Local News

WATSONVILLE—Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Cruz County has a message for the community: the California National Guard members stationed there are not there to protect food supplies, and they are not there to enforce the statewide shelter-in-pace order. And they are not there for...

Santa Cruz County officials are urging the public to avoid crowding the county’s beaches in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. With shelter-in-place orders in place throughout California, non-essential workers are staying home, schools and universities are switching to online classes and some...

MONTEREY COUNTY—Monterey County health officials on Saturday announced the first death of a county resident that had been diagnosed with COVID-19. Officials said the victim was an “adult individual” who had an “underlying health condition” that made them more susceptible to the highly-contagious virus that...

SANTA CRUZ—Several uniformed Santa Cruz police officers were on Water Street Friday morning, along with a group of city workers, tasked with dismantling and moving a homeless encampment that has grown along the north wall of the downtown post office, and in other places...

Community foundations in Monterey and Santa Cruz counties are responding to the COVID-19 crisis by creating a fund that will financially aid residents most impacted by the coronavirus. The funds will be made available to nonprofit agencies and will be used to address the immediate...

WATSONVILLE—A man that tested positive for COVID-19 died Friday at Watsonville Community Hospital, Halsen Healthcare CEO Dan Brothman confirmed on Saturday morning. Brothman did not release any information about the victim.   Two sources, however, said the victim was not from Santa Cruz County. They were speaking...

GILROY—This year’s Gilroy Garlic Festival has been canceled, festival organizers announced late Friday afternoon. The announcement came as governmental jurisdictions, businesses, educators and residents throughout California are severely restricting their activities in response to the coronavirus pandemic. In a brief email, organizers said the 40-year-old festival...

I saw groups of people hanging out in the City Plaza downtown today. Scores of shoppers came and went from the Target store on Main Street. At times traffic looked near normal along Main Street and Freedom Boulevard. I saw a line of about...

WATSONVILLE—“Hello?” “Yes, are you there?” “Can you hear us?” “Please, unmute your mic.” Those tech-trouble-induced phrases dominated Watsonville City Council’s Friday morning emergency meeting concerning a proposed eviction moratorium for tenants affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. The pleas of roughly a half-dozen property managers and landlords that scrambled to...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—In response to the state’s declaration of a State of Emergency as a result of the threat of COVID-19, and other recent federal, state and county guidance, Santa Cruz (METRO) announced sweeping changes set for Monday. On Thursday Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered California’s...