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WATSONVILLE—All major City of Watsonville events have been canceled through the end of the year, City Manager Matt Huffaker said at Tuesday’s City Council meeting. That includes the annual Spirit of Watsonville Fourth of July Parade, the Watsonville Strawberry Festival and the Wine, Beer and...

WATSONVILLE — An estimated 600 teachers, parents and students packed the Watsonville City Council chambers Wednesday for the Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees meeting. The crowd was there to protest a proposed cap on the amount th

Many of the several dozen people gathered at the Santa Cruz County Government Center Friday afternoon were in tears as Rolla Alaydi described her numerous family members who have been killed or injured in the war in Gaza. Alaydi was one of several speakers for...

Officials in Santa Cruz and Monterey counties will conduct a test of the Wireless Emergency Alert system on Thursday, sending emergency messages to mobile phones in flood inundation zones near the Pajaro River. The test is scheduled for about 3pm and is part of ongoing...

APTOS—Hundreds of human services providers, elected officials and educators gathered at Cabrillo College Friday to attend the inaugural meeting of the Thriving Immigrants Collaborative (TIC), an initiative launched three years ago to help immigrants by focusing the efforts of industry professionals. “We’re trying to coordinate...

President Joe Biden on Oct. 30 issued an Executive Order—a new framework of safety, security and privacy standards governing artificial intelligence (AI) designed to manage the fledgling technology. The executive order came after Santa Cruz County in September became one of the first jurisdictions in...

The annual Veterans Day parade returned this year after being canceled in 2020 because of the pandemic. About three dozen local veterans marched down Main Street and up Beach Street to the Mello Center for a celebration of their service in the armed forces.

When the end of the Santa Cruz Municipal wharf was smashed by surging waves during storms in December 2024, representatives from Congressman Jimmy Panetta’s office called the city’s Parks and Recreation director Tony Elliot to offer help within about an hour. Elliot said the speed...

The STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) Expo unfolded Saturday at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds, showcasing science, art projects and demonstrations in three buildings for Santa Cruz County students, grades K-12. “One of the main goals of the Expo is to offer a place...