News

WATSONVILLE—More than 10 percent of the $349 billion set aside for the nation’s small businesses struggling to stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic has already been claimed as of Monday morning, according to National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow. Speaking to reporters at the White...

CENTRAL COAST—Heavy rains drenched the Central Coast at the start of the week, but forecasters say wet weather has largely drifted south, opening the curtain for warmer, sunny days. While areas of the Central Coast dealt with isolated flooding, a few down trees and a...

APTOS—Cabrillo College President Matt Wetstein in a March 31 email thanked voters who supported Measure R, which would have funded construction and infrastructure projects at the college’s Aptos and Watsonville campuses.  The $274 million bond measure would have placed about $20 per $100,000 on the...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Police Department is warning residents about a scam in which a caller pretends to be a police officer and asks for a callback to discuss “confidential legal matters.”  The caller reportedly falsely claimed to be WPD Sgt. Michael Ridgway. The person who received the call...

Tarmo Hannula I stopped by Coffeeville in the East Lake Village Shopping Center this morning and was relieved to see them running daily hours. Now they’re making clever use of their Dutch door, which enables them to offer walk-up window service. Their barista Aliyah Piñon...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Police on April 16 arrested a homeless man for allegedly setting two fires. Elio Ortega, 41, was charged with arson. He was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bail, jail records showed. Ortega was arrested after officers responded to a report...

WATSONVILLE—The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees on Wednesday approved a proposal to lay off as many as 24 classified employees, a move district officials say was necessary due to declining enrollment. Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez told the board that the district has lost...

Words to live by I would like to share an uplifting quote, in these difficult days of the coronavirus, with the Pajaronian readers. It’s a real gem, that is credited to President Theodore Roosevelt, “Believe you can, and you’re halfway there!” Those are wise words from...

SALINAS—A man convicted two decades ago of trying to kill two Watsonville Police officers was denied parole this week after a hearing at Salinas Valley State Prison, Santa Cruz County District Attorney Jeff Rosell announced Wednesday. Manuel Murillo, 42, was also convicted of dozens of...