hill Farms, he remembered it was the site of Blume Distillation, a biofuel technology company that converts waste into alcohol-based fuel and other...
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Santa Cruz County celebrates with parades

Thousands of people attended Fourth of July parades in Watsonville and Aptos Friday, lining sidewalks aliog main streets to see hundreds of participants. Below...