Local News

Watsonville Police released its statistics Thursday for the Fourth of July holiday, which show a dip in calls for service compared to the previous year.

Downtown Watsonville has always boasted strong multicultural roots and a rich community of artists, small businesses and residents that care deeply about their community. Now, the state of California does, too. The California Arts Council has named downtown Watsonville one of the state’s newest officially designated...

Be Natural Music is holding a live performance and fundraiser on Sunday at 5 p.m. at Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320 Cedar St. in Santa Cruz.

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved an emergency declaration for the damages sustained in the storm surges on Dec. 28 and 30. County officials estimate that the waves, which inundated Capitola Village, slammed Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf and wreaked havoc...

Several candidates tossed their hats in the ring in early 2024 when Zach Friend announced his departure from the District 2 seat on the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors. The top two vote-getters were Kim De Serpa, with 25.2% of the vote, and Brown...

Two teenagers were arrested recently by Capitola Police after officers found them with a large amount of drugs. Capitola Police said the two juveniles were stopped  for public intoxication. During a search, police found hundreds of Xanax-style pills, 30 grams of psilocybin “magic mushrooms,” several...

The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees will appoint a new member to replace outgoing Trustee Kim De Serpa, rather than hold a costly special election. The trustees made the 6–0 vote Wednesday night after a discussion that turned contentious as the board...

When Watsonville Mayor Maria Orozco was a student at Freedom Elementary School, she remembers running around the playing field, pock-marked as it was by holes and other signs of age and wear. “I remember dreading it, because when we were done, my knees used to...