Watsonville police nab man wanted for recent shooting
WATSONVILLE—A man wanted for an attempted murder in Watsonville on Jan. 7 was arrested Tuesday during a high-risk traffic stop.
Ian Coetzee, 21, was charged with attempted murder. He was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail in lieu of $375,000 bail, jail records showed.
According to...
Newsom signs several housing bills
WATSONVILLE—Governor Gavin Newsom on the final day of action for the 2019 legislative season signed Assembly Bill 1783, also known as the Farmworker Housing Act of 2019, which creates a streamlined process to build farmworker housing on agricultural land.
The bill was authored by Assemblymember...
Pajaro Valley Chamber names honorees for 2023
WATSONVILLE—Guy George, whose roots in Pajaro Valley agriculture stretch back to his immigrant parents, has earned this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award by the Pajaro Valley Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture.
George joins Trina Coffman-Gomez and Dana Sales as Woman and Man of the Year, along...
Biden, in a push to phase out gas cars, tightens pollution rules
WASHINGTON—President Joe Biden on Thursday announced a multistep strategy aimed at rapidly shifting Americans from gasoline-powered cars and trucks toward electric vehicles—a central part of his plan to reduce the pollution that is heating the planet.
Biden is first restoring and slightly strengthening auto mileage...
CHP grant targets pedestrian and bike safety
APTOS—The California Highway Patrol in the Santa Cruz Area is implementing a 12-month enforcement and education campaign to reduce the number of fatal and injury traffic crashes involving pedestrians and bicyclists in the unincorporated areas of Santa Cruz County.
The Santa Cruz Pedestrian and Bicycle...
Santa Cruz County Supervisors delay disposable cup fee
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on May 11 voted unanimously to delay a 25-cent fee for disposable cups at businesses in the unincorporated parts of the county until January 2022.
County officials crafted the ordinance to reduce the amount of disposable...
A new way to view crime: Neighborhood Justice Program helps victims, offenders mediate
Since its inception in 2020, the Santa Cruz County Neighborhood Justice Program has held 351 conferences between people who commit low-level crimes and their victims.
Of these, 319 have completed the requirements to which they agreed, with the others still in the process.
And in doing...
Santa Cruz Police investigating ‘suspicious object’
UPDATE, 4:45pm: The suspicious item that caused several streets to be closed in Santa Cruz late Wednesday morning was not a threat, the Santa Cruz Police Department said.
Officers from SCPD, and the Santa Cruz County bomb team, responded to a report of a pipe...
Watsonville invests nearly $200K into Senior Center
WATSONVILLE — The Watsonville City Council on Tuesday approved an Adult Services and Senior Center Plan that will bring operations of the Senior Center under the City’s umbrella.
Watsonville will pump $176,000 from its 2019-20 general fund into the Senior Center, and also hire an Older...
75-foot cell tower approved by Planning Commission
WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Planning Commission on Tuesday approved a 75-foot cell tower on the 1400 block of Freedom Boulevard.
New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC (AT&T Wireless) under the approved proposal will rent space at Extra Space Storage, 1478 Freedom Blvd., to construct the tower with 12...
Letters to the Editor June 22-July 2
Data center installations need tight standards
There are issues coming up with many of the data center installations: they need power and cooling with water....
