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Watsonville
September 27, 2025

Cabrillo plans to begin in-person classes Tuesday

cabrillo college
APTOS—Cabrillo College’s students will return to in-person instruction, about one month after beginning the spring semester with a distance learning model. Cabrillo President and Superintendent Matt Wetstein said the decision comes as the number of people testing positive for Covid-19 declines and as the Omicron...

County pilot program aims for unified approach to homelessness

Watsonville homeless
SANTA CRUZ—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a project designed to integrate clinical, mental health and housing services to help the county’s population of homeless people with mental illness and substance use disorders The Mental Health Services Act Innovation Plan is...

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)...

Drive-thru Crab Feed returns March 5

WATSONVILLE—The 18th Annual Fairgrounds Foundation Crab Feed will return March 5, and once again it will be a drive-thru event.  The annual feed is one of the foundation’s biggest fundraisers of the year. All profits of the event will go directly back to the fairgrounds...

Supervisors mull post-employment lobbying rule

Santa Cruz County lobbying
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a new ordinance which, if given final approval on March 8, will impose a one-year “cooling off” period during which former County employees would be prohibited from engaging in lobbying activities for...

Deputy Sheriffs’ Association makes record donation for memorial park

Gutzwiller park
SOQUEL—The Santa Cruz County Deputy Sheriffs' Association (DSA) has offered a $100,000 “challenge” grant to help fund a memorial for Sheriff’s Sgt. Damon Gutzwiller, who was killed on duty on June 6, 2020. The grant is the largest donation in the organization’s history. The DSA now...

Dientes celebrates 18th annual Give Kids A Smile Day

Dientes Santa Cruz
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Feb. 12 marked a day of free smiles for 48 low-income children in Santa Cruz County thanks to Dientes’ celebration of Give Kids A Smile Day.  This annual day of free care, which has grown to serve more than 300,000 children each year...

Photo: City Plaza’s new self-cleaning restrooms arrive

watsonville plaza restrooms
A crew from Watsonville Public Works & Utilities installs new self-cleaning restrooms on the Union Street side of the City Plaza Wednesday. The long-awaited restrooms were delivered Tuesday morning. They will feature two stalls and are expected to be completed and open to the...

Advocates question whether pilot pesticide alert program will provide transparency

Watsonville pesticides
Santa Cruz is one of four counties in the state to try out pesticide notification pilot projects. For a certain class of pesticides known as California Restricted Materials, growers must submit notices of intent to the county agricultural commissioner’s office 24 hours before application.  The...

Change to single-use cup fee, hotel tax increase heads to voters in June

disposable cups santa cruz county supervisors
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved two items for the June ballot which, if approved by voters, will increase taxes on hotels and vacation rentals, and change the way fees on single-use disposable cups are used. The supervisors also...
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Watsonville’s Firefighters and Their Lifesaving Mission

When a call comes in for a medical emergency, every second counts.  While an ambulance may be on its way from other parts of the...