News

An early-morning fire that broke out at a mobile home in the Portola Heights Mobile Home Park on Freedom Boulevard Tuesday is being investigated as an attempted murder. Duane Hawkins, 65, arrived at the home and started the fire following an argument, Watsonville Police spokeswoman...

Watsonville firefighters battled a blaze that started in the attic of a residence at 21 Authur Rd. Tuesday around 1:47 p.m. The house was deemed a public nuisance on May 14, and Watsonville City officials ordered the property abated on May 28. The single-family home...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville police on Wednesday arrested a man suspected of firing several shots at an occupied vehicle parked on Rio del Pajaro Court on June 18. Jibril Dalmar Abdi was arrested at his residence on Blackbird Circle. He has been charged with attempted murder, burglary and...

SANTA CRUZ—This Saturday, the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History will host a special launch event for Watsonville is in the Heart's digital history archive. The new archive features oral history recordings, original documents and family artifacts that capture the rich history of Filipino...

Moreland Notre Dame School launched its first Transitional Kindergarten when school opened on Aug. 23.

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville City Council at its Tuesday meeting declared the vacant Kmart property a public nuisance, citing “illegal camping, lack of sanitation, inoperable or abandoned vehicles, excessive noise,” and a “violation of the City’s zoning laws.” The declaration gives the City the right to remove...

WATSONVILLE—The major renovation of the Watsonville High School cafeteria is moving ahead, with floor tile installation near completion and last minute touches being done. General contractor Avila Construction is heading up the project, estimated at $3.3 million. It is the school’s final allocation from Measure...

APTOS—Sometime in the summer, Mid-County will have a new ice cream shop, a walk-up establishment near the heart of Aptos Village. Bruster’s Real Ice Cream—headquartered in Pennsylvania with 200 locations throughout the U.S. and in South Korea—features 24 flavors that are hand-made on-site daily, says...

WATSONVILLE—The developer behind a 150-unit housing project off Ohlone Parkway is asking the Watsonville City Council for a one-year extension on the project’s approval. First approved by the council in 2018 as Sunshine Vista, Hillcrest Estates was set to transform an 11-acre junkyard at 511...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Santa Cruz County Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel has issued a new order closing parks and beaches in Santa Cruz County beginning 11:59 p.m. on April 8, through 11:59 p.m. on April 15, a period that includes Easter weekend and much of...