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Watsonville
February 7, 2026

Man dies from gunshot wound after shooting near Watsonville

sirens
WATSONVILLE—A 21-year-old man died Sunday night after he was shot near Coward and Carlton roads, a rural area in the outskirts of Watsonville. The victim has been identified as Abel Ruiz. According to Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Sgt. Dan Robbins, a passerby saw a man who...

Cidery, brewery celebrate anniversaries with event series

WATSONVILLE—Two local businesses are celebrating their anniversaries by offering community events throughout the month of August. Santa Cruz Cider Company (SCCC) and The Slough Brewing Collective are neighbors, both located off of Hangar Way in Watsonville. Since the brewery first opened in 2020, the two...

Local paint company restores iconic Pajaro Valley buildings

watsonville house
They’ve painted over 1,000 houses in Watsonville. Now the Hernandez father and sons company are on a roll, tackling a massive paint job for one of the most prominent historical homes in Watsonville, the 1901 Porter-Pista home on the corner of East Beach and...

Valley harvest continues | About Town

Tarmo Hannula Last week fellow reporter, Johanna Miller and I drove out along San Andreas Road to get a few photos and a feel of the current agricultural scene. The strawberry fields were abuzz with harvesters. From what I could see everyone was wearing a...

PCCS graduates look ahead

PCCS graduation
SANTA CRUZ—Class of 2020 Salutatorian Michelle Soriano says she has come out of Pacific Coast Charter School a changed individual. “I’m leaving as a different person—but in a good way,” Soriano said. “I feel like I’m better at looking out for myself, and not just...

County animal shelter reinstates free pop-up clinics

Healthy pets for all santa cruz county
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—When the pandemic hit one year ago, the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter (SCCAS) was forced to shut down its Healthy Pets For All (HPFA) program, which offered residents free pop-up veterinary clinics. During the first months of the crisis, SCCAS found ways...

PHOTO: Freedom Boulevard down to two lanes

freedom boulevard road work
Traffic is channeled into one lane in each direction in what once was both southbound lanes of Freedom Boulevard Thursday as major improvement work continues. Joshua Nol of McKim Corporation said all traffic has been shifted to the west side of the road, while...

Photo: Intersection upgrades

New lane striping is shown at the new business center on the corner of Main Street at Auto Center Drive where the heavily traveled intersection is being reconfigured. Kevin Drabinski, public information officer for Caltrans, said new traffic lights, signage, ADA sidewalk ramps and...

Council approves plan to transform downtown Watsonville

downtown watsonville main beach street intersection
In a future envisioned by Watsonville officials, the city’s downtown will be a vibrant and bustling place where commerce, mixed-use housing and a redesigned transit system intermingle and trees line a narrowed, two-lane Main Street. The Downtown Specific Plan, approved unanimously late Tuesday night by...

PG&E plans to increase undergrounding efforts

PG&E
CALIFORNIA—In recent years, residents of the Golden State have been hit with another unwelcome event: repetitive power outages. The outages that once occasionally darkened our homes have become almost routine year-round occurrences, and Californians have been clamoring for Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E)...
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PVUSD board to mull ‘stay-away letter’ for Medina

Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board Trustee Gabe Medina could be restricted from entering the Pajaro Valley High School campus after a confrontation with...

MioCar is in Watsonville