News

Nine months of late nights, countless repairs and more than 100 hours spent testing an underwater robot in a swimming pool paid off in a big way for a team of Santa Cruz County high school students. Hephaestus Robotics, a 21-member team representing eight county...

SACRAMENTO—Every registered voter in California will receive a vote-by-mail ballot for the November election after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order on Friday. The order requires that each county’s elections officials send vote-by-mail ballots for the Nov. 3 general election to all registered voters.  Californians...

Diane Severin’s teaching career at Watsonville High School spanned more than five decades. She is described as a fierce advocate for equal rights and a loyal friend. She stayed deeply involved in the community throughout her life, took up skeet shooting at 60 and...

WATSONVILLE—Last year, Pajaro Valley Arts’ annual “Take Aways: Art To Go!” fundraising exhibit earned a record-breaking $43,000. The organization hopes to once again top itself in 2020. “This is our one big fundraiser of the year,” said Chris Miroyan, who is co-curating this year’s exhibit with...

SAN JOSE—Watsonville native Matt Mahan has been sworn in as mayor of Northern California’s largest city. The Harvard-educated 40-year-old businessman turned politician grew up on the outskirts of Watsonville in the 1980s and ’90s, just off Amesti Road near Pinto Lake. His mother taught at...

Santa Cruz ensemble will join forces with acclaimed pianist and vocalist Terry Riley for a performance on Feb. 2.

WATSONVILLE—Thanks to helping hands at the Watsonville Public Library, free library service at your home is a phone call, or email away.  LibraryLink is a long-standing outreach service designed to bring the trove of library materials to the homes of those who cannot easily leave...

WATSONVILLE—A man was killed after he was shot late Sunday night during a struggle with another man on Sunny Hills Drive at Herman Court. Watsonville Police Sgt. Charles Bailey said police got reports of gunfire following a fight between at least two men in a...

A 61-year-old man and a 59-year-old woman, both of Hayward, died in a motorcycle crash on Highway 9 near Boulder Creek Saturday. The California Highway Patrol said an 18-year-old female from San Jose was driving a white 2018 Tesla Model 3 north on Hwy. 9...

MONTEREY COUNTY—A federal magistrate on Monday extended a temporary restraining order stopping Monterey County from removing a group of homeless people from an encampment along the Pajaro River levee. The decision by Magistrate Judge Susan van Keulen allows dozens of people to remain along the...