News

APTOS—Nonprofit workers in Santa Cruz County are two times more likely than the general public to require the very social services they help provide. That’s according to a recent survey conducted by the Human Care Alliance (HCA), a coalition of nonprofit agencies from around the...

PAJARO—On the same day that the City of Watsonville lifted its evacuation warnings and orders, residents of the town of Pajaro are questioning why the orders keeping them out of their homes still stand. The Main Street bridge over the Pajaro River was still closed...

WATSONVILLE—Police are asking for the public’s help in tracking down a suspect in an animal abuse case. Ashley Keehn of the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office said that on March 26 a motorist discovered a severely injured and underweight 4-month-old golden retriever (mix) puppy beneath...

Bird enthusiasts got a dramatic treat at the year’s end when an extremely rare black-headed gull dropped by Rio Del Mar State Beach.  While common in Asian countries and along the Eastern U.S. coast, the gull, largely white, with red legs, red bill and a...

Police search a vehicle and home on the 500 block of Green Valley Road Wednesday. A Watsonville man was arrested near the home on suspicion of robbing the Rite Aid store on Freedom Boulevard just 24 hours earlier. Watsonville spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said police were...

Driscoll’s berry company on Tuesday announced Soren Bjorn as the company’s new CEO.  Bjorn previously served as president of Driscoll’s of the Americas. He will assume the role in January and oversee the company’s global day-to-day operations, the company announced in a press release. J. Miles Reiter,...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday set the stage for a streamlined process for rebuilding the homes and other structures damaged in the CZU August Lightning Complex fire. The item was part of the consent agenda and therefore garnered no...

The Watsonville City Council on Tuesday will consider pulling $176,000 from the City’s general fund to create a Senior Center and Older Adult Services Plan.

By Erin Malsbury, Special to the Pajaronian MOSS LANDING—The Ocean Protection Council (OPC) recently approved $1.3 million in funding for the final phase of the massive restoration project of the Elkhorn Slough wetlands, an effort that has been in the works since 2012. Wetlands improve...

WATSONVILLE—Gretchen Regenhardt, regional director of advocacy for the Watsonville branch of California Rural Legal Assistance, was showered with high esteem last week at her retirement party. About 50 people, including recently seated Watsonville Mayor Rebecca Garcia, gathered at Jalisco’s restaurant for an informal dinner, to...