PV Chamber reveals yearly honorees
WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley Unified School District bus driver Barbie Gomez pulled into the transportation yard on Grimmer Road late Wednesday morning, a trip she has taken countless times in her 12 years on the job.
But this day was different. She found a coterie of coworkers...
Watsonville’s Measure Y passes
WATSONVILLE—Watsonville’s voters have spoken.
And their message was clear: keep our police and fire departments strong.
Measure Y, the renewal of the half-cent public safety sales tax, passed with a little more than 76 percent of the votes from Tuesday night’s primary election.
The measure will take...
Watsonville man who caused DUI crash sentenced to more than 5 years in prison
SALINAS—A Watsonville man who seriously injured a woman in a DUI crash nearly one year ago was sentenced Thursday to more than five years in state prison, Monterey County Deputy District Attorney Merideth Sillman said.
Noel Ledesma, 39, is in custody in Monterey County Jail.
He...
Watsonville residents warned of possible flooding
WATSONVILLE—Santa Cruz County has issued a flood advisory for three evacuation zones along Corralitos and Salsipuedes creeks. The Pajaro River is not at risk of flooding, County officials say.
The warning is in effect for zone PAJ-E026, which is north of Wagner Avenue, south of...
The circus comes to town
The Circus has come to town, this time at Ramsay Park on Main Street in Watsonville.
Circus Royal Spectacular—out of Las Vegas—rolled into town Tuesday, and crews quickly began driving giant tent stakes into the softball diamond to set up their mammoth bigtop tent.
Circus spokesperson...
Hartnell center coming to Castroville
CASTROVILLE—Two large signs along Merritt Street just east of Highway 1 in Castroville now mark the site where, by spring of 2022, a new education and outreach center for Hartnell College will serve students throughout North Monterey County.
The signs, installed Dec. 5, are also...
Carrillo pleads guilty to Gutzwiller killing
SANTA CRUZ—The man who shot a Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s sergeant to death—days after killing a federal building security guard in Oakland during a crime spree two years ago—pleaded guilty Monday to the local charges.
Steven Carrillo, 33, a former U.S. Air Force sergeant, will...
Suspect in recent Watsonville murder case arrested
WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Police on Tuesday arrested a Watsonville man for a fatal shooting near Ramsay Park from last year.
Julio Sanchez, 22, has been charged with murder. He was already in custody in Santa Cruz County Jail for vehicle theft and other charges. He is being...
Pajaro students get history lesson of a ‘lifetime’
SAN FRANCISCO—The Orpheum Theater in San Francisco was abuzz with excitement Wednesday afternoon as 1,500 eighth-graders from North Monterey County settled in to experience “Hamilton: An American Musical.”
Among them was the eighth-grade class from Pajaro Middle School.
“I’m really excited,” said Darlene Valenzuela, who made...
Late-night blaze razes World War II-era building near Watsonville
LA SELVA BEACH—Fire ripped through an historic building on the Monterey Bay Academy campus Saturday night.
By Sunday morning all that remained of the former auditorium on the coastal outskirts of Watsonville were a few remnants of framework that protruded through a bed of ash.
Firefighters...
Watsonville Police Department holds awards ceremony for outstanding employees
Dozens of law enforcement and emergency first responders gathered in the Watsonville City Council Chambers Wednesday for a promotional and award ceremony honoring Watsonville...
