News

WATSONVILLE—Tens of thousands of residents have already been displaced due to the CZU August Lightning Complex fires—and those are just the humans. Wildlife experts are calling for people to be on the lookout for animals fleeing from the fires, which are currently 13% contained. As...

WATSONVILLE—Last Thursday Rev. Robin Mathews-Johnson, who has served as pastor of the Watsonville First United Methodist Church since 1999, was given a fond farewell as she moved on to her new assignment at a church in Fresno. The event, organized by her congregation and the...

SANTA CRUZ—Staff of Life, a popular natural foods market in Santa Cruz for more than 50 years, announced Monday that an employee tested positive for Covid-19. “We have made the decision to temporarily close after learning a member of our staff has been diagnosed with...

WATSONVILLE—Twenty years ago, Linda S. Gunther was working as a Human Resources Executive in Silicon Valley when she had an idea for a story. A character formed in her imagination: Polly, a young girl who regularly panics over small things that go wrong in...

More than three dozen students from every high school within Pajaro Valley Unified School District’s boundaries gathered in the district’s boardroom Tuesday for a first-of-its kind meeting with Superintendent Heather Contreras. The Superintendent Student Advisory Meeting, which Contreras said will occur at least six times...

Community involvement in the Cabrillo College name change continued at the Watsonville campus on June 28. In an open forum, speakers explained how the name Aptos has come to symbolize privilege and exclusion, despite its origins in indigenous language and culture. Aptos had previously appeared to...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—With a Red Flag warning in place through Monday, possibly bringing erratic winds and dry lightning, the Santa Cruz County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) is urging all evacuees of the CZU Lightning Complex fires currently staying outdoors in tents to seek refuge...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Police on Thursday afternoon found the 12-year-old Watsonville girl that ran away from home Tuesday evening. WPD found Mary Guadalupe Curiel Lopez at Callaghan Park around 2 p.m. "She is safe and we're speaking to her now," WPD said through its Twitter account. She was reported...

WATSONVILLE—Santa Cruz County officials late Wednesday warned residents to be prepared for a high possibility of flooding, as the Watsonville Police Department issued evacuation warnings for the neighborhoods west of Corralitos Creek, the same areas that flooded during the series of storms that hit...

SANTA CRUZ—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday laid the groundwork for a ban on single-use disposable cups by unanimously approving a 25-cent charge for the product at all food-service businesses. The charge will go into effect on July 1, 2020 if given...