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Watsonville
October 23, 2025

A “place of healing”—Tiny home village unveiled

With a small handful of finishing touches still left to complete on a tiny home village in Westview Presbyterian Church’s parking lot in Watsonville, organizers say the project will be complete in late November. And with only occupancy permits needed after that, the 34-unit Recurso...

Changes coming to Capitola Mall include housing

For 15 years, city leaders have been looking for ways to re-envision the Capitola Mall, which like many of its shopping-center brethren across the U.S., has lost a measure of the luster it had a few decades ago, the neon-colored heyday of the 80s. And...

Federal education funding shift could mean $3M loss, upend two Cabrillo College programs

Two programs at Cabrillo College are at risk after the federal government announced major funding shifts away from schools that serve minority students. When U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon on Sept. 10 announced that the Department of Education is ending discretionary funding to Hispanic-serving...

Murphy Crossing Road upgrade celebrated

A ribbon-cutting was held Thursday to celebrate the completion of an upgrade to the heavily worn out Murphy Crossing Road east of Watsonville. With close to 1,800 vehicles a day using the .63-mile stretch between San Juan and Riverside roads, the two-lane roadway was for...

‘People simply loved it:’ County fair wraps up

These women take part in the pair jumping competition in the horse arena.
The Santa Cruz County Fair wrapped up Sunday at the close of its five-day, 2025 season. “We had an excellent fair,” said Ron Haedicke, marketing director. “ It was a great run with no issues. Attendance was down 10 percent from last year, but we...

Community celebrates Mexican Independence Day

Thousands of people gathered in downtown Watsonville Sunday for the annual Mexican Independence Day Festival. Hosted by Fiestas Patrias, the free event featured a wealth of live bands, both local and from Mexico, folkloric dance groups, food booths, arts and crafts and information tables that...

PVUSD hires new public information officer

Pajaro Valley Unified School District has hired a new public information officer. Alejandro Chávez will serve as the intermediary between the public and media, and the district. According to a Facebook post, Chávez brings more than two decades of experience in public service, nonprofit management and...

Letters to the editor: Sept. 12-18

Thoughts on “The Cult of Trump” The political chaos is increasing and it's hard to make sense of, so I thought I would give you my perception of what’s happening. Ever since Bernie lost the Democratic nomination for president in 2016, I have been following...

Back to the Land: Open Farm Tours approaching

Twelve years ago, the first Open Farms Tours event was literally a washout. Held in early November at the Corralitos Women’s Center, the debut coincided with the heaviest rainstorm of the year. The 4-H animal zoo zone was mired in mud, music was canceled, and...

County supervisors wrap-up: nitrous oxide, changes at the Health Services Agency

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday passed an ordinance that would prohibit the sale of recreational nitrous oxide, and also made changes to lab services in the Health Services Agency. The supervisors agreed to outsource the Health Services Agency’s (HSA) laboratory services...
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Watsonville police, WHS investigating campus stabbing

Watsonville High School was locked down Thursday morning after a fight in the campus quad left a student and a staff member injured. Emergency dispatchers...