Local News

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—At least 4,000 Santa Cruz County residents have been infected with Covid-19 during the current winter surge sparked by the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus. That figure posted to the County Health Services Agency’s online dashboard, however, is likely vastly...

WATSONVILLE—Plans to build a four-story, 80-room hotel at the busy intersection of Main Street and Freedom Boulevard have once again stalled. Watsonville Community Development Department Director Suzi Merriam says that the permits granted to the developer, Kamalesh Patel, expired last fall. If the project is...

More than 50 years ago, clockmaker and shop owner Allison Rider discovered a new hobby: making chocolate candies for his friends, family and employees. Rider, a big chocolate lover, started creating treats loosely based on See's Candies flavors. He experimented with caramel and other soft-center...

WATSONVILLE—A Watsonville man was arrested on Feb. 11 after police say he fired a gun into a residence on the 100 block of Hill Avenue. Several people were in the home, including two children, Watsonville Police Department spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said.  Nobody was injured. Daniel Zavala, 28,...

SANTA CRUZ—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a project designed to integrate clinical, mental health and housing services to help the county’s population of homeless people with mental illness and substance use disorders The Mental Health Services Act Innovation Plan is...

Pierre Riche’s artistic journey has been anything but dull. Born in New York City in 1966, Riche has lived in nine different U.S. states, moving more than 14 times and exploring various pathways.  He studied at the School Of The Art Institute Of Chicago, lived in...

WATSONVILLE—A plan to improve traffic and pedestrian safety at a notoriously busy intersection on the outskirts of Watsonville took a step forward Wednesday.  The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees unanimously agreed to allow the California Department of Transportation to use a small...

Belle Espinoza, 10, shows an egg that withstood a four-story drop to the ground Wednesday with her homemade contraption alongside Darren Gertler, Environmental Education Coordinator. Thirty-two youths took part in the 19th annual Egg Drop competition as part of Engineer’s Week in downtown Watsonville....

APTOS—Cabrillo Gallery will open its first in-person exhibition of 2022 on Monday, with a show exploring the ways in which human beings see and express their own identities.  “Who We Are: Portraying Identity” will feature 27 artworks, from paintings and photography to mixed media and...

The County of Santa Cruz has released a draft Active Transportation Plan for public review, which will be used to identify needed investments and improvements in the county’s walking and bicycling infrastructure.   People may review the plan at ecoact.org/poweredbyme, with comments due by March 25.   The...