News

A man was taken into custody after a shooting Saturday night near Riverside Drive and Marchant Street. Just before 7pm, Watsonville Police responded to reports of shots fired at the heavily traveled intersection. They learned the suspect, 49-year-old Sandro Vega, had been seen outside a...

International Worker’s Day The Monterey Bay Central Labor Council will hold its annual Labor Day Picnic May 1 on International Worker’s Day, also known in many countries as Labor Day. With a theme of “Honor Working People” the day starts with a 1pm car caravan that...

The Elkhorn Slough Foundation (ESF) Board of Directors announced Tuesday the hiring of Taylor Honrath as its next Executive Director.  “We are pleased to welcome Taylor to this new role,” said Board President Susan Matcham. “He has been an outstanding Deputy Director, and we’re confident that...

Grey Bears, which has been helping seniors for more than five decades, has unveiled plans to renovate an 11,000 square-foot warehouse next to its existing mid-county facility.  The space, formally a warehouse for Palace Art & Office Supply, will serve as a home of the...

Agricultural emissions, industry in Watsonville, heavy machinery and semi-trucks that transport produce from across the country: there are countless pollutants in the Pajaro Valley that can affect air quality. But for many years, residents of the Pajaro Valley have lacked access to timely, accurate...

Rob and Jolynn Diepenbroek, with their dog, Loki, check out rows of early-day cars at the weekly Cars and Coffee event in East Lake Village Shopping Center. The free Saturday gathering, from 9-11am at 936 E. Lake Ave. in Watsonville, is a place for...

In the early 1980s, when her eponymous bakery was in its infancy, Gayle Ortiz learned that a developer planned to turn the land surrounding the Rispin Mansion in Capitola into a senior living complex and several private homes. That plan did not sit well with...

A countywide celebration of visual and performing arts kicked off April 16 and will run through April 26.  The Ripple Effect Santa Cruz County Arts Festival is the County’s effort to highlight the creative community during California’s Arts, Culture and Creativity Month.  Organizers said the event...

Public defenders in Santa Cruz County will join colleagues across California and the nation April 23 in a coordinated protest highlighting what they describe as chronic underfunding and unmanageable caseloads that threaten defendants’ constitutional right to counsel. Chief Public Defender Heather Rogers is urging community...

Two environmental groups filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday accusing Graniterock of violating the Clean Water Act for more than 1,000 days at its A.R. Wilson Quarry in Aromas. Environment California and the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance allege the Watsonville-based company has for years discharged excessive...