News

The Federal Highway Administration recently agreed to reinstate time extensions allowing dozens of emergency winter storm road repair projects in the unincorporated parts of the county to move forward. This time extensions mean projects will remain eligible to receive federal emergency relief funds previously committed...

SANTA CRUZ — The man who allegedly stabbed his brother to death in their home in the outskirts of Watsonville Friday morning made his first court appearance Tuesday, where he delayed making a plea. Joseph Keeler, 28, is facing murder charges, and special allegations that...

Tarmo Hannula: Though the day started out sunny in Santa Cruz, as I cruised into Watsonville on the METRO bus 69A the city was dark, cold and gray beneath a heavy cloud layer. The streets were still slick with rainwater. The National Weather Service...

SANTA CRUZ—A man was shot multiple times early Saturday morning on the west side of Santa Cruz. The victim was reportedly walking on the 100 block of West Cliff Drive at 2:34 a.m. when he was confronted by another person, said Joyce Blaschke, Community Relations...

WATSONVILLE—On a typical Saturday morning Watsonville City Councilman Francisco “Paco” Estrada would be sipping coffee, spending time with his family and watching Liverpool F.C. continue its dominance of the English Premier League. But Jan. 11 was no typical Saturday morning. Estrada, along with about three dozen...

Three law enforcement agencies responded to the west side of Watsonville early Monday afternoon after a man allegedly pelted passing cars with sticks and rocks, and smashed the windows of four vehicles and a building. Martin Cruz Chavez, 33, was taken to Santa Cruz County...

Tarmo Hannula: There’s a slight chance of rain this evening, the National Weather Service said. But the big news is several more episodes of rain next week starting Tuesday and then picking up again late Wednesday through Friday. • Video footage and evidence recovered on the...

WATSONVILLE—Thousands of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) customers throughout South Santa Cruz County and North Monterey County lost power Friday. According to PG&E’s website 11,609 customers lost power at 12:54 p.m. for an unknown reason. The utility said it restored power for most customers at...

WATSONVILLE—A man was stabbed to death early Friday morning in a rural setting east of Watsonville. Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a home on the 1400 block of Green Valley Road at 2 a.m. for a report of a disturbance, Sheriff’s spokeswoman Ashley...

Editor’s note: This is the first entry in a monthly series about the history scattered throughout downtown Watsonville and the city at large. For the past several months I’ve been getting around town, mostly by bus and on foot. Besides being a giant change in...