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Watsonville
March 27, 2026

Gray hired as Watsonville Community Hospital CEO

Watsonville Hospital
Stephen Gray was officially hired as CEO of Watsonville Community Hospital on Wednesday. With a 4-1 vote, the Pajaro Valley Health Care District Board approved Gray’s contract, less than a week after the hospital corporation announced him as its selection. Board member Joe Gallagher dissented. Hospital...

Photojournalism showcased

Students from Renaissance High School take time Friday to visit the current exhibit at the Pajaro Valley Gallery, "Witness: Photojournalism,” featuring works by Tarmo Hannula, Bob Fitch, Joe Ravetz, Shmuel Thaler and Sam Vestal, which runs through May 21.

Freedom VFW post facing closure

Watsonville VFW
WATSONVILLE—Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1716, which has served the local community of veterans since its inception in 1929, is facing closure after members failed to elect officers at a meeting in July. Member Paul Szemenciak says that, out of 116 members, just eight showed...

USDA announces increase to CalFresh benefits

WATSONVILLE—Starting on Oct. 1, anyone receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, known in California as CalFresh, will see a slight increase to the amount they receive each month. The changes to the federal Thrifty Food Plan comes thanks to the U.S. Department of Agriculture...

KSQD flooded

KSQD treasurer Mathilde Rand
Sometime during the late-night hours Sunday, as hours-long rainfall pounded the Central Coast, water gushed through a telecommunications conduit leading into KSQD radio station, flooding the studio floors and sending the few staffers that were working scrambling to get sensitive electronic equipment off the...

Family of Covid-19 victim suing Watsonville nursing home after deadly outbreak

Watsonville Post Acute Center covid
WATSONVILLE—A family of a man who died from Covid-19 at Watsonville Post Acute Center (WPAC) has sued the facility. Donald Wickham, 94, died on Oct. 10. He was one of 16 residents who died after contracting the virus. According to the lawsuit filed Nov. 10 by...

Beach Festival gears up for inaugural event

New event will take over Capitola Village Sept. 29-30.

Kaiser Permanente Arena ‘vaccination hub’ opens tomorrow

Kaiser Permanente arena vaccine hub
Kaiser Permanente is opening a Covid-19 vaccination hub Thursday at Kaiser Permanente Arena in Santa Cruz for eligible members and others in the community, the health care provider announced in a press release Wednesday. Dependent upon vaccine supply, the site is expected to operate seven...

Man arrested for allegedly shooting, killing reported ‘friend’

Watsonville green valley shooting
WATSONVILLE—Watsonville police arrested a 19-year-old man for allegedly shooting and killing a man who officers say was his “friend” on Jan. 7. Ricardo Garcia was taken into custody on the 1400 block of Freedom Boulevard on Feb. 12. Watsonville Police Department spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said...

Community Foundation Santa Cruz County announces $1.58M in grants

community foundation
A grant announced May 25 by the Community Foundation Santa Cruz County will allow the nonprofit Salud y Cariño to continue its mission of bringing physical fitness and socio-emotional programs to Santa Cruz County girls. The Santa Cruz-based organization was one of 77 nonprofits that...
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Walgreen to pay $6 million in price scanner and expired products...

Walgreens has agreed to pay $6 million to settle allegations it overcharged customers and sold expired products in California, including violations identified in Santa...
A crew from Granite Construction works on Reach 6 of the Pajaro River at Watsonville Project along Corralitos Creek. (

Levee work underway