News

Three Pajaro Valley Unified School District students on Wednesday became the first in Santa Cruz County to earn the California State Seal of Civic Engagement. The award, approved by the California State Legislature in 2020, goes to young people whose community involvement and knowledge of...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The County of Santa Cruz has announced the availability of Covid-19 relief funds for local small businesses and nonprofits responding to the Covid-19 pandemic. Available through the Santa Cruz County Cares Recovery Program, applications are now being accepted through Sept. 15 for...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Brillante, the ongoing community mosaic project spearheaded by Community Arts Empowerment (CAE), has extended its deadline for art submissions to Feb. 10. Organizers are looking for local artists’ work to be featured on the six-story parking garage on Rodriguez Street, which is attached...

UPDATE, 4:45pm: The suspicious item that caused several streets to be closed in Santa Cruz late Wednesday morning was not a threat, the Santa Cruz Police Department said. Officers from SCPD, and the Santa Cruz County bomb team, responded to a report of a pipe...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Planning Commission at its Tuesday meeting rejected a gas station’s application for a beer and wine alcohol license and also recommended the City Council deny a permit for a proposed large propane storage facility. An Arco AM/PM convenience store currently being constructed adjacent...

WATSONVILLE—A group of young girls aged 6 to 11 lined up with their bikes at Ramsay Park on Sunday afternoon, eager to learn about riding the park’s new pump track. The free clinic was organized by Bike Santa Cruz County with the help of the...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—At least nine Santa Cruz County Jail correctional officers have tested positive for Covid-19, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office announced in a press release Monday. All nine are now off work, and six officers have been quarantined based on contact with infected...

Tweeting that the “shameful attack” would not prevent Congress from carrying out its duties, Jimmy Panetta and his peers were back on the floor of the House of Representatives late Wednesday, following an unprecedented onslaught on the Capitol Building from a mob of supporters...

SACRAMENTO—A bill that would increase protections for California’s farmworkers during hazardous smoky conditions created by seasonal wildfires is making its way through the state legislature. Assembly Bill 73, also known as the Farmworker Wildfire Smoke Protections Act, recently passed the Assembly Committee on Labor and...

WATSONVILLE—As thousands of students throughout Pajaro Valley Unified School District bid farewell to their summer and prepare for a new year, educators and school employees are readying classrooms, sharpening pencils and honing their lesson plans. Such back-to-school preparations have always been a normal part of...